ABOUT US

Venture 2 Impact has delivered impactful and sustainable business and IT programs by leveraging the expertise of employees from Fortune 500 companies around the globe since 2016. Our work has helped NGOs and individuals, especially women and girls, unlock their potential through training, mentorship, and technical tool development in Asia, Europe, and Africa. V2I has connected over 20 NGOs with more than 250 volunteers, contributing close to 16,000 volunteer hours, and impacting more than 2 million people. Through our unique approach, we work alongside our partners and the local community to co-create impactful and long-lasting approaches to complex challenges.

Our team

Meet our team

Fadi Al Qassar (he/him)

Co-Founder & Executive Director

I have come a long way from my native Jordan, and I’ve made a lot of stops along the way. I lead Venture 2 Impact, and spend my days talking to employees and engaged partners from Fortune 500 companies, to onboard them in skills based volunteer programs.

I believe that solving the world’s most complex social, economic, and environmental problems requires the brightest minds and our fullest commitments. I co-founded Venture 2 Impact because I wanted to create an approachable way to educate volunteers about complex problems, allow them to use their natural skills and abilities for good, and convert them into changemakers. I wanted to create an approachable way to educate volunteers about complex problems, allow them to use their natural skills and abilities for good, and convert them into changemakers.

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Lila Berryman (she/her)

Innovation & Funding Specialist

I am passionate about curiosity and education – not just in the classroom, but in everyday life – and the skill of learning itself. There is always more to learn, and the better people know how to learn, the bigger the impact we can have on the world and its problems. No one person can know everything; that’s why it is so important for everyone to nurture curiosity, work together, and share our knowledge and expertise.

In my role as the Innovation & Funding Specialist, I coordinate with and champion the work of our partners by applying Design Thinking & Human-Centered Design to their challenges, as well as finding relevant funding opportunities to increase access to problem-solving resources. I manage innovation practices at V2I, and I ensure that all our projects are human-centered and advance gender equity, economic opportunity, and well-being for everyone. 

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Abby Dooks (she/her)

Program Coordinator

My passion for working in the nonprofit sector stems from my academic background in the areas of Global & International Studies and Political Science. During my studies I was fortunate to have been exposed to international cooperation at the United Nations, Fair Trade initiatives in the Global South and Indigenous Environmental Guardianship through my graduate thesis. 

In my role as Program Coordinator, I champion V2I’s relationship with our nonprofit partners and ensure that the needs of the nonprofit organizations are being met through the Design Thinking Process. I also lead the Monitoring, Evaluation, and Learning that is used to measure our impact. My goal at V2I is to ensure that our work positively supports the nonprofits who we align ourselves with and that we facilitate a genuine partnership.

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Mary Adeyemi (she/her)

Marketing & Communications Specialist

I am proud to be a part of Venture 2 Impact. My main focus has always been to help create positive change and impact. I am passionate about helping to develop sustainable and equitable solutions to the world’s most pressing problems. As an active listener and communicator, I’m glad to collaborate with a team of creative and driven individuals to help promote and drive meaningful impact globally.

As the Marketing and Communications Specialist, I strive to develop innovative solutions to the challenges we face to reach and engage our audience. I am committed to creating compelling content that is concise, informative, and impactful. I believe that thoughtful storytelling has the power to move, educate, and inspire, and I am passionate about creating and sharing stories that will have a lasting impact.

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Brinda Odedra (she/her)

Strategic Engagement Manager

I have always valued the sense of community, connection and belonging. Volunteering is one of the ways I connect with the people around me and better understand how I fit into the world. I am passionate about creating diverse, inclusive, and intersectional spaces. I recognize the importance of embracing anti-oppressive and anti-racist practices and I’m eager to promote change through a unique equity-minded approach.
 
In my role as a Strategic Engagement Manager, I cultivate corporate partnerships, NGO relationships, and volunteer engagement. I focus intently on continuously improving the volunteer experience at V2I.
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Christy MacDonald (she/her)

Finance Manager, Contract

I was born and raised in Halifax and started my career as an editor at a publishing company when I lived in Ontario for 10 years. Back in Halifax, I transitioned to administrative roles with finance components to them and then was the finance and operations manager for a Halifax startup from incoporation to year four. I started Clearview Business Services Corp. in 2017 to help startup and small businesses with all things financial without needing to be a full-time employee anywhere except for myself. Today, Clearview’s clients include sole proprietors, corporations, and non-profits like Venture 2 Impact. 

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ABOUT US

Since our inception, we have been integrating volunteers into worthy non-profits and charities around the world. Every year our volunteers work on projects in collaboration with communities in Africa,  Europe, and Asia, both virtually and in-person.

Through our volunteer program, we designed and implemented virtual training programs for youth in the Gambia to increase their opportunities for entrepreneurship as an alternative to expensive post-secondary education. We are helping develop an online entrepreneurship platform for female survivors of human trafficking, to provide safe alternate pathways to generate income. We have designed innovative solutions that improve mobility, education, and community integration for children with disabilities in India. We helped design and build a micro-lending program for struggling farmers in rural Uganda. To support children in rural Uganda, we engaged our volunteers in a 2-day hackathon to design a proper case management and data collection system for ChildFund Uganda, which will increase their reach and impact thousands of children.

All of our volunteers receive training and coaching towards a better understanding of what creates meaningful impact and how their sustained and smart volunteering can help transform the social sector.

OUR VALUES

  • HUMAN-CENTERED DESIGN People are at the heart of what we do and why we do it. Every human counts. Every experience is valid. We listen to them.
  • UNWAVERING INTEGRITY: We exist to serve people experiencing marginalization. Our organization will always make decisions prioritizing impact for, and the wellness of, those who we serve.
  • SUSTAINABLE IMPACT: We seek to create a long-lasting positive impact in everything we do. We do not pursue short wins if they stand in the way of long-term impact.
  • AGILE INNOVATION: We embrace change as an opportunity to create more impact. We know what we want to achieve – the “how” can be adapted to what is necessary.

OUR VISION

We envision a world where every individual and community have a chance at lifting themselves out of poverty. We achieve it by democratizing access to business and tech knowledge, in partnership with the public, private and social sectors.

Learn more about our work here!

Documents and Resources

Inclusive Language Guidelines

Theory of Change

Application Form