Gail Ifshin knows Impact(Ed) quite well. The organization got its start when Gail was asked to begin exploring ways to leverage the media assets of Discovery Communications in support of education in the developing world. With the backing of Discovery’s leadership, that effort evolved into a global nonprofit organization that 15 years later, when Gail retired, was active in 16 countries, with a concentration in Africa. Fueled by partnerships in the public, nonprofit and private sectors, it developed a proven track record of self-sustaining, locally-anchored grassroots education and teacher training initiatives and high-impact video production that continues to this day.
Today Gail serves as president of Everybody Grows, an urban gardening nonprofit that inspires and equips individuals living in underserved urban areas to grow their own vegetables. She is also a beekeeper.
Gail has a Ph.D. in economics, and past professional activities include work at the Federal Reserve Board of Governors in the International Finance Division, two years as a staff economist in the White House, at the Council of Economic Advisers, and service on the Advisory Committee on Emerging Democracies at the US Department of Agriculture.
