Fellows

Dr. Navani is a global health scientist focusing on decolonial data applications of technology as an organizing principle to shift power asymmetries and improve health outcomes in complex humanitarian emergencies and development settings. She leads the EpiNu project, a community-centric approach using edge deep learning models to address prenatal nutrition security in communities impacted by extreme poverty and climate change.

Navani is the founder and director of DHDI, a not-for-profit digital community health collab working with grassroots organizations in armed conflict and climate-impacted settings. Over the past 20 years, she has held positions at the International Rescue Committee, UNICEF, UNFPA, and Columbia University. Her work has been conducted in Afghanistan, Central African Republic, Chad, Democratic Republic of Congo, India, Kenya, Lebanon, Myanmar, Nepal, Pakistan, South Sudan, Sudan, Tanzania, and Uganda.

Louise Fox is an internationally recognized development economist who specializes in strategies for employment creation, opportunity expansion, economic empowerment, and poverty reduction.  She has advised governments in the developed and developing world, international organizations, and philanthropic and non-profit organizations on problem diagnosis, strategies for results, and outcome measurement.  She held full-time positions at USAID (as Chief Economist) and at the World Bank.  She is currently affiliated with the African Growth Initiative at the Brookings Institution and the Blum Center for Developing Economies, University of California, Berkeley. She was previously affiliated with the Overseas Development Institute, where she led a major research project on Gender and Agricultural transformation.  Louise has published in the areas of inclusive growth, structural transformation, youth employment, the political economy of poverty reduction, gender and women’s economic empowerment, employment, labor markets, and labor regulation, pension reform, reform of child welfare systems, social protection, effective public expenditures in the social sectors, and female-headed households and child welfare.

Danny Wilson is a leading global expert in the use of sensors and data science to enhance development outcomes. He envisions a future where Internet of Things (IoT) sensor-equipped aid, products, and infrastructure transform the development landscape. Such instrumentation opens the door to innovative financial models, including quantified results-based financing, pay-per-use, and pay-per-impact mechanisms. Frustrated with the prevalence of broken, under-utilized, and ineffective development projects, Danny advocates for a more data-driven approach. In his ideal future, instead of funding the construction of yet another soon-to-be-broken water well, backers would pay per liter of pumped clean water that has been verified through sensor technology. Danny was the first graduate of UC Berkeley’s Development Engineering Ph.D. program, and he has authored many papers, several book chapters, and a pair of patents on the subject. Since earning his doctorate, Danny has founded three companies, and has aimed to tackle the world’s most pressing environmental health and energy challenges. Currently, Danny wears multiple hats. He serves as the CEO of Geocene, a consultancy specializing in connected-sensor technology and software solutions. He’s also a faculty member in the Development Engineering department at UC Berkeley, where he instructs a course on harnessing sensors and data science for more effective development initiatives.

Medha Bankhwal is an Associate Partner and co-leader of AI Trust at McKinsey & Company in San Francisco, Bay Area. Medha advises clients on AI strategy, operationalization of AI Trust and governance as well as evaluating societal impact of AI solutions. She has also co-authored publications on ML ecosystem opportunities, XAI, and AI’s impact on UN Sustainable Development Goals SDGs). For this, she co-led collaboration with Google.org, along with large foundations such as the Patrick McGovern Foundation, Rockefeller Foundation, and the United Nations. Outcomes were presented at UN General Assembly and World Economic Forum in Davos in Jan 2024. Prior to McKinsey, she was at Google and subsequently co-founded a digital learning not-for-profit startup funded by Google.org and others that reached 3 million teachers in low resource schools in India to date (sold to India’s largest Telco).