Pivot to Philanthropy and Foundations
On September 5, 2025, Manisha Bhinge (Vice President, Health Initiative, The Rockefeller Foundation), Vishal Gujadhur (Deputy Director of Development and Finance, Gates Foundation), Tonia Wellons (President and CEO of Greater Washington Community Foundation), and Brooks Reed (Vice President, External Relations, CAF America) discussed their roles, sectors, and insights on next steps for development professionals seeking to pivot into this space. Pierina Anton-Lopez (Georgetown SFS) moderated this event, and Steve Radelet (Georgetown SFS) also provided additional commentary.
This session was the sixth in our Pivot to New Career Paths seminar series, designed to offer attendees the opportunity to hear from colleagues who have already made these important career transitions and glean how to best embark on these changes themselves.
Nobel Laureate Amartya Sen defines development not as a number—not GDP or GDP per capita, but as the expansion of freedoms. Whether or not you explicitly cite Sen by name, countless international development professionals and public servants—like you— have dedicated your careers to this vision: expanding the freedoms of others.
Moreover, as the development sector vastly resizes and shifts priorities, many philanthropies and foundations remain steadfastly committed to this vision: the promotion of social welfare.
The featured speakers on this panel all agreed that we are uniquely well-positioned to transition into new careers in the philanthropy sector. Indeed, we’ve all done this work by managing conditional cash transfers to poor rural households to improve children’s access to education, by hosting community forums that promote the inclusion of women and girls in health decision-making, or by strengthening electoral processes in fragile democracies, and more.
In other words, whether we know it or not, we are more than qualified to join philanthropic foundations and contribute to their noble missions from the day one!
During this event, the panelists shared their personal journeys, reflected on the nature and roles of these institutions, and offered advice on how we can leverage our development background and expertise to make a similar impact.
We have no doubt that these stories inspired attendees to reflect on their skills and encourage them to pay it forward in a new field!
Other Previous Sessions
Please feel free to browse our other previous sessions to access summaries, video content, and more information about our other events!