TEAM
Gul Rukh Rahman -
Director
Gul Rukh is the director of ERFIP, a think and do-tank that harnesses the capabilities of private philanthropy from Frontier Markets spanning Africa, the Middle East, Asia and Latin America.
Gul advises private foundations and individuals on program development, strategy and management issues. She recently completed an assignment with Quadia , a leading Swiss impact investment firm and CapeRock – a Geneva based financial services company.
Her past experience includes being a director of Children of Abraham- an international non-profit organization in the US dedicated to the promotion of dialogue between Jewish and Muslim youth through the use of technology. She has also worked with France’s Ministry of Defense on targeted programs to address issues of diversity, integration and intra-community dialogue.
She is a guest lecturer at the University of Geneva on regional philanthropies.
Trained as a software engineer she holds a Masters in Computer Science. She also earned a graduate degree from the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy, Tufts University, US.
Gul advises private foundations and individuals on program development, strategy and management issues. She recently completed an assignment with Quadia , a leading Swiss impact investment firm and CapeRock – a Geneva based financial services company.
Her past experience includes being a director of Children of Abraham- an international non-profit organization in the US dedicated to the promotion of dialogue between Jewish and Muslim youth through the use of technology. She has also worked with France’s Ministry of Defense on targeted programs to address issues of diversity, integration and intra-community dialogue.
She is a guest lecturer at the University of Geneva on regional philanthropies.
Trained as a software engineer she holds a Masters in Computer Science. She also earned a graduate degree from the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy, Tufts University, US.
Gaspard Verdier - Advisor
Gaspard founded Simandef in 2009, working for foundations, impact investors, philanthropists, social enterprises and funds. In particular, he advises leading philanthropies and families in France and Europe on mission and impact investing. Recent references include the Edmond de Rothschild Foundations, Fondation Caritas France, Fondation Daniel & Nina Carasso, Fondation de France, Fondation Ensemble and the French Foundations Center.
Gaspard lectures on financing social innovation at Institut Catholique de Paris, Sciences-Po and HEC Paris, where he also coordinated the school’s pilot social incubation project in La Courneuve (North of Paris). He is a member of the French Advisory Board to the Social Impact Investment task force established by the G8 (now the GSG) led by Sir Ronald Cohen and contributed to the French report: “Innover financièrement pour innover socialement”.
Gaspard sits on the board of SFCO-Maison Gradis, a long-standing family business converting its financial portfolio to impact investing. He is also a member of the Comité d’Orientation Stratégique of Fondation Pierre Bellon. Gaspard worked previously in investment banking for Goldman Sachs in London and Société Générale in Paris, with a focus on Africa. He took also part in the creation of a bank in Mozambique.
Gaspard is a graduate of Ecole des Hautes Etudes Commerciales (HEC) and the London School of Economics (LSE).
He resides in Paris with his wife and three children.