Sam Elghanayan was a Government Innovation Fellow building a community of municipal officials using procurement and contracting systems to improve the performance of government programs and services. Prior to joining the GPL, she designed and scaled social enterprises in East Africa and led strategic projects for the CEO and COO that contributed to serving 14 times more clients in 3 years. She previously led a 43-person team and partnered with government officials to implement and research an economic development program in West Africa. Prior to that, she worked on the Data and Analytics Portfolio of a New York venture capital firm. She also analyzed global economic and political data as a trader for a Bulge Bracket investment bank in New York and London.

In her spare time, Sam is pursuing a Master in Public Administration / International Development at Harvard Kennedy School, where she focuses on climate change, poverty, and discrimination. At HKS, she also researched city innovations to enhance the status of women and girls with the Bloomberg Harvard City Leadership Initiative and collaborated on a Sustainable Science Program study on best practices for fostering sustainable development in government, business, and non-profits. She received a BA magna cum laude in Economics, Political Science, and Human Rights from Columbia University, where she was a John Jay Scholar. If lost, check the nearest National Park or live music venue.