Emily Friedman has a business and human-centered design practice background in rural communities, specifically focusing on locally-led development and capacity building. She believes her role as a catalyst is to empower locals to think creatively and make informed decisions on their advancement; fundamentally shifting the narrative from these communities being considered victims to instead being champions of their own development. Prior to joining GHD she was working as the Director of Operations and Innovation for The Oda Foundation based in Western Nepal. She graduated cum laude from the University of Southern California with a B.S. in Business Administration.

Emily’s prior experience includes tackling diverse social issues from various angles, including three years at PricewaterhouseCoopers, working in Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion strategy for Fortune 500 companies, working in rural Panama on solutions that were sustainable and scalable through design thinking tactics, and working on disability inclusion efforts in Vietnam.

She hopes to leverage her time at Georgetown to better understand intersectional poverty associated with climate change, gender, healthcare and education access and has honed in her specialization in agriculture and rural livelihoods.

I chose GHD because I felt the authentic sense of care from the professors, administrators and peers through the application process. Now that I am a year into the program, the support is even stronger than I could have imagined. The program has a holistic approach to development intertwined with unwavering guidance.

Summer Internship

This summer, Emily attended the Global South Coalition for Dignified Menstruation's Train the Trainer workshop in Colombo, Sri Lanka. The discussions covered a range of critical issues, including menstrual discrimination, sexual and reproductive health, HIV, child marriage, advocacy, and more. After living in rural Nepal for two years and seeing firsthand how menstrual discrimination impacts all other aspects of a woman's life, she wanted to deepen her knowledge in this space. The World Bank estimates that at least 500 million women and girls globally lack access to the facilities they need to manage their periods and UNICEF and WHO found that worldwide, only 39% of schools provide menstrual health education.

Additionally, Emily worked with BRAC International's Microfinance Team, contributing to their mission of poverty alleviation through effective information sharing and learning. BRAC, one of the world's largest NGOs, operates across multiple sectors to empower communities and reduce poverty. Her role involved synthesizing best practices, documenting successful interventions, and facilitating knowledge exchange across BRAC's global programs.

Microfinance has emerged as a promising solution to cyclical poverty. It provides small loans, savings, and other financial services to entrepreneurs and small businesses, particularly in rural areas, aiming to empower people through the ability to make money, save it, and plan for their future. BRAC's focus on remote and underserved areas extends services to those otherwise excluded from formal financial systems. This outreach promotes financial inclusion and contributes to broader socioeconomic development by enabling individuals and communities to invest in education, healthcare, and income-generating activities. BRAC's microfinance model is built on the principle of providing a comprehensive package of services that goes beyond mere credit provision. This credit-plus approach combines microcredit with technical assistance, training, and other support services tailored to the specific needs of the borrowers.