Dear Friends,
Recently, Nicole was among 14 global leaders selected to receive Open Society Foundation’s prestigious and highly competitive New Executives Award. The award comes with a cash grant to help meet the challenges often faced by new leaders and to grow IWPR’s reach and influence in the field.
Since 2013, the New Executives Fund at OSF has competitively awarded 132 grants for a total of $12.8 million. This year’s awardees include Imani Rubert-Gordon of NCLR, Ana Maria Enrique of the the Human Rights Funders Network and Ricky Watson of the National Juvenile Justice Network, among others. Earlier this year, OSF recognized Nicole as a feminist leader revolutionizing democracy and Fortune Magazine named her one their 2021 World’s 50 greatest leaders alongside New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Arden, Stacy Abrams and Soccer Superstar Megan Rapinoe.
“I am very humbled and proud to be leading IWPR in this moment. Five months into my new role here at IWPR, we were rocked by a global health and economic crisis that provided me an opportunity to step more fully into my leadership and demonstrate how sound, evidence-based research could drive change and help shape our understanding of the moment,” said C. Nicole Mason, President and CEO of IWPR. “We are winning, despite how it may look or feel at times. I am grateful for the resources, support and community I have to do this important work.”
“Robust, early support from funders gives new leaders a chance to realize their bold visions and have an outsized impact. We support a fraction of the incredibly talented leaders who are nominated, and we urge other funders to enthusiastically support new leaders in their fields,” said Alethia Jones, director of the Open Society Fellowship Program.
“Our hope is that this support can offer these leaders the space to dream and collaboratively imagine new possibilities for their organizations, together with their staffs, boards, and constituents,” said Bipasha Ray, project director of the New Executives Fund. “During this current moment in history, we need to encourage and reward bold thinking more than ever.”
Join me in celebrating Nicole, her leadership and the other Awardees.
Sincerely,
