Mellissa Mark-viverito is the first Hispanic woman to hold the position as speaker of the New York City Council, which is the second most powerful position in the city government after that of the mayor. She got there through a unanimous agreement after years of dedicated efforts towards activism. Mellissa was born on the 1st, of April 1969 in San Juan to a Puerto Rico parent. She grew up in Bayamón but left for New York at age 18 based on educational purposes. Born into a wealthy home, her father a medical doctor founded the renowned San Pablo Hospital in Bayamón. She schooled at the Columbia University where she earned her bachelor’s degree and also bagged a  master’s degree from Baruch College studying public administration. Before she took over the position as speaker in 2005, she had worked for many years in local activism, non-profit organizations, and labor. Mellissa served…

While it’s not uncommon to see top CEOs and entrepreneurs contribute to causes as a part of their companies’ corporate social responsibility, some individuals have stepped it up a notch. Female entertainers are not left behind as we’ve seen a number of them embarked upon significant charitable causes across developing nations. Some of these notable female entertainers will be spotlighted in this article. First on the list is Pop music Icon Madonna Louise Ciccone. She is an American singer, songwriter, actress, and businesswoman, who has continuously contributed to charitable causes. Considered one of the most influential women in contemporary music, this American recording artist, Golden Globe winner, and entrepreneur, has received global recognition for her efforts to bring an end to the extreme poverty and hardship endured by Malawi’s 2,000,000 orphans and vulnerable children through Raising Malawi, a non-profit organization she founded in 2006 with Michael Berg. Raising Malawi is…

Janice Bryant Howroyd is an African-American woman, born on the first of September, 1952 in Tarboro of North Carolina, United States of America. Her father had a mixed race, his ancestry was of both Irish and Cherokee, but Janice mother is an African-American. This astute woman is energetic and passionate, self-inspired and very diligent. Being self-inspired is traceable to her early days in life, as a teenager in Tarboro. She suffered the torments of racism being a black girl in the midst of other white children. She was the first and only black student while in high school. According to Janice, “back in high school, there was so much racial discrimination, there was no joy in returning to school the next day if you succeeded in surviving the bad day you had the day before.” She recalls one of her worst days in school, when one of her teachers “explain…

Mrs. Isha Johansen is a Sierra Leonean born in the year 1965, into the family of Tejan-Cole of Creole descent. She was formerly known as Isha Tejan-Cole until she married her husband, Arne Birger Johansen a Norwegian Consul in Sierra Leone. She has been tagged the iron-lady of Sierra Leone, following her dedicated efforts to reach the peak in the African football federation. She was born of a football lover, Isha’s father is the cofounder of East End Lions F.C. in Freetown and one of the patriarchs of Sierra Leone football association. Isha had been initiated into the club of sports enthusiast while she was still a little girl. Her father usually carried her to the fields and she witnessed many live matches, she also practiced by playing with her brothers and friends. Isha had a bond with football and her heart ached at the terrible state of football status…

Chetna Sinha, Founder of the Mann Deshi Bank and Foundation, was born in Mumbai India. She is the farmer, economist, and activist. She is a rural diamond who has dedicated her life to shining the light in rural communities in India. The Mann Deshi bank is India’s first rural financial institution which is run for and by women. Ideas for the bank and foundation came up just after Chetna got married and decided to relocate to Mhaswad, a small town in Maharashtra. On getting to Mhaswad, there was a new amendment in the Panchayat Raj Bill; a foundation of India’s political system initiated by Mahatma Gandhi to decentralize the form of government in a way that each village would be responsible for its own affairs. In 1986-87, the Panchayat Raj Bill was passed with a new improvement that reserves 30 per cent of the Panchayat for women. At the…

Maria Lourdes Sereno is the first female Chief justice in Philippine. She was born in the year 1960, on the 2nd of July. Maria is from a very humble background, her mother was a public school teacher who helped her daughter nurture a very beautiful attitude towards books. Maria is a native of Siasi, Sulu in Philippine but she grew up in Manila the capital of Philippine. While growing up in Manila, Maria’s mother always bought her second hand books which she got with the money she had saved. At the sight of those books, Maria’s heart always leaped for joy and she read those books with all excitement in her. She had great insight and love for literature and reflection which built her capacity during her primary schooling and enabled her graduate excellently with flying colors from both primary and secondary school. On this account, Maria was awarded a…

Tolu Olubunmi is definitely a Nigerian native but working endlessly in achieving the American dream. She was 14-years-old when she moved to America and wanted to become an engineer. Tolu worked hard in school to make her way into a top university and she achieved her goal. She graduated with a degree in chemical engineering in 2002. But unlike so many other college graduates, Tolu’s undocumented status kept her from the jobs that she was otherwise qualified for. Being a determined young woman, she began to think of how to improve the life’s of immigrates like herself, then she decided to devote her time to changing immigration policies in the US so that others will have the opportunity to realize their own dreams in the country they love and call their own. Just last year, Tolu was given one of the biggest opportunities of all: to introduce President Obama at…