Yvonne Pinto

Yvonne Pinto is privileged to have been born a Kenyan, raised an Ethiopian and become a UK and indeed global citizen. She has a BSc in Agriculture (Reading), MSc in Plant Biotechnology and PhD in Molecular Virology (Imperial) and General Management Executive Education (Cambridge).

She has a long career focused mainly on technology generation, innovation ecosystems and international development, and understanding what works (and for whom) across Latin America, Africa and Asia. The emphasis has always been on the practical and pragmatic, but through the support and value of excellent interdisciplinary and diverse networks in the global North and South.

Yvonne began her early career in agricultural research and academia followed by 15 years in private philanthropy - creating and implementing investments in agriculture, enterprise, finance, and education, including the establishment of successful institutions particularly in Africa. For the past 15 years, Yvonne has led Aline Impact Limited, a professional consulting strategy firm specialising in performance and impact. She has worked collaboratively with governments, UN agencies, international NGOs, the private sector, bilateral and multilateral donors (including the UK government) and independent private foundations. She has worked respectfully to challenge them to think differently and to measure and evaluate the effectiveness of their work – always with an emphasis on robust evidence and listening to a diversity of views. Her experience has ranged from working towards solutions to some of the most intractable disease problems facing African agriculture to understanding the successful elements of digital economies and technology ecosystems at the policy and practice level. She has a keen interest in big data and its interface with science and sustainability in the bio-revolution that is upon us.