2021 Reach Symposium Event Details
Day 1 – Thursday, April 29, 2021, 9:00 AM – 12:00 PM EDT
Day 2 – Friday, April 30, 2021, 9:00 AM – 12:00 PM EDT
The imperatives of equity and inclusion, illuminated by the COVID-19 pandemic and the Black Lives Matter movement, illustrate the necessity of forging new partnerships across sectors, and doubling down to reach the hardest to reach populations. The 2021 Reach Symposium brings together global leaders from across sectors and will yield an action plan focused on reaching the hardest to reach populations to accelerate achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals.
A Message From
The Reach Alliance

Joseph Wong
Founder, The Reach Alliance; Roz and Ralph Halbert Professor of Innovation, Munk School of Global Affairs & Public Policy;
Vice-President, International, (Interim) University of Toronto
Marin MacLeod
Executive Director, The Reach Alliance
In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, global poverty and inequality are on the rise. Given these challenges, it would be easy to say that we don’t have what it takes to reach the Sustainable Development Goals.
But what this last year has shown us is that the imperative to reach hard-to-reach populations has never been greater. Now more than ever, we see the opportunity for audacious leadership. The Reach Alliance is determined to be part of the solution.
This year’s symposium is more important than ever. The imperatives of equity and inclusion, illuminated by the COVID-19 pandemic and the Black Lives Matter movement, illustrate the necessity of forging new partnerships across sectors, and doubling down to reach the hardest to reach populations. We are bringing together leading thinkers and practitioners from around the world to collectively strengthen our resolve to reach those that are hardest to reach. And to walk away with a clear action plan on how we’re going to do that.
At the Reach Alliance, we advance a culture of leadership that is bold, empathetic, humble, shared, transparent, inclusive and transformational, thereby enabling our collective aspirations.
Reach recruits top students — equipping the next generation of leaders — to produce actionable insights and catalyzes impact through our institutional partners. As the Reach Alliance scales to six select universities around the world, we’re looking forward to sharing our latest actionable insights with you, and to engaging in these important conversations about how to accelerate achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals.
A Message From The
Mastercard Center for Inclusive Growth

Arturo Franco
Vice President of Data and Insights,
Mastercard Center for Inclusive Growth
Ali Schmidt-Fellner
Manager of Knowledge and Insights, Mastercard Center for Inclusive Growth
The Center for Inclusive Growth advances equitable and sustainable economic growth and financial inclusion around the world. The Center leverages the company’s core assets and competencies, including data insights, expertise and technology, while administering the philanthropic Mastercard Impact Fund, to produce independent research, scale global programs and empower a community of thinkers, leaders and doers on the front lines of inclusive growth.
Our partnership with the Reach Alliance, at the University of Toronto’s Munk School of Global Affairs & Public Policy, is a great example of cross-sector collaboration for impact. Reach recruits top student researchers and faculty mentors and applies academic rigor to close important knowledge gaps related to the Sustainable Development Agenda. The Center for Inclusive Growth elevates the insights, making them actionable and visible to public, private and third sector leaders. The partnership model is scalable, and we’re bringing in other university and private sector partners to accelerate progress towards the Sustainable Development Goals.
Speakers

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Marla Blow
President and Chief Operating Officer, Skoll Foundation
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Walt Macnee
Board Member, Mastercard Impact Fund; retired Vice Chairman, Mastercard Worldwide
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Jacqueline Novogratz
Founder and Chief Executive Officer, Acumen
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Wisdom Tettey
Vice-President, University of Toronto and Principal, University of Toronto Scarborough
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Zabeen Hirji
Executive Advisor, Future of Work, Deloitte
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Zia Khan
Senior Vice-President, Innovation, The Rockefeller Foundation
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Franca Gucciardi
Chief Executive Officer, McCall MacBain Foundation
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Peter Singer
Special Advisor to the Director General, World Health Organization
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Sydney Piggott
Director, Community Engagement, Elevate
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John McArthur
Director, Center for Sustainable Development, Brookings Institution
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Eva Mwai
Regional Director, East Africa, North Star Alliance
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Mats Granryd
Director General, GSMA
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Chris Houston
Director, Humanitarian Innovation, Grand Challenges Canada
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Kate Banting
Head of Social Impact and Marketing, Boston Consulting Group, Canada
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Aditya Rau
Senior Analyst, New Digital Infrastructure and Fintech, Mastercard
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Dr. Samantha Nutt
Founder and
President of War Child Canada and War Child USA -
Salah Goss
Senior Vice President for Social Impact, Mastercard Center for Inclusive Growth
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Homi Kharas
Senior Fellow, Center for Sustainable Development, Brookings Institution
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Andrew Trister
Deputy Director, Digital Health and Innovation, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation
Symposium Schedule

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Day 1 – Thursday, April 29, 2021
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9:00 AM Welcome address
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9:40 AM In Conversation: Private Sector and Civil Society
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10:15 AM Break
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10:30 AM Reach Roundtable #1
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11:15 AM Flash Talks (2 Rounds)
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11:50 AM Closing Comments
Day 2 – Friday, April 30, 2021
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9:00 AM Host welcome
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9:10 AM In Conversation: Government and Academy
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9:45 AM Keynote
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10:30 AM Break
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10:45 AM Reach Roundtable #2
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11:35 AM Closing Comments