Betty is the Founder and President of the Betty Adera Foundation, an organization focused on preventing gender-based violence and discrimination against women and girls in East Africa. With training and funding from Rise Up, Betty is creating new pathways to education for Kenya’s most marginalized adolescent girls.

Betty is a globally recognized advocate for girls and women and was recently named one of the 25 Most Influential Women in Africa for Gender Equality. She has received numerous awards for her exceptional leadership, most notably the Humanitarian Medal of Honor in 2019 by the World Peace and Diplomacy Organization and the Outstanding Women’s Voice in 2023 by Humanitarian Awards Global.

Betty holds a master’s in Global Public Health from the University of Western Cape, South Africa, and a post-graduate diploma in Children, Youth, and Development from the Institute of Social Studies at the University of Erasmus in the Hague, Netherlands.

Olivia Favela-Gary is the Executive Director of the California Nurse-Midwives Foundation, a dedicated midwife, and a passionate advocate for improving access to quality maternal care for low-income and underserved communities of color across California. Through her work with Rise Up, Olivia is improving maternal and newborn health outcomes by establishing free birthing centers for marginalized families.

After earning her master’s degree in Midwifery from Philadelphia University in 2013, Olivia spent five years as a staff midwife before becoming Director of the Women’s Health Center in 2019. In 2020, Olivia expanded her practice to include home births and birth assistance while navigating the challenges of COVID-19. She is a founding member of the Health Bump Club, an online platform for pre-pregnant, pregnant, and postpartum women, and currently serves as a staff midwife at Eisner Health in Los Angeles.