COURTNEY MONTAGUE
Robert F. Wagner School of Public Service
Master of Public Administration, May 2011
Public and Nonprofit Management and Policy
Specialization: International
Bio and Resume (.pdf)
Throughout her travels in developing countries, Courtney Montague has noticed that development initiatives, no matter how expertly crafted and executed, fail to thrive when ethnic violence looms. Her goals are to create sustainable and innovative means of combating global extreme poverty, while also empowering and educating a new generation of changemakers who will combat the issues, including ethnic violence, that propagate extreme poverty.
In 2004, after graduating from the American University of Paris, Courtney served as an intern with the Global Volunteer Network (GVN) in Wellington, New Zealand. The internship grew to a full time position, and in 2005, she co-founded the Global Volunteer Network Foundation, a US-based 501 c 3 organization.
As the Co-Founder and Executive Director of the GVN Foundation, Courtney has raised hundreds of thousands of dollars to combat extreme poverty in Nepal, Vietnam, Ethiopia, South Africa, Tanzania, Kenya, Peru, the Philippines, Uganda and Ecuador. The GVN Foundation has focused on funding projects that specifically address the needs of impoverished children. These funding programs provide a range of services, from building schools in Uganda and providing children with immunizations in Nepal, to paying school fees for children in Kenya. These programs focus on addressing children's most pressing needs in the communities served by GVN Foundation.
Courtney has overseen the development and implementation of the global fundraising campaign "Eat So They Can." This campaign invites individuals around the world to host an event on a specified weekend, and to motivate and educate friends and family about the effects of extreme poverty on children. To date, this campaign has raised $100,000 for children in five African countries.
In addition to global fundraising campaigns and fund distribution programs, Courtney has developed the curriculum for the GVN Foundation's "Be The Change" program. This program is a week-long course designed to teach aspiring social entrepreneurs how to effect social change. Former program participants have gone on to found social enterprises, create international fundraising campaigns, and volunteer around the world. This program will serve as the basis for future "Be The Change" schools that Courtney envisions establishing in both developed and developing countries. These schools will provide key concepts and skills to budding social entrepreneurs. Additionally, Courtney is developing plans to replicate the "Be The Change" model into a program that serves to increase the confidence and leadership abilities of African youth while concurrently addressing ethnic stereotypes and violence.
GVN Foundation's application to the United Nations for Consultative Status is currently under review. Courtney believes that a formal relationship with the United Nations will serve to increase the breadth and depth of the GVN Foundation programs, and she looks forward to facilitating that relationship as the foundation's representative to the United Nations.
Courtney is currently a board member for the nonprofit organization "Peruvian Hearts." Over the past four years she has raised additional funds for children in Peru, Uganda and Nepal by leading teams of volunteers on hiking expeditions to Machu Picchu, Kilimanjaro and Mount Everest Base Camp. While serving as a Reynolds Fellow, she intends to gain additional skills and knowledge that will be crucial in reaching her goals - to create thriving and sustainable initiatives to combat global poverty through education and opportunity.