dotglasses - Dot Glasses

Toggle Navigation

Home
About
- Our team
- Our Impact
Solution
Where We Work
Contact

Search for:

Pilots in India

Sightsavers: A bolder vision for eye care

World Sight Day 2018: October 11

NYT: Improve a Billion Lives: Eyeglasses

China’s childhood experiment (Science)

Young lady thinking of university (Angola)

Previous 234 Next

(254) 758 358 934(254) 758 358 934

info@dotglasses.orginfo@dotglasses.org

Home
About
- Our team
- Our Impact
Solution
Where We Work
Contact

Page load link

Home
About
- Our team
- Our Impact
Solution
Where We Work
Contact

Stephen Harvey

ADVISORY COUNCIL MEMBER

Stephen is an experienced, results-driven leader with a track record of delivering organisational growth. With over 20 years of senior leadership experience, he focuses on what is required to achieve success, delivering wide-ranging strategies which have changed the culture and direction of organisations. He has built and led high performing teams, creating an environment where people succeed, and is an accomplished fundraiser and communicator. Stephen led teams at Oxfam, Riders for Health and Practical Action before becoming CEO of CHIVA Africa, where he ultimately worked with the board of trustees in South Africa and the UK to transition leadership and governance of the organisation to South Africa. Stephen is co-founder of Bateleur Partners, a boutique advisory group that specialises in helping social impact organisations work smarter. He is also on the boards of Think Equal and 1001 Fontaines in the UK.

Kate Kuper

NON-EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

Kate is an established board contributor and strategic leader with excellent judgement and impact focus. This is honed by 30 years of operational and board roles in emerging markets, philanthropy, impact investment, urban development, education and youth employment. She is co-founder of Bateleur Partners, a boutique advisory group that specialises in helping social impact organisations work smarter. Kate’s board and investment committee experience includes BRAC, the London Evening Standard Dispossessed Fund, Access: The Foundation for Social Investment, the GROW Movement and Africa College Foundation. In her career she worked for the World Bank Group, Bain & Company and Government of South Africa under Nelson Mandela before building a leading education foundation. Kate’s focus is on aligning governance, management and operations of an organisation through a clarity of vision and mission and building an associated culture of impact measurement, learning and excellence in delivery. Kate has achieved results and enduring client partnerships in varied contexts, languages and countries.

Bradley Heslop

CCO

Bradley is a serial entrepreneur driven to prove business as a force for positive social change.

Bradley is a serial entrepreneur driven to prove business as a force for positive social change. In everything he does he aims to create positive cultural change that frees people from injustices and social barriers so that they can, under their own strength, achieve their potential. Bradley has a logical mind, balanced with an empathetic nature.

For the last 10 years, Bradley has applied himself to developing social businesses with and for vulnerable communities in sub-Saharan Africa. His aim is to support communities to address their own issues sustainably through business. Bradley founded WSV with Adam, a social franchisor and consultancy which develops community run businesses for low income communities. WSV developed over 30 products and services, set up over 250 businesses in 4 countries and impacted over 50,000 people who benefit from the businesses.

Bradley also co-founded the Action Accelerator which supports scalable impact initiatives. Action Accelerator is now a global programme being implemented with a range of partners for their network members.

Bradley is a speaker, mentor and life-long student. He has received significant recognition for his drive and passion for positive cultural change, including being ranked 5th in the Top 100 Future Leaders publication.

Ivan Lukas

DIRECTOR OF BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT

Ivan has focused much of his career sparking private sector engagement for Sustainable Development Goals.

Along the way he’s built extensive expertise in partnership management, outreach, advocacy, policy analysis, and project management – all with the goal of shifting the international aid paradigm more towards commercially sustainable model.Upon completion of his PhD studies with a focus on the regional trade policies of South Africa, he worked at Glopolis, a Prague-based think tank, where he headed the Economic and Development Finance section. Through the cooperation with foreign partner organizations, he contributed to the revision of the Free Trade Agreements between the EU and Columbia.
He then moved to the Czech Ministry of Foreign Affairs, working in the Czech Development Agency (CzechAid), where he set up the strategic and legal structures of the Business Partnership programme – a matching grant scheme for companies with positive development impact.
In 2016, he was seconded to the UNDP Istanbul Regional Hub, where he managed the Czech-UNDP Trust Fund, while also serving as a Programme Specialist for engaging the private sector in development, which included extensive project management and communication with partners (governments, private sector, NGOs) and the public. Before leaving, he initiated successful transition of the Czech Trust Fund into Innovation Challenge Fund, currently flagship of Czech – UNDP partnership.
Immediately before joining DOT Glasses, he served as the Outreach and Membership Lead for Business Call to Action (BCtA) – hosted by the UNDP in Istanbul – which aims to accelerate progress towards the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by challenging and supporting companies to develop inclusive business models that engage people at the base of the economic pyramid (BoP).
Ivan has a PhD in International Political Economy from the Charles University in Prague, as well as a Masters in International Relations and European Studies from the Central European University in Budapest.

Adam Boxer

CEO

Adam is an innovator who inspires energy in those around him, to tackle problems at the bottom of the pyramid.

For the last 8 years, Adam has focussed on developing social enterprises in Kenya, Uganda, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Cameroon, India and the UK. Building solutions for the bottom of the pyramid and developing the systems to scale them.

Adam is driven by finding solutions that work for people who need them the most, this caused him to co-found WSV, a social franchisor and consultancy which develops community run businesses for low income communities.  Prior to joining DOT Glasses, Adam led WSV, alongside Bradley, to develop a range of social franchises and supported other organizations to develop community businesses for communities living on under $5 a day.

WSV became the distributor for DOT Glasses in Kenya in 2020, Adam instantly fell in love with the product and distribution system. Now, as CEO, Adam is taking the lessons on the ground in Kenya to create a global playbook for spreading DOT Glasses impact to new communities.

Adam has an ability to analyze and understand problems, then guide people to develop innovative solutions. This, combined with an approach which inspires energy in those around him, ensures quality solutions that work for everyone.

Mark Hudson

Executive Director

Mark Hudson is an entrepreneur and investor focusing on high growth impact-led businesses.

He has over 25 years of experience building, managing and investing in both established and early stage growth businesses in many sectors across Europe, the USA and in Africa. He has held a variety of exec management, private equity investing, Board, VC fundraising and strategy roles. He has an MBA from INSEAD, France and a BA (Hons) in Modern History from Oxford University, UK.
He is co-founder and Exec Chairman of TravelLocal.com, the VC-backed global managed marketplace disintermediating the experiential holidays sector.
Current scale-ups he is involved in as Director or Board Advisor include Snugg Energy, Loowatt and Much Better Adventures amongst others.
His prior career experience was as a Senior Partner at Graphite Capital, a leading UK mid market private equity fund (14 years). Prior to that he was part of the senior team which established Tilda’s business in Uganda (global branded food and agri-processing), with funding from the IFC. He started his career with OC&C Strategy Consultants.
Mark is British/German and was born and raised in East Africa. In his free time he loves getting outdoors and into wild places with his family.

Philip Staehelin

FOUNDER & CHAIRMAN

Philip is an innovator and a leader who blends contagious optimism with pragmatic realism.

Finding solutions to hard challenges has been a lifelong passion, which served him well in his corporate and consulting careers (including roles as CEO of a $500m payments company and Managing Partner of a global management consulting firm), as well as in his startup efforts which include co-owning Central Europe’s oldest startup accelerator, founding a few startups himself, advising startups, serving as a mentor in startup accelerators across Europe, and angel investing in some of the rising stars that he sees.
Philip is driven to make a positive impact in everything he does, which includes helping to build a better civil society. He’s a Board member of Transparency International CZ, he’s helping to drive change via municipal politics, and he occasionally advises the government on topics related to innovation.
When Philip was struck with the inspiration for DOT Glasses, he felt almost obligated to turn his energies towards helping to solve one of the world’s largest and often overlooked health issues. The more he researched and analyzed the market, the more he realized that DOT Glasses could indeed be the solution that can change the world.
Philip has an MBA from INSEAD (Fontainebleau, France) and a bachelor’s degree in Economics and International Affairs from the University of Colorado, Boulder.

Jana Kornberg

Founder and Executive Director, DOT Glasses USA

jana@dotglassesusa.com

Jana is a dynamic leader with the vision to spearhead sea change initiatives and bring them to reality. She initiated the US market entry of Dot Glasses, focusing on growth strategies and execution across customer segments and various business channels. Her past experience spans more than a decade in marketing and communications, leading sophisticated initiatives in digital, CRM, branding and media campaigns for both professional and consumer audiences. Jana has led global brand launches for pharmaceutical, medical device and health tech companies, and her passion lies in forging new ground to achieve better health outcomes.

Karien Cloete

Country Director – South Africa

karien.cloete@dotglasses.org

KARIEN CLOETE is CEO of the TSiBA Ignition Academy. She started her career in the HR and recruitment sector, changed direction to follow a dream of working in TV production and, in another 180 degree career pivot, crossed into the digital world, joining an ISP in 2009.

Karien held Exco positions in both Operations and Business Development until she joined TSIBA Business School in 2016. In 2018 she was instrumental in launching TSIBA Ignition Academy, a for-profit social enterprise and strategic delivery partner of TSIBA’s vocational skills projects, that contributes to the sustainability of the otherwise largely donor-funded Business School.
She holds an undergraduate degree from UNISA with Law and Language majors, as well as an Advanced Diploma in Labour Law.

Sindile Mavundla

PROGRAM MANAGER – SOUTH AFRICA

Sindile Mavundla is the Business Essentials Programme Coordinator at TSiBA Ignition Academy.

Sindile Mavundla is the Business Essentials Programme Coordinator at TSiBA Ignition Academy. He has held various positions within the private sector, relating to Project Management, Social Development and Entrepreneurship. With a proven track record of strategic initiatives delivery, his areas of expertise extend to Business Analysis, Operations Management, Leadership, and Strategic Planning.

Sindile is a motivated change agent with a fervent passion for attaining the unachievable by means of analysis, innovation and collaboration. He also runs his own start bicycle shop with a focus on providing affordable bicycle mobility and building the culture of cycling in township.

Gianina Flores

PROGRAM MANAGER – PERU

gianina.flores@dotglasses.org

Gianina has +5 years of professional experience, of which the last 3 have been in innovation and commercial strategy. She has been part of the team of the Directorate of Innovation, Technology and Digitization of the Ministry of Production in Peru, in charge of the research and design of digital transformation instruments for MSEs. In addition, she has served as an operations and sales analyst in an Argentine Edtech Startup, where she was in charge of the commercial area of the North Region of Latin America (Peru, Colombia, Ecuador, etc.).

Angela Mwebaze

COUNTRY DIRECTOR – UGANDA

angela.mwebaze@dotglasses.org

Angela Mwebaze has 15 years of experience in the civil service and the development sector, with an established network of governmental and developmental agencies and extensive experience in international relations. She has managed business operations and strategic development for several international NGOs. She has also worked in both local and international development, liaising with a diverse set of stakeholders to facilitate and manage projects in country.

Angela is passionate about improving lives in Uganda and has occupied leadership roles for local and international NGOs and consulted for agencies on health, education and information technology.

Mmekidmfon Umanah

COUNTRY DIRECTOR – NIGERIA

umanah.mfon@dotglasses.org

Mmekidmfon Umanah is a Consultant Strategist, with over 5 years Management and Leadership experience working in FCMG, tech and nonprofit sectors. He is the CEO of Aimcare NG a family focused organization improving the health, hygiene and well being of women, infants and children in Nigeria especially those at the base of the pyramid, using low cost technology, safe products and training/awareness.
He is a Chevening Scholar- currently a MSc Candidate of International Development at the School of Government, University of Birmingham. He holds a B.Sc in Geoinformatics from University of Nigeria and a certificate in Social Enterprise from Middlesex University Business School, U.K.
He is a fellow of many reputable programs including the US government’s Young African Leaders Initiative (YALI), International Youth Foundation, LEAP Africa Social Innovators Program & OSIEA Young Leaders Forum. He is also a Global Shaper with the World Economic Forum.

Sudip Koirala

COUNTRY DIRECTOR – NEPAL

sudip.koirala@dotglasses.org

Sudip is the Co-founder & CEO of the Didi Foundation Inc. Australia and Nepal, President of the Didi Vocational Center, and the Didi Savings and Credit Cooperative Ltd., as well as the Country Director of Empowering Opportunities Colorado, USA. He is a recognized young social entrepreneur and a Co-founder of Metrolink Business Group Private Limited (ISP Company), ICA Training Centre and Brainwork Venture Group Private Limited.

He has completed a Negotiation Mastery certificate program from Harvard Business School online and graduated from Colorado State University’s Sustainable Peace and Reconciliation Studies Graduate Interdisciplinary Studies Program . He also holds an MBA degree in Global Leadership and Management from Tribhuvan University School of Management and Handong Global University, South Korea. Meanwhile, he has contributed roughly 10 years to development-related organizations.
Not only does he actively participate in the field of businesses and NGOs, Sudip also focuses on social work. He is the charter President of the Rotaract Club of Manohara, Leo Club of Kathmandu Fulbari and the Nepal Entrepreneurs Lions Club, and an honorary member of the Fort Collins After Work Rotary Club, and the President of the Rotary Club of Rudramati Kathmandu district 3292 Nepal and Bhutan (2020-21).

With his active involvement and the support of many national and international partners/organizations, more than 150 community development projects have been implemented in various parts of Nepal.

Jubin Jacob Mathew

COUNTRY DIRECTOR – INDIA

jubin.mathew@dotglasses.org

Jubin is a true renaissance man who has combined his love for architecture, design, music, business and sustainable development into a fascinating career. Initially trained as an architect with focus on sustainable urban planning & design, he also earned a “Grade 5” in piano from the Trinity School of Music in London, he founded an Independent indie music festival, published articles about urban public spaces and inclusive cities, worked with the Delhi Development Authority and spent many years as a design consultant working for clients in the private and public sectors.
He then changed gears to focus more on development and impact –underlying themes throughout his earlier work. Rejoined Development Alternatives as a junior executive, as their mission as “a research and action organization striving to deliver socially equitable,environmentally sound and economically scalable development outcomes” resonated with his own background. In this role, he was responsible for Business Development, Overall Programme Management and Consultancy services on sustainability. His signature project “Integrated Models for Village Development” allowed him to innovate new processes and implement business models to promote micro entrepreneurship for job creation and access to basic needs in communities.
Jubin’s experience from his work in the corporate world, the service industry, the New Delhi government, and various creative industries provide him a unique skill set to drive change. He understands the complexity of stakeholder management, and works to ensure that outcomes provide value to all segments of society – including the disadvantaged.

William Kingsley-Bio

COUNTRY DIRECTOR – GHANA

w.kingsley-bio@dotglasses.org

William is a global entrepreneur and technology enthusiast who is passionate about creating value for consumers. His main focus has been to bring affordable and innovative solutions to Africa, in order to bridge the technology gap vs. developing markets. In his many years as a consultant in Europe and Africa, he’s gained broad experience in R&D, business development, technical sales and marketing, mostly targeting international and developing markets with a particular focus on the African continent.
Early in William’s career, he spent nearly 6 years in the Reed Elsevier Group in Oxford UK, first as aTechnical Team Lead, and then as an IT Manager directing teams of 10-20 employees. He then shifted his focus towards healthcare, by joining Ultrasonix Medical Corp (a Canadian company withits European HQ near Oxford UK) where he served as the Medical Ultrasound Technical Lead Engineer for EMEA, and then building on this expertise in the medical device industry with aspecialized consultancy (also in the EMEA region) that focused on the design, implementation and commissioning of medical and telemedicine devices.
In 2012, he founded Osei-Bio Meditech Solutions Ltd, a biomedical device consultancy company (based in Ghana) focusing on the distribution, sales and implementation of high tech medical imaging and ICU devices to Ghana and West Africa regions. During this time, he also co-founded Freshndirect Ghana, an organic produce company which allows him to include his passion for agricultural farming into his portfolio of activities.

Mesele Kitabo

COUNTRY DIRECTOR – ETHIOPIA

mesele.kitabo@dotglasses.org

Through all these careers, he has seen been playing an active role in the Ethiopian vision care sector.After serving as a public health officer in healthcare clinics in rural Ethiopia, Mesele has completed his civil engineering degree and started to work as construction supervisor for several NGOs across the country. At the same, he has established and still keeps running a private school for more than 800 students. On top,
he owns and runs together with his wife, a cataract surgeon, an optics shop providing spectacles in rural Ethiopia.

Vojtech Foukal

CO-FOUNDER, MARKETING & COMMUNICATION DIRECTOR

Vojtech bridges the corporate and entrepreneurial worlds, where he has developed broad experience in the technical, sales and marketing areas that have targeted both enterprises as well as consumer businesses.

He started his career at the age of 21 years with Microsoft – where he spent over seven years – moving from junior IT position up to the Head of Business Development for the Czech Republic and Slovakia. Followed by five years at Nokia, where he finally served as the European Head of Multimedia Devices Group.
He then joined one of CEE’s largest media groups as Group Strategy and Internet Director, before he set out on his entrepreneurial ventures. His latest effort, which saw him launch a Czech digital marketing agency VISIBILITY in 2013, has grown into one of the top agencies in the region.
Vojtech has been sharing his extensive expertise by mentoring many startups, but he’s also focusing more of his efforts on giving something back to make the world a better place.
He’s passionate about solving the big problems and believes that the best solutions are often the simple ones that focus on a few core elements: functional design, build quality, and user experience.
When Philip introduced him to DOT Glasses – he fell in love with the idea as well as the potential.
Vojtech has an MBA in Banking and Finance from ESCEM France

Olga Janzurova

SENIOR PROGRAM MANAGER

Olga combines many years of experience in the NGO sector with more than 10 years of corporate experience working for both large international companies as well as smaller entrepreneurial ventures. Her experience in both sectors spans partner management, finance, marketing and PR.

She started her career in a finance function in Eurest (the worldwide leader in food and facilities management), after which she moved to a local IT distributor where she was a marketing executive with broad responsibilities. She continued honing her marketing expertise during her next career step, where she took a regional marketing role in one of the largest Austrian banking groups.
‍Following these corporate roles, she switched gears and moved to the non-profit sector where she focused on social impact – first with a Czech NGO focused on providing home palliative care to the terminally ill and their families, followed by a more international focus with the Prague Civil Society Centre that works to empower and support civil societies across Eastern Europe and Central Asia.
In her role just prior to joining DOT Glasses, she helped to build a global online community platform to support the transition of society in its move towards greater sustainability.
‍Olga loves to create the building blocks that help an organization deliver real impact. Her background enables her to quickly provide the needed structure and organization to manage complex problems, which she follows up with her creativity, passion and kindness that brings “heart and soul” to projects in which she engages.

Vaclav Tehle

DIRECTOR OF OPERATIONS & FINANCE

Vaclav focuses on making an impact to improve the lives of people in developing countries, by combining his research experience in emerging markets with his years of corporate world consulting.

After completing his Masters degree in Development Economics from the University of Oxford, Vaclav spent 1 year in Ghana and Ethiopia implementing research projects as a member of the University’s research team. He helped to design and execute projects to bring unemployed youth into the job market, as well as evaluated the effects of trade liberalization on local manufacturing firms.
‍On his return to Europe, he joined McKinsey & Company, where he spent 5 years consulting large corporations and governments, mainly on topics related to energy and sustainability. He advised clients in the areas of operations and strategy across Europe, Africa and Australia. During his years in consulting, he also helped to launch the McKinsey office in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, where he then spent 1 year supporting the local power distribution provider.
‍Vaclav is passionate about solving problems to improve the lives of people in developing countries, applying effective altruism principles to drive the largest impact at the lowest cost.
‍In his free time, Vaclav organizes the Discover Summer Academy for talented high-school students (where he also teaches the Development Studies program). He also co-founded the local branch of One World (the largest human rights documentary film festival) in his hometown.

Lenka Mulder

FINANCE MANAGER

Officially, Lenka is the finance manager for DOT Glasses. Unofficially, she holds many different roles in DOT Glasses, but generally she’s the one that keeps things running.

Her previous experience from finance and operations roles in a high growth startup gives her the perfect platform to provide the needed structure and discipline to the organization, while still providing the necessary flexibility to allow us to grow fast and enter new markets around the world.
Her degree in International Relations and Diplomacy is clearly visible in her approach to all of our business partners (suppliers and customers from a rapidly growing number of countries), as well as her management of the HR function. And in case she has any spare capacity, her Sales experience from her earlier career is leveraged by the Business Development team to keep things interesting.

Moses Mwansa

COUNTRY DIRECTOR – ZAMBIA

moses.mwansa@dotglasses.org

Moses Mwansa is a Co-founder of Copperbelt Innovation &Technology Ltd, a Start-up incubator and Innovation company based in Kitwe, Zambia. He is also co-founder and CEO of VillageSavers Technology Ltd, a Fintech start-up that is helping small scale saving groups called Village Banking groups to manage and track their savings and other financial transactions through the VillageSavers App. VillageSavers is currently operating in Zambia and Botswana.

A holder Master of Science Project Management, he has 12 years of experience in Mining, Engineering,Construction, Water & Sanitation, and Fintech Industries as a Project Management and Business Improvement expert, with notable work experience being with Konkola Copper Mines Plc, one of Africa’s biggest copper Mine as Operational Excellence & Business Excellence Coordinator, and for the Zambia Water and Sanitation Project (ZWSP), a 150 Million Euro Water and Sanitation Improvement Project in Zambia (funded by EU, EIB,AFD and GRZ) as a PMO Lead.

Moses has also attended several prestigious trainings and conferences around the world, including the US Department of State’s run Tech-Camp Programme for Tech Innovators in Ghana 2016 and in Nigeria 2019, Young African Leaders Initiative (YALI) Southern African Leadership Program at University Of South Africa in 2019, and as Panelist at the United Nations Economic and Social Council in Prague in 2018 and many more local and regional.

E. Dean Butler

ADVISORY COUNCIL MEMBER

Dean founded LensCrafters (the world’s largest optical retailer) in 1983 and served as its Chief Executive Officer until 1988. In that same year, Mr. Butler founded Vision Express in Europe, which merged with the French retail group, GPS, to form Grand Vision in late 1997.

They opened more than 150 one-hour optical superstores in twenty four nations on four continents. Dean is credited with revolutionizing the optics industry with the concept of “glasses in an hour” and he led the “superoptical” movement, which commercialized the optics industry on a large scale in the 1980s.

Previously, Mr. Butler held several different positions in the advertising and marketing division of The Procter & Gamble Company from 1969 to 1983. He’s served as the Chairman of Eyeshop (a private optical concept company), Chairman of Sight Resource Corporation, and a Director of 1-800 Contacts Inc. (the publicly held US-based contact lens retailer). He currently is on the Advisory Board of CooperVision, is a Director of Neurolens, and in the past he also served as a longtime Board member of Adlens (focusing on delivering self-adjustable spectacles to BoP populations), as well as Lenskart.com (India’s leading multi-channel optical retailer).

Gwen Young

ADVISORY COUNCIL MEMBER

A lawyer and public policy expert by training, Gwen Young currently serves as the Director of the Wilson Center’s Global Women’s Leadership Initiative and Women in Public Service Project.

She has more than 25 years of experience in international public service with some of the world’s most well-known impact organizations, including the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Medecins Sans Frontieres, International Rescue Committee, Africare and the Harvard Institute for International Development.
Throughout her career, Gwen has advocated for and published on the role girls and women play in political, social and economic development. She has trained women in advocacy skills, how to build a network, and management skills. She has also lived and worked “on the ground” in Malawi, Mozambique, Senegal, Guinea Bissau and Angola with private sector and public service actors on issues of women’s entrepreneurship including tools to ensure access to finance.
Gwen has also worked as a professional advocate for women and human rights in corporate law settings, with the ICTY and the Kroc Institute for Peace and Justice at the University of San Diego. She also provided humanitarian law and advocacy training and developed guidelines to deal with sexual and gender based violence and exploitation in conflict ridden zones.
Gwen is an alumna of Smith College, Harvard, Kennedy School of Government and the University of California Davis, Martin Luther King Jr School of Law. She has dedicated her career to humanitarian relief, international development, and human rights.

John Friedman

ADVISORY COUNCIL MEMBER

Throughout the past three decades, John Friedman has built a career that bridges anthropology, development and social entrepreneurialism, mostly with a geographical focus in Africa.

He is a Professor in Socio-cultural Anthropology and Development at University College Roosevelt,Utrecht University in The Netherlands where he also directs its Social Impact Lab. Previously, John has worked for Cambridge University, the United States Peace Corps, Oxfam Canada, the UN Population Fund, and the Government of the Republic of Namibia.
John’s interest in global eye health emerged during one of his early periods of long-term fieldwork in rural northwest Namibia, when his own severe myopia forced him to purvey a pair of new glasses from the nearest optician…. 500 kms away! That experience inspired him to reach beyond his anthropological teaching, research and academic writing.He went on to found Adaptive Eyeworks, a Belgium-based social enterprise that develops innovative solutions to address uncorrected refractive error, as well as Foundation Beautiful Vision International, a non-profit charity that assists with the delivery eye glasses to those in need. He is also a co-founder
of Dialvision LLC (USA), and has served as an advisor to the Focus on Vision Foundation (The Netherlands), Eyes for the World (Belgium), and Veritas Vision(Nigeria).
John holds a Bachelor’s degree from the University of Michigan (USA), and Master’s and PhD degrees from Cambridge University (UK).

Liliana Riva

ADVISORY COUNCIL MEMBER

Liliana Riva, MPH has over 20 years of international and domestic experience providing resource development; strategic planning; and program design and management.

Much of her work has been in the arena of public health optometry and ophthalmology. She brings a wealth of knowledge from the public, academic and private sectors of eye care to DOT. Her desire to join the DOT team stems from its for-profit model with a social mission. She has always promoted the generation of revenue as a long-term sustainability strategy over dependence on grant funding.

Liliana oversaw the distribution of millions of dollars in grants to eyecare organizations in developing countries as the manager of U.S. Agency for International Development’s (USAID) Child Blindness Program. She has produced research and supported work aimed at understanding academic and productivity advances as a result of providing eyeglasses to schoolchildren alongside some of the most highly recognized researchers on these topics.

She has served as a member of the Advisory Panel for Eyeglasses for Global Development: Bridging the Visual Divide, the Program Advisory Committee for USAID’s EP-SCALE, and as a board member for Our Children’s Vision, a global campaign working to provide eyeglasses to 50 million children.

Her current endeavors include managing a minority-owned, woman-owned business, DSA Global Partners that provides public health management and strategic planning; resource mobilization for social missions; epidemiological research; and now the distribution of COVID-19 serologic kits and PPE to those at highest risk for the disease.

Oren Ginzburg

ADVISORY COUNCIL MEMBER

Oren Ginzburg has worked in Development for over two decades with UNICEF, Save the Children, and The Global Fund. He currently serves as the Director of the Access to Health Fund (UNOPS) in Myanmar.

Oren has been a regular lecturer at the ESSEC Business School in France, focusing on global development topics. He is also a writer and illustrator – and has often used the medium of story-telling to highlight issues in Management and International Development (“The Hungry Man”, “There You Go!”…). In 2018 he was the recipient of a French/German literary award for his first novel for children – Le Destin Presque Timbre d’Etienne Durillon.
Oren is a Lawyer by training; he has also studied business management, Psychology, Mediation and Conflict Resolution, and Coaching.

Peter Kostur

ADVISORY COUNCIL MEMBER

Peter has particular expertise with high growth environments and disruptive enterprise technologies like the Internet of things, Supply Chain, Connected Packaging, Mobile brand protection as well as experienced in implementing and optimizing processes at shop-floor level.

His career started in technology industry with Project Management, leading R&D operations, Sales and Business Development units within Europe, Middle East and Far East locations.
His past experiences open for us new business opportunities especially in the corporate world and creates an interesting connection between different worlds of developing countries and enterprises.

Madoda Khuzwayo

COUNTRY DIRECTOR – SOUTH AFRICA

madoda.khuzwayo@dotglasses.org

Madoda is an inspiring serial technology entrepreneur and a visionary with an enduring passion for entrepreneurship and business development. He fell in love with entrepreneurship and the infinite possibilities it can generate for commercial use and social change, at an early age.
Madoda is part of a new breed of entrepreneurs currently enlightening the African business landscape. His inspirational journey from humble beginnings to his seat at the boardroom table has been featured in some of Africa’s top media. He’s also received accolades from the likes of the “Fast Company South Africa” magazine that selected Madoda as one of South Africa’s Top 50 most creative people in Business in both 2015 and 2017.
‍Madoda studied Electrical Engineering at Vaal University of Technology in South Africaand Information Systems and eCommerce at Westminster College of Computing in London, United Kingdom. He also has advanced certifications in Database Administration from SQL College in Bangalore, India, which he complemented his by teaching himself to code. He’s also a self-confessed domain name purchasing enthusiast.
‍In the past he’s worked with the ANC Progressive Business Forum, coordinating international business delegations to countries such as South Korea, Russia, China, Brazil, India, United Kingdom, United States, Cuba, Turkey, Tanzania, Sri Lanka and France; connecting South African businesses with foreign businesses and investors. His passion for Africa’s development and economic prosperity makes him the perfect fit to this exceptional team of leaders.

Go to Top

Pilots in India

Sightsavers: A bolder vision for eye care

World Sight Day 2018: October 11

NYT: Improve a Billion Lives: Eyeglasses

China’s childhood experiment (Science)

Young lady thinking of university (Angola)