Elana is a social entrepreneur with over 30 years of results-oriented experience both as a founder and senior fundraising advisor for numerous NGOs and cause-driven social enterprises. Since 2009, Elana and her company, 3DC Consultancy, have assisted more than two dozen social enterprises and nonprofit organizations in developing strategies, raising capital, and structuring corporate partnerships. She is committed to serving and is passionate about using her talents to improve the livelihood and sovereignty of Indigenous Peoples around the world.
As a founder of Founder of Just Think, she led the NGO for 15 years, then merged it with One Economy. She closed a $51.1M fundraise from the US Dept of Commerce for its operating capital and implementation of domestic activities. Subsequently, she contributed to One Global Economy’s international activities with another $10M offering from Cisco to support and empower Sub-Saharan African & and Middle Eastern communities via Community Knowledge Centers In addition, while consulting with the Southern African Trust during the COVID pandemic she helped the Trust collaborate with Trust Africa and the African Philanthropy Network found the initiative called “Community Immunity,” which focused on the urgent needs of the most vulnerable in all 54 African countries.
Elana co-created the international video-based magazine EDUTOPIA as a founding member of George Lucas’s Educational Foundation. 30+ years later, it remains the world’s most frequently accessed resource on project-based learning in K-12 education. Co-founding the first national media education membership organization in the U.S, NAMLE, she raised funds and organized national leaders to co-author the Core Principles of Media Literacy Education.
As a start-up consultant, Elana assisted the Nasdaq Entrepreneurial Center in opening their first non-profit center and was hired to help John Mackey & Raj Sisodia’s Conscious Capitalism company grow from a board-led organization to a professional staff-led business. As a Special Projects Producer for “Bound to Freedom: From Slavery to Liberation,” Elana supported fine arts and humanitarian photographer Lisa Kristine in her work with Pope Francis and 15 of the world’s faith leaders to eradicate modern-day slavery.
In addition to many years of professional experience as a founder in social enterprise, Elana spent 25 years in competitive sports plus 20 years of yoga/meditation. The result: a current professional practice of multi-dimensional collaboration. Elana has also been the recipient of numerous awards and accolades for her distinguished service, including the Jefferson Award for Public Service, the cable industry’s “Leader in Learning” award. She is an accomplished presenter. – Examples: Of Comm’s International Media Literacy Research Forum, London; White House “Conference on Internet Content for Teens;” Harvard’s first Innovation Summit, “Igniting Innovation: A Summit on Social Entrepreneurship.”