About this Artist
Reza Aslan is a renowned writer, commentator, professor, Emmy-nominated producer, and scholar of religions. A recipient of the prestigious James Joyce award, Aslan is the author of three internationally best-selling books, including the #1 New York Times Bestseller Zealot: The Life and Times of Jesus of Nazareth. His producing credits include the acclaimed HBO series The Leftovers and the hit CBS comedy United States of Al. He is the host and executive producer of Rough Draft with Reza Aslan.
Jessica Jackley is an entrepreneur, investor, and speaker. Her work over the last decade has focused on financial inclusion, the sharing economy, and social justice. She is the founder of Alltruists, which offers at-home, kid-friendly volunteer projects for families, and a cofounder and General Partner at Untapped Capital.
She is best known as a cofounder of Kiva, the world’s first crowdfunding site for microenterprises. Kiva lets users lend as little as $25 to individual entrepreneurs, providing borrowers affordable capital to start or expand their business. Since its founding in October 2005, Kiva has facilitated over $1.5 billion in loans worldwide.
Most recently, Jessica served as Chief Impact Officer at Aspiration, GP at SparkLabs Global Ventures, and an investor, advisor, and former Venture Partner with the Collaborative Fund. Additionally, Jessica teaches Social Entrepreneurship at the Marshall School of Business at USC and was previously a Visiting Practitioner at Stanford’s Center for Philanthropy and Civil Society.
Jessica recently served as Walt Disney Imagineering’s first Entrepreneur in Residence, launching initiatives related to corporate citizenship and happiness. She continues to consult and advise on these topics as well as a range of social impact. She serves on several nonprofit boards including Habitat for Humanity, advises numerous start-ups, and is an advisory board member of Investcorp Strategic Capital Group.
Earlier in her career, Jessica was a Cofounder and CEO of ProFounder, a pioneering crowdfunding platform for U.S. entrepreneurs. The company joined forces with GOOD Inc. in 2010 to create new tools and experiences for their community of creators.
Jessica’s work has been widely recognized. Honors include The Economist’s No Boundaries Innovation Award, Fast Company’s Most Influential Women in Tech, Silicon Valley Forum’s Visionary Award, the Pasteur Institute’s Common Congress Award, finalist for the TIME 100 Most Influential People list, and more.
She holds an MBA from the Stanford Graduate School of Business, a certificate in Global Leadership and Public Policy from the Harvard Kennedy School, a BA in Philosophy and Political Science from Bucknell University, and honorary PhDs from Centenary College and Quinnipiac University. She is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations and a World Economic Forum Young Global Leader. Her first book, CLAY WATER BRICK: Finding Inspiration from Entrepreneurs Who Do the Most with the Least was published in June 2015 (Penguin Random House).