Founder and CEO, Ubuntu Education Fund
Jacob Lief is the Founder and CEO of Ubuntu Education Fund, a non-profit organization that takes vulnerable children living in the townships of Port Elizabeth, South Africa from cradle to career. First visiting South Africa as a teenager, Jacob felt a connection to the community and a strong desire to begin his career working with those living in the impoverished townships. Returning to South Africa in 1999, Jacob co-founded Ubuntu in the broom closet of a school and helped to develop the organization into what it is today – a world-class institution supporting more than 2,000 children on their pathway out of poverty. Ubuntu's programs form an integrated system of medical, health, educational and social services, ensuring that a child who is either orphaned or vulnerable can, after several years, succeed.