Our Team

Cornelia loves executing visions and strategies, and helping others succeed – especially women! Always an ardent supporter of gender equality, reading the book “Invisible Women” ignited her passion to do something to help make the world a better place for all women and start Investress. She has spent her career living and working in Africa (with long stints in Madagascar, Senegal, and Gabon) on entrepreneurship support, private sector development, and blended finance initiatives for bilateral and international donors and development finance institutions including the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), United Nations (UN), International Finance Corporation (IFC), and the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT), as well as many non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and consulting firms such as Dexis, Counterpart International and Moonshot Global. She holds a PhD in Political Economy of Development from the School of Oriental and Asian Studies and a MSc in Global Politics from the London School of Economics. She is also a partner at Acumen, an aspiring pilot, a sailor, and a mother of two.

Heartie’s North Star is to advance a world where all people have a voice, equal opportunity, and lead empowered lives. She combines visionary leadership with operational rigor to drive sustainable impact on society’s toughest challenges, and has done so with organizations including Acumen, Conservation International, South by Southwest, and NationSwell. Her expertise includes working with cross-functional teams to design and deliver program infrastructure and strategy, multi-sector fundraising and partnerships, entrepreneurial support, and marketing communications initiatives. Grounded in field experience in the U.S. and Latin America— including with a women’s construction cooperative in Argentina and female youth education, WASH, and energy projects in Nicaragua—she believes women’s proximity to community challenges positions them as powerful leaders and innovators. This insight fuels her passion to close the gender finance and data gaps, supporting female founders as they build what women and the world need most. She holds an MA in International Affairs from The New School in which she focused on sustainable community development, economics, and global flows; and completed a professional certificate in fundraising from UC Davis. She is based in New York City and is a mother of two.

Kaleo is an investment professional passionate about advancing gender-smart and climate-conscious investing across Africa. Throughout her career, she has worked at the intersection of investment, entrepreneurship, and sustainable development, supporting founders, investors, and innovative businesses that drive inclusive economic growth. She began her investment career with Africa Trust Group in 2019, where she supported the management of the Empress Fund, a $350k investment fund, and the Enygma Ventures Fund, a $10M gender-lens venture capital fund. At ATG Samata, she supported investments across climate, technology, and value-added agriculture while helping integrate gender and climate considerations into investment decisions and portfolio management. Prior to her investment career, Kaleo built more than a decade of experience across finance, entrepreneurship, and international development via leadership roles at Zoona, one of Africa’s pioneering fintech companies, and contributed to the World Bank-supported Girls’ Education and Women’s Empowerment and Livelihood (GEWEL) Project to expand economic opportunities and financial access for women across Zambia. As a Dream VC Fellow she strengthened her expertise in venture capital, startup investing, and Africa’s innovation ecosystem. Kaleo holds a BA in Economics, and an MBA and Postgraduate Diploma in Sustainable Development from Stellenbosch University, where she is currently pursuing an MPhil in Sustainable Development, exploring practical approaches to integrating justice and equity into climate finance in South Africa.

Our Advisors

Based in Munich, Christopher combines his tech and government experience to affect positive change in the impact investment space. He culminated his 20+ year diplomatic career as the U.S. Deputy Chief of Mission and Chargé d’Affaires, a.i. (acting Ambassador) to the Gabonese Republic and the Democratic Republic of São Tomé and Príncipe. He has worked both with tech startups and major corporations such as Silicon Graphics, Inc and is well-versed in A.I., blockchain, and other disruptive technologies. He is the founder of Tenax Media, an independent media production company that tenaciously tells stories that need to be told.