Esther Kanu: Our Community Partner

Esther Kanu is a social entrepreneur and founder of the Woman In Action Development Project in Sierra Leone, Africa. At a young age, Esther was forced into marriage, became a survivor of female genital mutilation and had her first child at 18 years old without the opportunity to complete school.

When Esther was in her twenties, in the midst of a brutal civil war that raged in Sierra Leone from 1991-2001, she founded Women in Action. Her goal was to provide young women with the opportunities for education and skills training that she didn't have when she was younger. Founded February 14th 1996, the school was founded with eight other women through funds raised by community gardens and personal contributions from the founding members. To date, over 1000 girls have graduated from the center in skills such as tailoring, cosmetics, computers, English, math, small business management, and electrical. The school survives on the sales of handicrafts produced by the students, catering contracts, and donations.

Esther continues to live in Sierra Leone as head of Women in Action with her three children.

Matthew Cimone: Founder/CEO

Matthew Cimone is a graduate of the International Development Studies Program at University of Toronto. As a youth, all he wanted to do was explore and do good in the world. On one of these adventures, he found himself in Sierra Leone where he met Esther Kanu. 

Matthew has worked with several large International organizations including Right to Play and Free the Children. Matthew is an accomplished public speaker having spoken to over 50,000 people about the need to shift our thinking of development to focus on community leaders like Esther. He has also done extensive research on how to design youth engagement programs that foster a sense of global awareness in young people. 

Matthew is also an avid space science communicator where you can find him talking about the cosmos as Head Interpreter at the H.R. MacMillan Space Centre or working on his independent documentary film Chasing Atlantis inspired by the final flight of the Space Shuttle.

Micaela Roughton: Board of Directors

In 2009 Micaela Roughton founded her own non-profit organization Homes of Joy, to support orphans of HIV and AIDS in Lusaka, Zambia. Following the success of her own project, Micaela was asked to join the board of directors for Esther's Echo to help guide and direct the organization's mission. Micaela is a graduate of the African Studies program at the University of Toronto. She has Masters in Gender and Development Studies at Simon Fraser University. 

Rob Bickford: Board of Directors

Robert Bickford is an educator, writer, and independent film producer.  He lives and works in downtown Toronto.  He writes and produces films about disability, the arts, and institutional change through popular education.  His work with Esther's Echo involves designing curriculum connections to Canadian classrooms.  This K-12 curriculum guide highlights the community development model employed by Esther and the story of her Women in Action school in Freetown, Sierra Leone. Please contact the organization to request a copy of this curriculum guide.  He's been involved with Esther's Echo as a board member since 2010.