"Donna Tsufura, the Dayako seems to know everyone who matters. We have been privileged to know her and engage her for our various projects, and she is absolutely invaluable in getting us access to the right people in New York, Washington, DC, and around the world. Her network of trusted people are often high-end leaders in major and global institutions, such as the United Nations. Many times she has brought to us companies or people that are very helpful to our business. What you surprises me most about Donna is that she understands our company as well as the founders do, and can anticipate our needs. As a result, she has brought to us numerous business opportunities that we would not have been able to even think about. She has made us aware of the UN Sustainable Development Goals and the role that investors and entrepreneurs can play in fulfilling them. She has expanded our global outreach -- Washington DC ArchAngels has been able to support exciting young entrepreneurs from various regions of the world who we would never have otherwise known. This is why she has been on our Board for over three years — she is the supreme networker!"
Randall Reade
Executive Vice President
Washington DC ArchAngels
"In March 2014, I came to New York for 1M1B (1 Million for 1 Billion), a transformative entrepreneurship education initiative I was conceptualizing with vision to activate 1 Million people who will uplift 1 Billion people out of poverty. I had two big goals in mind, one, I wanted to make make connections with influential people in New York who could support me in multiple ways, and my second, I wanted to connect with people at the United Nations so that I could form a partnership and create a 1M1B annual event at the United Nations Headquarters.
I met Donna at a Landmark Wisdom course evening event in Manhattan and after a few rounds of exploratory discussions we decided to enter into a formal partnership, which had three elements:
1) Consulting: to articulate the 1M1B value proposition and validate the same by talking to multiple people
2) Coaching: so that I can go beyond myself, have bold partnership discussions and build a team.
3) Introductions: with the relevant people in New York (including individuals at the United Nations)
Donna can sense what lies ahead and provide foundations for future needs. In subsequent months, I visited New York every alternate month and met a number of people (maybe about a hundred), created a global brand and caused multiple results. I launched 1M1B in January 2015 and created a 1M1B New York team with two of the Founding team members introduced by Donna (I invited Donna to join the Founding team as well). As a Dayako, Donna pushed me beyond where I didn’t want to go, and even though I didn’t like it, I did what she said and valued the results (no doubt it is said that breakthroughs happen in your uncomfortable zone).
I had a breakdown in a very important partnership as I was conceptualizing the first 1M1B United Nations event in October 2015. I wanted to give up and push the event sometime into the future, but Donna didn’t let me do that and stood for the commitments I had made. This was an extremely difficult time for me but in this crisis situation, our team still went ahead and hosted young entrepreneurs from the Caribbean, India and USA over a three day trip in Washington DC and New York. Donna hosted the complete DC trip including connecting these young entrepreneurs with angel investors. Later, these young entrepreneurs came to New York and 1M1B did its first flagship event at the United Nations Headquarters as committed, and this opened up gateways for multiple partnerships that followed. Donna is truly a gift! Thanks, Donna."
Manav Subodh
1M1B Founder
Portrait by Francois Bonneau
1M1B entrepreneurial leaders at United Nations in 2018.
"As a Dayako and an outsider to the financial industry, Donna brings a new perspective to achieving the Alliance's goals. She opens doors, connecting us with opportunities and partnerships that we would otherwise be unaware of. Donna believes in our vision and mission and is truly inspired to fulfill them!"
Ashok Parameswaran
Founder and Board Chair
Emerging Markets Investors Alliance
Through The James Jay Dudley Luce Foundation I met Donna Tsufura, a Dayako, an Entelechy Agent who accelerates people, organizations and enterprises to fulfill their higher purpose and legacy for humanity. She listened to my story, and intuited that I have the potential to cause the transformation of Africa and its culture and empower its girls, women and others who are oppressed, ostracized, and risk being killed, especially those LGBTQ communities. Donna connected me to Queen Mother Dr. Delois Blakely, founder of New Future Foundation, in affiliation with the United Nations Economic and Social Council; who also recognized my potential and assigned me to be one of NFF's UN Youth Representatives within the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs. As a result, at 21 years of age, I am fulfilling my commitment to give voice to women and girls and others who are oppressed, gaining valuable experience, recognition and respect at the United Nations, and laying the foundation to be an effective, responsible world leader of integrity and compassion creating a new global community where everyone is honored and respected. If it wasn’t for Donna Tsufura that had spotted me out from all the young global leaders of the Luce Foundation foundation and decided to hone my potential to its highest degree I wouldn’t be here today creating all the possibilities I get to create now. Thank you, Donna! My Dayako!
Isaac Bayoh
Youth Representative to the United Nations for New Future Foundation
Young Global Leader, James Jay Dudley Luce Foundation
Founder, Girl Optimization
"I have known Donna Tsufura, the Dayako for more than 12 years. She has believed in me from the beginning and has given me enormous support. As a former photo editor, she recognized my gift of capturing people's inner light, their beauty and love.
At a difficult period in my life, I stopped shooting, the Dayako urged me to keep photographing no matter what obstacles came. She advised me to seek out subjects who are making a difference for the world. She helped me see different ways of approaching photography, and to go beyond where I would go on my own.
One example is when I did a test shoot for headshots, she urged me to explore my portraiture as well. The results were extraordinary [1]
Another example: one day the Dayako proposed that I do a portrait series on Hibakusha, survivors of the Hiroshima and Nagasaki atomic bombs - several had travelled from Japan to New York City to advocate for abolishing nuclear weapons. Within minutes we got a gallery to agree to show my work (before a single frame had been shot!) and the project was launched, produced, exhibited and is now an e-book. [2]. As the Dayako had foreseen, portraits of these courageous Japanese survivors expanded their impact and earned me a new level of respect for combining artistry and social activism.
Most recently, the Dayako saw the opportunity for me to create onsite portraits of African kings and queens attending a Peace and Prosperity Summit for the future of Africa, and within two days this intention was fulfilled. From this swift production, exciting new ideas and projects are now in motion [3].
From the beginning, the Dayako has stood for me and my photography to empower the United Nations community and civil society to fulfill the UN's mission for peace; I am in action! [4].
Before I worked with the Dayako, I had lost my way as a photographer. With her, I am alive and powerfully fulfilling my purpose to transform the world through my images and mentoring students of photography. I highly recommend The Dayako - she will open your vision and you will move with velocity!"
François Bonneau
Photographer
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Before coaching
After coaching
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All Photography by Francois Bonneau
"I met Donna at the 2016 Commission on the Status of Women at the United Nations. I had managed needs-based community development projects in the Middle East - North Africa region including Syria, Iraq, Lebanon, Jordan, Yemen and Tunisia, and one of the projects I designed was being acknowledged by the UN.. Donna and I got in conversation, and through her I did courses at Landmark which brought me closer to my family and changed my life forever.
That person who was me is not the person who is me. I got to know who I really am, what I want and what I do not want. Instead of going on vacation and returning to Lebanon, I chose to stay in the United States, where I can make a greater difference for the people in my region.
This whole journey is because of Donna. She is my fairy godmother, a miracle maker, my savior.
Donna mentioned me to so many people. She talked of me as great - I don’t know I’m so great. She was also pushy. I have an attitude, “No one tells me what to do!” She knew that was me being challenged. She made me see things I didn’t want to look at.
She is the one to bring people together, she knows who to connect with whom, she knows what projects to bring together. She has connected hundreds of people, she is behind hundreds of projects which have risen and become real, which have helped hundreds of people.
Donna is definitely the one for people who want to create projects that make a huge difference.in the world."
Nisreen Rammal
Human Rights and Gender Expert
Needs Based Sustainable Development