Expertise

Leadership
Jessika has led international remote teams and she has developed 2 significant grantmaking programs from the ground up, including developing all strategy, processes, and implementation. Jessika founded Thrive Philanthropy after noticing a gap in equitable funding opportunities in the plant-based food justice space and launched Thrive Africa after noticing a lack of funding opportunities for Africa-based food justice advocates.  Her leadership in equitable grantmaking has resulted in significant growth in the plant-based food justice space in more than half the world's countries and 6 continents.  

Global Plant-Based Food Systems Philanthropy
Jessika Ava, MS, MPA is founder and CEO  of Thrive Philanthropy a global grantmaker creating equitable funding access to food justice advocates and reaching half the world's countries and 6 continents, with a grantmaking portfolio of 100+ grants in 80+ countries annually. She works alongside a BIPOC- and women-majority team from both Global South & Global North countries, all with lived social justice experience.

In an earlier role, Jessika developed and led one of the world’s largest international vegan grantmaking and capacity funds, where she successfully facilitated expansion of the vegan food justice movement across 70+ countries including regions historically neglected for funding and regions with nascent movements such as Africa, SE Asia, and non-English speaking regions.  ​

Africa Equitable Food Systems Movement-Building and Funding 
Jessika is founder of Thrive Africa, an initiative that is exponentially growing the plant-based food systems movement across 70% of African countries through grants and capacity. In 2020 after noticing a significant lack of plant-based food systems funding opportunities across sub-Sahara Africa, she launched the Thrive Africa Accelerator to expand Africa regional grant access by using an equity-based participatory co-design approach. To date, results are in increased financial and capacity support to over 900 Africa-based food systems organizations and advocates. She is cofounder of Thrive Africa Vegan Restaurant Week and Thrive Africa Vegan School Lunch Campaign, the world's first two pan-Africa, domestically-led initiatives to advance plant-based eating across 20+ African countries. In 2022, after noticing a significant lack of women-identified leadership in the Africa plant-based food systems space, she launched the  Thrive Africa Vegan Women's Initiative, an initiative increasing gender equity in Africa grant funding and whose membership grew 500% in the first year.​​

Board Leadership
Jessika is cofounder and Board President of A Just World, an organization that strengthens food justice organizations across India. She sits on the Board of Directors of A Just World, Animal Alliance Asia, and Out to Pasture Animal Sanctuary, and is the Advisory Board of multiple organizations within Asia and Africa. 

International Speaker
Jessika is an international speaker and workshop leader and has presented at numerous conferences to thousands of people in India, China, Vietnam, Kenya, Germany, Nepal, USA, and other countries across North America, Asia, Africa, and Europe.  Speaking topics include equitable funding approaches, high-impact food systems change tactics, program evaluations, and more.

Global South Experience
Jessika has significant Global South living and working experience and splits her residence between USA and Nepal, she formerly lived and worked full-time in India and then in Nepal.

Asia - NGO Management, Elephant Conservation, Animal Welfare , Halting India Industrial Dairy Farms​
Jessika has worked as an Asian elephant conservation biologist in Northeast India, has managed a street dog care organization NGO in Nepal, has overseen a grant portfolio for India street animal welfare to multiple Indian organizations using the One Health approach, made 50+ site visits to SE Asia animal shelters, facilitated multiple partnerships with SE Asia animal shelters and sterilizations programs, and she laid the foundational work to halt the entrance of India’s first intensive dairy factory farm. Jessika has worked or volunteered with multiple animal advocacy organizations across India and Nepal and previously lived fulltime in India and then Nepal.

Awards, Fellowships,  and Publications
Jessika was granted an acknowledgment of appreciation handed by the Nepal Environmental Minister for her longstanding work across Asia.
Jessika is recipient of the Sloan Indigenous Graduate Partnership SSMN Professional of the Year Award.
She is a Rockwood Leadership Equity in Philanthropy Fellow,  Sloan Indigenous Scholar Fellow, and American Indian Graduate Fellow.

Jessika is the author of Brighter Green’s policy paper, Beyond the Pail: The Emergence of Industrialized Dairy Systems in SE Asia. 

Academic Degrees
Jessika has an MS in Biostatistics from the University of Arizona, an MPA in Nonprofit Management and Program Evaluation from Portland State University, and a BS in Evolutionary Ecology and Biology from University of Oregon.

Indigenous Leadership
Jessika is a citizen of the Choctaw Nation tribe and one of the first Native Americans to sit in a leadership position in the vegan philanthropic space.