Wanjiru Kamau-Rutenberg is an Executive in Residence at

Schmidt Futures Schmidt Futures is a philanthropic venture founded by Eric Schmidt and Wendy Schmidt in 2017. The philanthropy funds science and technology research and talent networking programs. The organization's grants include large-scale "moonshots". Schmidt ...

. Before that she was Director of African Women in Agricultural Research and Development (AWARD). Wanjiru is also the Founder and past Executive Director of Akili Dada, a leadership incubator for African girls and young women and a former Assistant Professor of Politics at the

University of San Francisco The University of San Francisco (USF) is a private Jesuit university in San Francisco, California. The university's main campus is located on a setting between the Golden Gate Bridge and Golden Gate Park. The main campus is nicknamed "The Hil ...

Education

Kamau-Rutenberg earned a

Ph.D A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, Ph.D., or DPhil; Latin: or ') is the most common Academic degree, degree at the highest academic level awarded following a course of study. PhDs are awarded for programs across the whole breadth of academic fields ...

Political Science Political science is the scientific study of politics. It is a social science dealing with systems of governance and power, and the analysis of political activities, political thought, political behavior, and associated constitutions and la ...

from the

University of Minnesota The University of Minnesota, formally the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities, (UMN Twin Cities, the U of M, or Minnesota) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in the Minneapolis–Saint Paul, Tw ...

Minneapolis Minneapolis () is the largest city in Minnesota, United States, and the county seat of Hennepin County. The city is abundant in water, with thirteen lakes, wetlands, the Mississippi River, creeks and waterfalls. Minneapolis has its origins ...

, where she concentrated on

International Relations International relations (IR), sometimes referred to as international studies and international affairs, is the scientific study of interactions between sovereign states. In a broader sense, it concerns all activities between states—such as ...

Gender Studies Gender studies is an interdisciplinary academic field devoted to analysing gender identity and gendered representation. Gender studies originated in the field of women's studies, concerning women, feminism, gender, and politics. The field ...

African History The history of Africa begins with the emergence of hominids, archaic humans and — around 300–250,000 years ago—anatomically modern humans (''Homo sapiens''), in East Africa, and continues unbroken into the present as a patchwork of dive ...

. Her 2008 dissertation on the ''Impact of Ethnic Politics on Women’s Rights legislation during Kenya’s Democratic Transition'' theorised about the intersection of gender, (re)production of ethnic identities and democratisation processes in emerging economies. Her essay using a gender lens to explore forced circumcision of men during Kenya's 2007-08 Post Election ethnic violence was one of the first of its kind to use African men's experiences of political violence as a point of departure to theorise the intersection of gender and politics and was published in the

Oxford University Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...

Transitional Justice Research Working Paper Series. She was also awarded a

Doctorate of Humane Letters The degree of Doctor of Humane Letters (; DHumLitt; DHL; or LHD) is an honorary degree awarded to those who have distinguished themselves through humanitarian and philanthropic contributions to society. The criteria for awarding the degree differ ...

(Honoris Causa) by

Whitman College Whitman College is a private liberal arts college in Walla Walla, Washington. The school offers 53 majors and 33 minors in the liberal arts and sciences, and it has a student-to-faculty ratio of 9:1. Whitman was the first college in the Pacifi ...

Washington Washington commonly refers to: * Washington (state), United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A metonym for the federal government of the United States ** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered on ...

. This Honorary Doctorate recognised her scholarly work and activism towards gender equality especially in

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...

. She delivered the commencement speech to the graduating class of 2017 as part of the award ceremony. Kamau-Rutenberg also holds a

Master of Arts A Master of Arts ( la, Magister Artium or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA, M.A., AM, or A.M.) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. Tho ...

degree in Political Science from

the University of Minnesota The University of Minnesota, formally the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities, (UMN Twin Cities, the U of M, or Minnesota) is a public land-grant research university in the Twin Cities of Minneapolis and Saint Paul, Minnesota, United States. T ...

, Minneapolis awarded in 2005, and a

Bachelor of Arts Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four years ...

in Politics from Whitman College,

Walla Walla Walla Walla can refer to: * Walla Walla people, a Native American tribe after which the county and city of Walla Walla, Washington, are named * Place of many rocks in the Australian Aboriginal Wiradjuri language, the origin of the name of the town ...

awarded in 2001.

Career

In 2005, Kamau-Rutenberg established Akili Dada, a leadership incubator for girls and young women based in

Nairobi, Kenya Nairobi ( ) is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Kenya. The name is derived from the Maasai language, Maasai phrase ''Enkare Nairobi'', which translates to "place of cool waters", a reference to the Nairobi River which flows throug ...

to address the underrepresentation of women in leadership positions in Africa. Kamau-Rutenberg also served as an

Assistant Professor Assistant Professor is an academic rank just below the rank of an associate professor used in universities or colleges, mainly in the United States and Canada. Overview This position is generally taken after earning a doctoral degree and general ...

San Francisco, California San Francisco (; Spanish for " Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the fourth most populous in California and 17th ...

, from August 2008 to March 2014. During her career in academia she focused on the politics of International Aid and Development, Politics of Global Philanthropy, African Politics, International Relations, Politics of Race and Ethnic Identity. Kamau-Rutenberg also served as a

Lecturer Lecturer is an List of academic ranks, academic rank within many universities, though the meaning of the term varies somewhat from country to country. It generally denotes an academic expert who is hired to teach on a full- or part-time basis. T ...

in International Relations at

Hekima University College Hekima College is a Jesuit school of theology in Nairobi, Kenya, affiliated with the Catholic University of Eastern Africa. It opened in 1984 as a seminary for Jesuits studying to be priests. Since its opening, Hekima has diversified its student ...

, a Constituent College of the

Catholic University of Eastern Africa Catholic University of Eastern Africa (CUEA), is a multi-campus private university in Kenya. It is accredited by the Commission for University Education in Kenya. Location The main campus of the university is located along Bogani East Road, ...

Nairobi Nairobi ( ) is the capital and largest city of Kenya. The name is derived from the Maasai phrase ''Enkare Nairobi'', which translates to "place of cool waters", a reference to the Nairobi River which flows through the city. The city proper ha ...

, Kenya, from August 2013 to January 2014. In March 2014 she was appointed the director of African Women in Agricultural Research and Development (AWARD)] which is hosted by the

World Agroforestry Centre World Agroforestry (a brand name used by the International Centre for Research in Agroforestry, ICRAF) is an international institute headquartered in Nairobi, Kenya, and founded in 1978 as "International Council for Research in Agroforestry". T ...

(ICRAF) headquartered in Nairobi,

Kenya ) , national_anthem = "Ee Mungu Nguvu Yetu"() , image_map = , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Nairobi , coordinates = , largest_city = Nairobi , ...

. AWARD invests in agricultural scientists, research institutions, and agribusinesses, strengthening their ability to deliver gender-responsive agricultural innovation for inclusive, agriculture-driven prosperity across Africa. In 2017 AWARD announced the One Planet Fellowships, a $20M, 5 year initiative to invest in the careers of 600 scientists working towards research to help African

smallholder A smallholding or smallholder is a small farm operating under a small-scale agriculture model. Definitions vary widely for what constitutes a smallholder or small-scale farm, including factors such as size, food production technique or technology ...

farmers adapt towards a changing climate.

Board Roles

Wanjiru has, and continues to serve in numerous Boards. In 2021 she was appointed to Board of Landesa, the world's largest land rights organization, and the Board of the Syngenta Foundation. She also serves on the Selection Committee of the

Africa Food Prize The Africa Food Prize, originally the Yara Prize, is an annual award for contributions to African agriculture. Yara Prize Yara International, a Norwegian chemical company and a large producer of fertilizer, established the Yara Prize for a Green ...

, the Board of the Wangari Maathai Foundation, and the President's Advisory Board of Whitman College. She also sits on the Councils of the African Climate Foundation and The Center for Development Research at the

University of Bonn The Rhenish Friedrich Wilhelm University of Bonn (german: Rheinische Friedrich-Wilhelms-Universität Bonn) is a public research university located in Bonn, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It was founded in its present form as the ( en, Rhine U ...

. She is a member of the Malabo Montpellier Panel, a high-level panel of independent experts that supports African governments and civil society identify and implement policies that enhance agriculture, food and nutrition security across the continent. She also serves on the Board of Twaweza,. East Africa’s largest public and policy engagement platform.

Awards and honors

* 2003: MacArthur Doctoral Fellow], Interdisciplinary Program on Global Change, Sustainability and Justice, Doctoral Research Fellowship, University of Minnesota * 2010: Winner, Marketplace of Ideas, United Nations Alliance of Civilizations,

Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro ( , , ; literally 'River of January'), or simply Rio, is the capital of the state of the same name, Brazil's third-most populous state, and the second-most populous city in Brazil, after São Paulo. Listed by the GaWC as a b ...

Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...

*2011: Thomas I. Yamashita Prize, Center for the Study of Social Change,

University of California The University of California (UC) is a public land-grant research university system in the U.S. state of California. The system is composed of the campuses at Berkeley, Davis, Irvine, Los Angeles, Merced, Riverside, San Diego, San Francisco, ...

at Berkeley *2012: 100 Most Influential Africans, New African Magazine *2012: Champion of Democracy] in

East Africa East Africa, Eastern Africa, or East of Africa, is the eastern subregion of the African continent. In the United Nations Statistics Division scheme of geographic regions, 10-11-(16*) territories make up Eastern Africa: Due to the historical ...

Ford Foundation The Ford Foundation is an American private foundation with the stated goal of advancing human welfare. Created in 1936 by Edsel Ford and his father Henry Ford, it was originally funded by a US$25,000 gift from Edsel Ford. By 1947, after the death ...

*2012: White House Champion of Change,

United States White House The White House is the official residence and workplace of the president of the United States. It is located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., and has been the residence of every U.S. president since John Adams in 1800. ...

and the

United States Department of State The United States Department of State (DOS), or State Department, is an executive department of the U.S. federal government responsible for the country's foreign policy and relations. Equivalent to the ministry of foreign affairs of other n ...

* 2013: Africa's Most Influential Women in Business and Government, Winner, Civil Society category, Nairobi. *2014: Top 40 women under age 40,

Business Daily The BBC World Service is an international broadcasting, international broadcaster owned and operated by the BBC, with funding from the Government of the United Kingdom, British Government through the Foreign Secretary, Foreign Secretary's o ...

, Nairobi, Kenya. * 2016: Africa's Most Influential Women, New African Magazine,

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

, U.K *2017: Doctor of Humane Letters (Honoris Causa), Whitman College, WA

USA The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...

* 2018:

Archbishop Desmond Tutu Desmond Mpilo Tutu (7 October 193126 December 2021) was a South African Anglican bishop and Christian theology, theologian, known for his work as an Internal resistance to apartheid, anti-apartheid and human rights activist. He was Anglican ...

Leadership Fellow, ''African Leadership Institute,'' Oxford University, &

Cape Town Cape Town ( af, Kaapstad; , xh, iKapa) is one of South Africa's three capital cities, serving as the seat of the Parliament of South Africa. It is the legislative capital of the country, the oldest city in the country, and the second largest ...

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...

*2018: 20 Faces of Science, Africa Science Week, Kenya *2021: 100 Most Influential African Women, Avance Media *2021: 27 Inspiring Women Reshaping the Food System *2021: 100 Most Influential Women in Gender Policy
Apolitical

Bibliography

Book and journal contributions

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Op-eds

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References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kamau-Rutenberg, Wanjiru 21st-century Kenyan women scientists 21st-century Kenyan scientists Living people 1978 births Kenyan political scientists University of Minnesota College of Liberal Arts alumni Whitman College alumni Women political scientists