Pelin Munis, Ph.D. Email & Phone Number

San Francisco, California, Us

Dr. Pelin Munis serves as the Chief Executive Officer of RestoringVision, having joined the organization in January 2015 as its first Executive Director. She was appointed to the Board of Directors in May 2021 and as CEO in November 2022.Under her leadership, RestoringVision has experienced rapid global expansion as its vision programs have grown from 70 countries to more than 150 countries and from 2M people reached to 30M people since she joined the organization. With Pelin at the helm of RestoringVision, the organization now reaches 5.5 million people a year living on less than $2/day with its vision services and eyeglasses, with a transformative growth trajectory poised to reach 50 million people annually. In 2022, Pelin was honored as Vision Monday’s Most Influential Women in Optical for these achievements.

San Francisco, California, Us

San Francisco, California, Us

The lack of access to vision care and eyeglasses is one of the biggest global health problems affecting over 1B people and impacting their health, education, livelihoods, and quality of life. The lack of access to eyeglasses also impacts the economy at a projected global loss of $410 billion annually. Studies show that eyeglasses increases a person’s productivity by up to 32% and income by 33% with gains in confidence, quality of work, and independence. For someone earning $2 a day that equates to $288 of incomes gains. For every 5M glasses provided, a $10M investment with us yields $1.44B of income gains. The vision crisis is a global health and development issue that is solvable, and RestoringVision is at the forefront of this. Its programs are implemented with an unparalleled network of more than 3,000 NGOs and governments. Its in-country programs are scaling to reach more people, and its teams are collaborating with leaders of the public and private sectors.For more information or to join RestoringVision, visit restoringvision.org.

Geneva 27, Ge, Ch

Dr. Pelin Munis serves on the Global SPECS Network Foundation Committee advising the WHO Secretariat. Pelin also serves as co-chair of the Network's Awareness and Demand Generation workstream. The Network's mission is to support Member States in achieving the WHO SPECS 2030 Initiative. The initiative aims to achieve the global target of a 40-percentage point increase in effective refractive error coverage by 2030. Achieving this ambitious goal requires coordinated advocacy and united action by public, private and civil society organizations.

New York, Ny, Us

Dr. Pelin Munis serves on the 11-member Secretariat supporting the Friends of Vision group of the United Nations Member States. The Friends of Vision group consists of country representatives, including at the Ambassador level, from more than 50 countries. The Friends of Vision aims to advance the issue of eye health within the context of the SDGs, to raise its profile on the global agenda, and to share knowledge from the sector with and among Member States.

Pelin was the Founder and former Chief Executive Officer at Mischa International, LLC, an exclusive distributor of Zeki Resortwear for the United States, Canada, Latin America, and the Caribbean.As a Ph.D. applied psychologist with interest in global business, Pelin started her company, Mischa International, in 2009. Within two years, she launched the brand in eight markets, including four exclusive markets, growing global sales.The brand, Zeki, was established in 1958 and was one of the leading women's resortwear brands in the world with a production capacity of over 1M. Four women designers created collections of 600 unique pieces annually. The brand owned and operated 23 stores in its domestic market and 17 franchised stores throughout Europe, Asia, and Africa.Working closely with the factories and the markets in which she operated fueled her passion for international economic development and the advancement of women and people globally.

Dr. Pelin Munis served as a lead consultant and regional director for a program funded by the Department of Justice and implemented with the Center for Court Innovation in New York to identify and address human trafficking. A large-scale, multi-site evaluation was conducted to assess program impact and identify intervention strategies and policy implications.

Dr. Pelin Munis led evaluations of federal and state-funded programs serving exceptional students and programs designed to increase student outcomes and parent involvement in student education. Programs were funded by the Departments of Health and Education.

Coral Gables, Fl, Us

Pelin Munis was a Ph.D candidate and served as a senior research fellow, and consultant focused on program development, evaluation, and policy. She completed her tenure with the most and highest achievements including multiple publications in peer reviewed academic journals including first author, presentations at national conferences, federal grant awardee, development of a assessment tool that continues to be used in temperament and personality research today. Her work continues to inform and guide new research and contributes to the growing knowledge base.

Pa, Us

Pelin Munis served as the Program Manager and Research Associate for the first-ever comprehensive longitudinal study assessing the growth and development of children. The study was led by renowned doctors at the University of Pennsylvania and the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia and followed children from 80 families from diverse backgrounds.

M.S., Applied Psychology

Ph.D., Applied Psychology

B.A., Applied Psychology