Small businesses drive the economy. They deserve to own a piece of it. Jia gives entrepreneurs anywhere in the world power to control their financial destiny. 💸We provide blockchain-based financing to businesses in emerging markets and reward them with ownership, enabling them to create wealth and prosperity for themselves and their communities. 💗Hop onboard at http://jia.xyz/ 🚀Join us on Twitter @jia_DeFi 🐣

LA Forward is a community of people who fight for policies that will make Los Angeles a fair, flourishing place for everyone.

Tala is a financial technology company on a mission to build a financial system that works for everyone. Our first product is a lending app that instantly underwrites and delivers credit to customers who have little or no formal borrowing history. Tala has disbursed over $2B to more than 6 million customers across East Africa, the Philippines, Mexico, and India who use Tala loans to start and expand small businesses, pay school fees and bills, and build more stable financial lives. Head to Tala.co/careers to learn more about all of our open positions around the world!

Oystir is an online jobs marketplace that matches candidates and employers based on highly specific skill data. Our skills-to-jobs matching technology and career development resources have helped thousands of people find great new jobs.In October 2016, Oystir was acquired by DOC (dropoutclub.org), a company dedicated to helping doctors, scientists and academics find amazing careers.

Chai Wallahs of India is a photojournalism project chronicling India’s roadside tea vendors. My co-author Resham Gellatly and I are finishing a book including stories of entrepreneurs and communities around the country. Our website has been been featured in over 30 international media outlets including BBC News, Public Radio International and Travel + Leisure, and includes guest submissions from readers around the world. In between cups of chai, I also wrote freelance articles for the New York Times and other publications.chaiwallahsofindia.com

As a management consultant, I served clients in the public, private and social sectors on strategy and operations, with a focus on economic development, education and social entrepreneurship. Selected experiences include:Developed South Sudan’s national agriculture plan with the Vice President and Minister of Agriculture; negotiated deals to win support from local government, community, private sector and international development stakeholders; identified food security strategies that became law.Led establishment of 124 community reconstruction planning initiatives in wake of Hurricane Sandy, building partnerships with developers, local, state and federal government officials, local businesses and community members.Co-wrote "From Potential to Action: Bringing Social Impact Bonds to the U.S.," a report assessing the potential for an innovative social financing mechanism in the United States; managed relations with six large foundations sponsoring the work.

Taught conversational English and creative writing to grades 6-12 in a government school serving low-income students; started and coached high school basketball and soccer teams; organized public speaking and debate competitions, letter exchanges with U.S. students and the first edition of the school newspaper.Conducted informal culinary research, stuffing samosas and flipping dosas across the country; finally learned to roll a round roti.

Implemented presidential campaign’s grassroots strategy in Northwest Philadelphia and achieved area’s highest voter turnout in over 50 years; opened and managed 3 field offices, 5 full-time staffers and 300 part-time volunteers; coordinated with Democratic party, unions and other local stakeholders.

Wrote articles and policy memos on a range of policy issues, with a focus on higher education. Contributed daily blog posts for CampusProgress.org, later renamed GenProgress.org, an online magazine and news site covering policies that affect young people with a progressive slant.Won a contest among D.C. interns to see who could eat for free most creatively. For 2 weeks, I snagged finger food at networking events and snuck into national conference buffets. Didn't pay for a single meal and never ate better.

Worked with the Director of the District’s Office of Multiple Pathways to Graduation developing Project U-Turn, a strategy to improve citywide dropout recovery programs.