Yekta Karimi

Yekta Karimi is a graduate from Columbia University's School of International and Public Affairs (SIPA) where she obtained her Masters in International Affairs.  She  concentrated her degree in international finance and economic policy with a specialization in management and is certified in Nonprofit Leadership and Management through the Nonprofit Leadership Alliance as well as through the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI). 

Yekta's background is in nonprofit management, impact investing, and public/private partnership work.

She  currently lives in Washington, DC and works as a Senior Consultant at IBM with clients in the public sector. During her time with IBM she has helped clients develop strategies for growth and project implementation, perform data analytics and market research.

While living in DC, Yekta has worked on and led a few pro bono consulting projects for local nonprofits. Prior to joining IBM, she spent several months in Egypt helping a startup that is committed to bringing visual merchandising to Cairo by way of creating relationships between the art and retail communities. 

Yekta Karimi obtained her B.A. from California State University, Fresno and during her educational career, she remained at the top of her class and graduated with honors as a Smittcamp Presidential Scholar from Fresno State.

During these years, she also completed a certification in nonprofit management and leadership through the Nonprofit Leadership Alliance (formerly, American Humanics) via which she was able to gain significant experience in the community benefit sector in areas such as nonprofit governance, grant writing, philanthropy, and organizational development.

Immediately prior to coming to Columbia, she served as an Americorps VISTA at the Small Business Development Center (SBDC) in Fresno, California. At the SBDC, she worked as a consultant to entrepreneurs and small business owners and also engaged in program evaluation and development. 

Yekta's research experience is multifaceted and continues to evolve. As a Ronald E. McNair Scholar, Yekta wrote a thesis regarding the different lending institutions in Fresno, CA and focused her graduate research on public-private partnerships and impact investing platform development. At SIPA, Yekta was engaged with the Columbia Impact Investing Initiative for which she performed pro bono consulting for growing social ventures as part of a consulting team. 

Her background and interest in corporate social responsibility and sustainability reporting led her to a certification through GRI and paved a path for her to join G&A Institute as a Global Reporting Initiative Analyst Intern.