Elise Shea

Elise Shea joins GDI Americas as a Senior Associate of Strategy and Build. Elise is a firm believer in addressing structural inequalities and influencing policy through innovation. This passion motivates Elise’s work as a Senior Associate at GDI Americas, where she helps design, build, and launch social impact startups.

Previously, Elise worked as a Policy Research Manager for Ground Truth Solutions. There she designed quantitative and qualitative research to collect people’s perceptions of aid. She also established the organization’s global policy unit, focused on advocating for humanitarian policy reforms and ensuring affected people lead decision-making about the humanitarian assistance they receive. Separately, she founded and directed Conversations Unbound, a nonprofit that empowers displaced people as language tutors, and now serves as the Chair of the Board. Elise completed her Master of Public Policy from the University of Oxford and earned her Bachelor of Arts in International Studies and French from Vassar College.