Julie Castro Abrams
About Julie Castro Abrams
Julie Castro Abrams is a gender and racial justice activist who has spent the majority of her career working to build great women owned companies and economic access for women. She works with top executive women to change structures that are unequal. Her leadership impact includes changing laws on women on corporate boards, doing movement building to ensure women put board service on their path and placing women on boards. She is an expert on building boards that add a strategic advantage including proactive searches for women on corporate boards. An experienced CEO and sought-after speaker on entrepreneurship and how women lead, she is widely recognized because of her unique ability to connect people and facilitate rich conversations that make change happen. Thousands of new businesses attribute their launch and growth to her support which has resulted in millions toward the economic growth in communities. She is a leader in the country's movement to build and fund start-ups. As the General Partner for two venture funds focussed exclusively on funding women she is working to change the fact that women only receive 1.7% of venture funding. Julie's commitment to justice and community is well-known in her personal and professional endeavors. She serves as a leader on the boards of organizations focused on women and children, Latinos, economic development, and the arts. Julie is a philanthropist who launched How Women Give and today she serves on the board of SEAL.org ensuring that the tremendous value of the immigrant experience is valued and embedded into education. Julie has won many awards including the Jobs Genius Award, Morgan Stanley Innovation Award, Cisco Innovation in Technology, "Women Who Could Be President" League of Women Voters, Stevie Award for Best Non-Profit Executive, Human Rights Award from the Commission on the Status of Women, the Women of Color Action Network, Leadership California and the Marin Women's Hall of Fame in 2011. keywords: venture capital, entrepreneurship, corporate diversity, women's leadership, philanthropy, board governance, board recruiting