Dr. Yvette Efevbera is a global health and equity expert and a Harvard Forward candidate. She works to create a world where young people and women are healthy, happy, unafraid, and unapologetic.

“As a global health specialist, I’ve seen the consequences of inequity and advocated for organizations to bring community voices to the table. Racial injustice, gender inequality, and climate inaction impact Harvard students’ success. We have the opportunity and responsibility to boldly lead here.” 

Efevbera develops strategies and investments addressing barriers girls and women face in her role as Advisor, Gender-Based Violence and Child Marriage, Gender Equality at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. She has worked for a decade across academic, non-profit, and philanthropic spaces at the intersection of research, policy, and advocacy, bringing culturally intentional lenses to health and development in U.S. and African contexts. In 2017, the NIH awarded Efevbera the Kirschstein Predoctoral Individual National Research Service Award to Promote Diversity in Health-Related Research.

Throughout her career, Efevbera’s passion has been creating spaces for underrepresented voices to participate in decision-making. As a master’s and doctoral student at the Chan School of Public Health, she spent seven years advancing racial justice and was a teaching fellow at Harvard College, HSPH, HKS, and HGSE. Efevbera served as Senior Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion Fellow at HSPH, leading the design of the University’s first anonymous bias-related incident reporting system, enabling 4,000 students, faculty, and staff to report discrimination. She is proud to have served as a Cabot House resident tutor.