HI5 Governance was founded by Michaela Told as a sister organization of HumanImpact5 HI5 which was established in 2020 by Michaela Told and Gabrielle Landry Chappuis. As our work has evolved over time, so have our portfolios. HI5 Governance is a result of this evolution and was officially registered as a Limited Liability Company (LLC) in November 2022 in the Canton of Geneva, Switzerland.
Michaela and her team now focus on policy and governance, organizational development and change management, knowledge management and evaluation, training and facilitation, as well as implementation research. The original vision of driving social and human impact remains a driving force of the work of HI5 Governance.
We work across different time zones around the world and offer tailor-made services to our clients and can onboard specialists to ensure that we meet your needs and expectations.
Michaela has worked more than 25 years on development, humanitarian affairs, migration, global health, and human rights, both at the operational and policy level. Her work experience spans from starting new projects, facilitating policy development, conceptualizing trainings to managing humanitarian emergencies and conducting evaluations.
Prior to her independent work with HI5, she co-established and served as Executive Director of the Global Health Centre at the Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies and co-headed the WHO Collaborating Centre on Governance for Health and Global Health Diplomacy. In this role, she was instrumental in positioning global health diplomacy and governance for health as areas of engagement. Earlier in her career, she worked more than 10 years with the Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement in different positions at local, regional and international levels in all continents, among others, as OD Delegate in Lao PDR, Head of Delegation of the Austrian & Swiss Red Cross in the Tsunami Operation in Sri Lanka and as Head of Principles and Values Department of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies. She strengthened local branches, set-up and managed large-scale operations, formulated regional (exit) strategies and engagement plans, negotiated policies, and facilitated strategic processes within the Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement. Michaela also worked with the Austrian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Division of Development Cooperation (today: Austrian Development Agency) and later served as Secretary General of an international women’s peace and human rights NGO based in Geneva.
She holds post-graduate degrees in business administration/development economics, social work, and development studies/women & development respectively, as well as a PhD in Political Science/Cultural Studies. She is currently teaching on policy and governance at the University of Geneva, the MCI Innsbruck, and the Diplomatic Academy in Vienna. She is a qualified coach and psychodramatist, as well as a licensed psychotherapist in her home country Austria.
Paula is a medical doctor with over 30 years of experience in programme management, monitoring and evaluation, and health systems strengthening. She specializes in reproductive, maternal, newborn, child & adolescent health and nutrition. Paula is based in Germany and Jordan. [ more ]
Masuma is a public health and development specialist with extensive experience in health systems development, with particular attention to gender equality; in understanding patterns of vulnerability, exclusion and systemic inequalities from a social determinants of health perspective; in monitoring and participatory evaluation and political economy analysis. She is based in the UK and Tanzania. [ more ]
Stephen has worked as a science academic and in international development in health, education and human development, holding positions in intergovernmental, governmental and nongovernmental organizations. He is experienced in organization development, management and strategy, diplomacy, programme and project management, research and communications. Stephen is based in the UK.
Uda is an Attorney-at-Law and human rights specialist who is working on integrating gender transformative approaches and diverse SOGIESC inclusion in SRHR programming with international, regional, and national organizations, mainly in South-Asia, South-East Asia, and the Pacific. She also undertakes research and provides trainings on gender equality and inclusion for international organizations. Uda is based in Sri Lanka. [ more ]