CIoF announces first Convention plenary speaker
Melanie May | 18 May 2023 | News
Birgit Smith Burton has been announced as this year’s Fundraising Convention plenary speaker, taking the stage on day two of the event.
Smith Burton founded the African American Development Officers Network at Georgia Tech in 1999 to provide professional development, education, employment support, mentorship, and networking opportunities for fundraisers of colour.
She is a speaker on fundraising and diversity, and has authored articles on diversity in the fundraising profession. Her book Collecting Courage (published in 2020), tells her personal story and shares the lived experiences of Black women and men working in the nonprofit and charitable space.
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Smith Burton is on the board of the Association of Fundraising Professionals (AFP) and was the the first African American woman in its 62-year history to be voted chair of the AFP Global Board. In 2020 the R.I.S.E. Fund was established in her honour with a mission to advance women of colour in fundraising by providing resources, inspiration, support, and education.
This year’s Chartered Institute Fundraising Convention takes place on 3 and 4 July at the new location of the QEII Centre in London.
About Melanie May
Melanie May is a journalist and copywriter specialising in writing both for and about the charity and marketing services sectors since 2001. She can be reached via thepurplepim.com.