Philanthropy Expert Council

Rennie is Partner and Head of Philanthropy at C. Hoare & Co.

Lynn Zovighian is an entrepreneur, philanthropist, and opera singer. She is the co-founder of the Zovighian Partnership, a family-owned social investment platform dedicated to research and data-led strategic planning, policy development, and governance in private and public philanthropy. She is also the founder of the Zovighian Public Office, her family’s philanthropic arm, which serves communities facing genocide and other crimes of atrocity. Lynn is a contributor to global publications including Newsweek, Wilson Center, CNN, Arab News, and An-Nahar. Most recently, she returned to the stage as a performing musician and convenes musicians for socio-economic impact and cultural dialogue. 
 

Lynn sits on the advisory boards of the Global Family Office Community and Middle East auction house, Artscoops. She is a former member of the Board of Governors of the American Community School in Beirut, Lebanon. She lectures on giving power to communities, business building, and social investing and has given seminars at London Business School and Northeastern University.

Prior to founding her venture and family philanthropy, Lynn was a private banker at Barclays Wealth and Investment Management, servicing family offices in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. She also worked with her father in his construction trading business, SPG, where she led a corporate turnaround strategy. She was a strategic management consultant for Pictet & Cie and a consultant at The Boston Consulting Group Middle East, where she served as the Middle East knowledge expert for their global private wealth management practice. 

Lynn has an MBA in Finance from London Business School and a BA and double minor in Political Science, American Studies, and Islamic History. She is based in Saudi Arabia and Lebanon. 

Suzanne Hammer is the founder of Hammer & Associates, a global philanthropy advisory firm based in the Denver, Colorado area.

Suzanne has worked with both large and small family foundations, family offices, and enterprises for more than a decade. She has launched and managed private foundations and corporate giving programs; facilitated impactful strategy, governance, and grantmaking; led processes to engage the next generation; and connected funders in strengthening the communities and issues they care about.

Suzanne co-produced Philanthropy in the Family Office: A Global Perspective, and has authored a series of toolkits for family offices called EngagedPhilanthropy™: A Family Office Guide to Meaningful Giving, including Laying the Groundwork; Balancing Passion and Strategy; Making the Most of Family Dynamics; and International Giving.

Suzanne is a dedicated Rotarian and a backcountry skier who has polar-plunged into the icy waters of Antarctica (three times!) and lived to tell the tale. Speaking nationally and internationally, Suzanne takes a warm, sincere approach in sharing lessons learned as she guides others toward practicing philanthropy that is both meaningful and measurable.

Armine Afeyan, Afeyan Family Foundation & Executive Director, Aurora Humanitarian Initiative

Armine Afeyan is Executive Director at the Aurora Humanitarian Initiative, having previously held the role of Director of Communications for the Aurora Prize for Awakening Humanity. She oversees day-to-day activities for the initiative and strengthen's Aurora's ties in North America and Europe.

A native of Boston, Massachusetts, Armine Afeyan received a BA in Political Science from Yale University, where she studied international relations focusing on the Armenian case. She also holds an MBA from INSEAD.

Prior to Aurora, Armine spent the balance of her career in consumer technology companies, most recently serving as a general manager at Wayfair.

Simon Borchert is Chief Executive of the Shannon Elizabeth Foundation.

Cape Town born and bred, Simon is a socially and environmentally-minded brand and business strategist with an insatiable desire for outdoor adventure and a deep passion for protecting Africa’s wildlife and wild places. He is a keen yachtsman and has a special concern for the well being of our oceans.

With more than 18 years of business and consulting experience, Simon has successfully delivered strategies to some of the biggest brands and agencies in South Africa, including Media 24, Distell, SAB, Maserati, Momentum, Ogilvy and FCB to name a few. He has also delivered strategies for Africa Geographic magazine, WWF South Africa, Ogilvy Earth, Desmond Tutu’s African Leadership Institute, the Volvo Ocean Summit and others in the conservation and NGO space. Simon is also an award winner in magazine publishing and was a co-founder of the groundbreaking Brand magazine.

Simon spearheads the Shannon Elizabeth Foundation and oversees all operational matters, including fundraising, technology, brand development, marketing and production.