Wednesday 25 June 2025
19:00
Melinda French Gates
Transitions, Change, and Moving Forward
Melinda joins us to offer guidance on how to make the most of the time between an ending and a new beginning and how to move forward into the next day when the ground beneath you is shifting. Melinda will reflect on some of the most significant transitions in her own life, including becoming a parent, the death of a dear friend, and her departure from the Gates Foundation. Her stories illuminate universal lessons about loosening the bonds of perfectionism, helping friends navigate times of crisis, embracing uncertainty, and more.
In collaboration with How To Academy.
Melinda is a philanthropist, businesswoman, and global advocate for women and girls. For over 25 years, Melinda has led efforts to unlock a healthier, more prosperous, more equal future. Today, she heads Pivotal, an organization she formed in 2015 that works to accelerate the pace of progress and advance women’s power and influence in the U.S and around the world. Previously, she founded and co-chaired the Gates Foundation, where, for more than two decades, she set the direction and priorities of the world’s largest philanthropy. Melinda is also the author of the bestselling book The Moment of Lift and the creator of Moment of Lift Books, an imprint publishing original nonfiction by visionaries working to unlock a more equal world. Melinda grew up in Dallas, Texas and attended Duke University, where she received a bachelor’s degree in computer science and economics and an MBA. She spent the first decade of her career developing multimedia products at Microsoft before leaving the company to focus on her family and philanthropic work.
Philanthropist, businesswoman, and global advocate for women and girls
Melinda is a philanthropist, businesswoman, and global advocate for women and girls. For over 25 years, Melinda has led efforts to unlock a healthier, more prosperous, more equal future. Today, she heads Pivotal, an organization she formed in 2015 that works to accelerate the pace of progress and advance women’s power and influence in the U.S and around the world. Previously, she founded and co-chaired the Gates Foundation, where, for more than two decades, she set the direction and priorities of the world’s largest philanthropy. Melinda is also the author of the bestselling book The Moment of Lift and the creator of Moment of Lift Books, an imprint publishing original nonfiction by visionaries working to unlock a more equal world. Melinda grew up in Dallas, Texas and attended Duke University, where she received a bachelor’s degree in computer science and economics and an MBA. She spent the first decade of her career developing multimedia products at Microsoft before leaving the company to focus on her family and philanthropic work.
