Greater London, England, United Kingdom, February 2026 — Marica Rizzo has started a new position as Global Director of People at Educate!, marking an important leadership milestone within the youth employment organization focused on empowering Africa’s next generation. In her expanded global mandate, she will lead people strategy and organizational capability to support Educate!’s growing impact across East Africa.
Marica previously served as Director of People at Educate!, where she strengthened the organization’s people systems and leadership capability during a period of scale and programmatic expansion. Her progression reflects Educate!’s commitment to building internal leadership aligned with its mission of enabling youth to learn, earn, and thrive in today’s economy.
Before joining Educate!, Marica Rizzo spent over eight years at Acumen, including leadership roles within Acumen Academy. As Associate Director, Acumen Academy, she oversaw central operations of the flagship Fellows Programs and led the development of The Foundry alumni community. Earlier, as Global Community Lead, she implemented engagement strategies to support fellows and accelerator alumni worldwide, and launched innovative blended learning and train-the-trainer models to scale leadership development.
Her earlier experience spans strategy, communications, and social enterprise leadership. At Wedu Fund, she designed and launched a lifelong mentorship and leadership development program for young women in Southeast Asia. She also contributed to brand strategy and communications roles at BRITEWEB, skoah, and supported initiatives with the Canadian Paralympic Committee and Vancouver Whitecaps FC.
Educate! prepares youth in Africa to learn, earn, and thrive in today’s economy by introducing employment-focused secondary education curricula and delivering livelihood bootcamps for out-of-school youth, particularly girls and young women in rural communities. Operating across Uganda, Rwanda, Kenya, and Tanzania, Educate! has meaningfully impacted more than 600,000 youth and continues to scale youth employment solutions across the continent.
Read Also : When HR “Produces Nothing”: A Response to Jennifer Sey’s Anti-HR Vision
The Fine Balance: Navigating Work, Life, and Mental Wellbeing
Mind the Leadership Gap – From Learning to Real-World Impact
How the Adecco Group is empowering its employees for the future of work
