Nora Jeanne Joseph

Nora Jeanne Joseph is a Haitian-American activist and social entrepreneur who is passionate about sustainable development and women’s empowerment. She is the founder of RADIKAL, a Haiti-based social franchise that helps disenfranchised women create sustainable livelihoods. Nora strengthens food security in Haiti by catalyzing women street vendors as micro-entrepreneurs. By professionalizing street food vendors and linking them to local producers through an integrated supply chain, they become a critical node in tackling hunger in low-income communities while simultaneously improving their livelihoods.

RADIKAL’s impact is fourfold: improving the livelihoods of women in the informal economy and small farmers, reducing the environmental impact of street food, stimulating local agriculture and increasing access to healthy and sustainable food in a context of severe food insecurity. Its mission is to create self-sufficient value chains that take local products from farm to fork, thus reducing dependence on imports and benefiting the thousands of people who rely on street vendors for their meals every day.

RADIKAL aims to harness the power of technology to manufacture and distribute our products through an efficient grassroots distribution channel, while also respecting and restoring the environment. Nora was inspired to start the social venture after becoming aware of the massive need for women in Haiti to have access to revenue-creating opportunities, and in 2015 she moved back to Haiti to lay the groundwork for the social business.

Nora studied International Relations at the University of Connecticut, and has obtained multiple certifications in Fundraising, Volunteer Management, Cultural Diplomacy and Sustainable Development.