Economic empowerment is a global priority for LGBTI+ people: Koppa’s mission is to unleash global LGBTI+ economic power through knowledge, financing and connection. Changing systems to create a more equitable future.
Providing expert advice and support for LGBTI+ economic inclusion initiatives
We advise governments, development finance institutions and the private sector.
Connecting communities to build a stronger LGBTI+ economic ecosystem
We build, convene and connect communities bringing together new voices in different spaces.
Creating insights and tools to inform and empower LGBTI+ economic actors
We develop new data and knowledge products to empower communities, change systems of exclusion and accelerate investment.
Fostering diverse funding sources for LGBTI+ economic growth
We partner across the capital spectrum to promote and incentivize new investment.
Developing new LGBTI+ economic power models and approaches
We co-create solutions to deliver social and economic gains for all.
Building the capacity to support LGBTI+ economic development
We connect people to opportunities and develop LGBTI+ economic development capacity across the ecosystem.
These three principles guide Koppa's approach to empowering the LGBTI+ community economically, ensuring that their unique needs and challenges are addressed in a holistic and inclusive manner.
We look at communities through an intersectional lens looking at attributes, such as race, gender, gender identity, age, nationality, socio-economic background
Design is tested at the edges. We search for new solutions and ideas for communities economic empowerment. We pilot and scale up these new ideas
Ensuring fair access and opportunities for all, while actively removing barriers that hinder the full economic participation of marginalized groups
Koppa was founded by a pioneering group of LGBTI+ development specialists dedicated to advancing the rights, well-being, and inclusion of LGBTI+ people in various aspects of the societal development. They worked across multiple fields such as business, health, education, social services, community & movement development and legal advocacy to create more inclusive and equitable systems and policies.
Our founders have worked with international organizations including the UN and the World Bank Group with a focus on research, policy advice and the economic empowerment of LGBTI+ communities across the globe.
They have influenced dialogue and driven action for the LGBTI+ community on data, economic inequality, human rights, corporate governance and global health policy as well as building LGBTI+ community infrastructure.
M. V. Lee Badgett, PhD, is a pioneering researcher of the global cost of homophobia and transphobia, economic empowerment of LGBTI+ people, and LGBTI+ economic inequality. She is a Professor Emeritx of Economics and former director of the School of Public Policy at the University of Massachusetts Amherst. She is also a Williams Distinguished Scholar at UCLA’s Williams Institute, where she was a co-founder and the first research director. Her latest book is The Economic Case for LGBT Equality: Why Fair and Equal Treatment Benefits Us All (Beacon Press, 2020). She has worked with the World Bank, Open For Business, UNDP, USAID, IDB, ADB, the U.S. State Department, OECD, global businesses, and many LGBTI+ organizations.
Philip R. Crehan: Phil has been at the forefront of expanding the economic development sector to be accountable to LGBTQ+ people. He’s worked extensively in Latin America, the Caribbean, Europe, and Asia with the World Bank Group, the Inter-American Development Bank, the Asian Development Bank, and USAID. He has also partnered with Sweden’s International Development Agency, the Organization of American States, and numerous governments and multinational companies. Phil has served as a Principal Investigator on primary research across 12 countries in addition to helping lead many other research efforts around the world. He’s been separately awarded by the World Bank’s president, vice president, and senior directors, and has published numerous times for academic journals and for institutions in development. He also teaches at Columbia University.
A movement architect and strategist for LGBTI+ rights and inclusive development, Justus has worked with various organizations, including the UN Development Programme. He co-founded and was co-director of Global Action for Trans Equality (GATE) where he kicked off the International Trans Fund. While at Hivos, he developed a €37 million funding program for LGBTI+ human rights and economic development. He has played a key role in initiating and developing international trans rights organizations.
Fabrice Houdart has over two decades of experience with the UN/World Bank system, serving as a Senior Country Officer at the World Bank and a Human Rights Officer at the United Nations. Fabrice has been instrumental in LGBTI+ equality initiatives, including initiating the World Bank engagement in this area between 2010-2016 and co-authoring the United Nations Global LGBTQ+ Standards of Conduct for Business in 2017.
He founded the Association of LGBTI+ Corporate Directors in 2022 and is a Director at OutPerform LGBTI+ Invest, an LGBTI+ ETF. Fabrice also holds significant roles in various boards and advisory positions, including L’Oreal Global Diversity and Inclusion Advisory Board and the National Association of Corporate Directors Center for Inclusive Governance. He teaches at Georgetown and Columbia University.
He publishes one of the leading LGBTQ+ substacks with more than 19,000 weekly readers.
Kelly Widelska: Kelly is the Economic Inclusion Advisor for the Gender and Economic Inclusion Group at the International Finance Corporation (IFC), part of the World Bank Group. With over 15 years of experience as an Inclusion Advocate and Network Leader, she has worked on improving workplace inclusion and identifying policy gaps. Kelly has also been involved with the World Bank Group’s Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity (SOGI) Task Force and the World Bank Task Force on Disability.
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