Prior to joining the GFCF, Ese was the project director for the Kiisi Trust Fund, a donor-advised fund for the benefit of Ogoniland, managed by TrustAfrica. As the project lead for this multi-million USD fund, she instilled a new participatory community-based grant-making model for the community foundation, including working with partners, stakeholders, and the Board to incorporate the ethos of community philanthropy into the organization.
From 2014 - 2017, Ese worked as the Advocacy Program Manager for PIND Foundation, developing and implementing a robust advocacy strategy of engagement for state and federal government in advancing economic development for the Niger Delta region of Nigeria. Her work on advocacy helped cement and propel the regional annual policy gathering of the Niger Delta Development Forum (NDDF) onto the national and international stage, with NDDFs in Washington, DC and London, UK respectively that brought together government officials, thought-leaders in the private and public sectors, CSOs, and IOCs together over two days to brainstorm solutions to many of the challenges plaguing the Niger Delta. In addition, Ese was also instrumental in designing strategy and implementation for NDLink, an online advocacy and communications platform for development practitioners in the Niger Delta - currently ranked as one of the top 5 online platforms for development in Nigeria.
Ese has spent the last 18 years working in the international development field, supporting human rights defenders and organizations in the Middle East and North Africa region to encourage civil society in pushing forward democratic initiatives that promote freedom and the respect of human rights, as well as working with youth-led organizations in the US and Nigeria advocating for greater youth inclusion in development projects, leadership, and youth empowermen
