NextBillion - An Initiative of the William Davidson Institute at the University of Michigan

Saida Benhayoune, who joined the MIT D-Lab staff in 2011, launched the D-Lab Scale-Ups fellowship program, an acceleration platform for MIT social innovators and entrepreneurs bringing technologies to market; the MIT Practical Impact Alliance; several research efforts; and co-founded the MIT Scaling Development Ventures Conference. She earned a bachelor’s degree in biochemical engineering and a master’s in business administration and has 10 years of experience in manufacturing, sourcing and sustainability for the food industry, including programs linking small-scale farmers to international markets. Fluent in French, Spanish, English and Arabic, she is an advocate of organic agriculture and the busy mom of two young children.