Somaye Dehban (the founder of Your Funding Network) is a strategic connecter and professional networker. Her motto in life and career is “sharing is power”, as through sharing we can empower each other.

With 15 years of experience in Public Relations, and 5 years of focused work on fundraising for non-profit and start-ups, Somaye is an excellent all-round fundraiser. She founded Your Funding Network in 2013, and in that capacity, aids many different organisations. Somaye is passionate about civil rights, education, gender equality, and helping organisations put into practice viable long-term strategies – she has worked in the fields of accessible (higher) education, civil society empowerment, clean water accessibility (WASH) and healthcare services. Currently Somaye works with Fair Wear Foundation.

Somaye has a diverse yet interconnected educational background: After finishing an associate degree in Applied Mathematics in Computer Sciences, she completed a Bachelor of Arts in Social Sciences at University College Utrecht, with a focus on Sociology, Anthropology, and Psychology, that allows her to approach and analyse problems from many different angles. Combined with a postgraduate degree in Comparative Women’s Studies in Culture and Politics from Utrecht University, her education prepared Somaye to work in diverse situations and contexts.

Somaye also has the honor to serve on the (advisory) boards of various foundations.