The Duke Endowment has announced the election of ALLYSON K. DUNCAN to its board. A native of Durham, North Carolina, Duncan served as a judge on the Fourth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals from 2003 until her retirement in 2019. She was the first African American and the first woman from North Carolina to serve on the Fourth Circuit; the first African-American woman to serve on the North Carolina Appellate Courts; and, from 2003 to 2004, the first African American to serve as president of the North Carolina Bar Association.

The McKnight Foundation has announced that BEYENE GESSESSE will join its International team as program officer, effective November 29. Gessesse has extensive experience in advancing rural development and food security initiatives, working with farmers, researchers, development practitioners, and funders. He most recently served as a grant specialist at Interfaith Outreach & Community Partners and, prior to that, as a change management consultant for the Minnesota Department of Commerce. He previously served as project supervisor and expert for the Integrated Seed Sector Development Programme in Ethiopia, where he co-founded and led Praxis Consulting Plc, conducting projects in business and research analysis, change management, and evaluation.

The Open Society Foundations has announced the appointment of four directors to its Global Programs team, who will work in close coordination with OSF’s six regional offices in the United States, Latin America and the Caribbean, Europe and Eurasia, Asia Pacific, Africa, and the Middle East to advance the foundation’s global priorities. BRIAN KAGORO, currently director of programs for OSF’s Africa Regional Office, will serve as director of justice and intersectionality, working to advance democratic freedoms and ensure accountability for human rights abuses. MARY FITZGERALD, currently director of the Open Society Information Democracy program, has been appointed director of expression, in which role she will lead efforts to foster vibrant public debate, artistic expression, and education; strengthen and help rebuild the media ecosystem; and advance cultural and academic freedom. EMILY MARTINEZ, currently director of the Open Society Human Rights Initiative, will serve as director of initiatives, bringing to her new role extensive experience in human rights and equality as well as a deep understanding of civil society’s role in promoting the rule of law, challenging discrimination and exclusion, and holding governments accountable. And GREGORY MANIATIS, currently director of the Open Society International Migration Initiative, has been appointed director of the Office of the Vice President for Global Programs, where he will serve as the principal representative of the vice president for Global Programs and as a thought partner on the development and implementation of global strategies.

The National Audubon Society has announced the appointment of ELIZABETH GRAY as CEO, the first woman to hold the title of chief executive in the organization’s 116-year history. An ornithologist and conservationist, Gray joined Audubon in March 2021 as president and chief conservation officer and accepted the role of acting CEO in May. She previously served in a number of leadership positions at the Nature Conservancy, most recently as global managing director for climate, in which role she launched regional programs in climate adaptation and natural climate solutions across the United States, Canada, and the Caribbean and published numerous scientific papers. She also served on the organization’s five-member Global Gender Equity Council.

The Philadelphia 76ers have named LESLIE M. WALKER as the new executive director of the Sixers Youth Foundation. Prior to joining the National Basketball Association franchise, Walker served in leadership roles with the Free Library of Philadelphia, most recently as interim director, and in executive roles at the Please Touch Museum and Philadelphia Safe and Sound, as well as and in consulting roles with the Philadelphia Foundation and Centennial Parkside CDC.

The Resources Legacy Fund has announced the appointment of environmental leader, lawyer, and advocate AVI GARBOW as its new president. Garbow most recently served as Patagonia’s first environmental advocate, providing strategic leadership and vision to the company’s environmental advocacy efforts; he took on a temporary assignment in the Biden administration as senior counselor to the administrator of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, where he helped drive a shift toward environmental justice in policy decisions. He succeeds MICHAEL MANTELL, who founded RLF more than twenty years ago.