HATCH logoa better world

Leadership

Board of Directors + Advisors.

HATCH is stewarded by a network of catalysts drawn from the same community we convene — leaders across impact investing, social entrepreneurship, media, philanthropy and design committed to the long arc of HATCHing a better world.

Otho Kerr

Chair, Board of Directors

Otho Kerr

Otho E. Kerr III is Chair of the Board of Directors for HATCH, and the Director of Impact Investing at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. He is charged with catalyzing capital providers to invest in underserved communities. Otho has helped to shape the impact investing sector as a founding partner and Chief Operating Officer for Encourage Capital and as Chief Investment Officer for Acumen. Otho has worked in finance for over 30 years, beginning with Goldman Sachs. He started his professional career at Simpson Thacher & Bartlett. Otho received a BA from Dartmouth College and JD from The Harvard Law School. He is a Co-Chair of the Board of the Hetrick-Martin Institute, the nation's largest LGBTQ youth services organization, and also serves on the National Academy of Medicine's Advisory Committee on the Culture of Health Program. Otho enjoys running, skiing, and travel, and is an active member of TED.

Erica Potter

Board Member

Erica Potter

Erica is a serial entrepreneur, currently using Web3 to harness the power of caregivers to create an equitable and sustainable care economy and reimagine early childcare/education, focused on Early Childhood Development backed by science. Erica was the CEO & Co-Founder of Off-Grid Electric, the world's first massively scalable off-grid electric company, connecting over 1 million Africans to affordable solar energy. Her ventures have raised over $130M from investors including Elon Musk, Paul Allen, Jeff Skoll, and others. She is on the Board of Directors for TheBoardroom Africa, a curated online marketplace that connects CEOs and C-suite level executives with peer-endorsed female candidates for private and public company board service. Erica was a Skoll Center for Social Entrepreneurship Fellow, was recognized as Forbes 30 Under 30 Social Entrepreneurs and is a delegate at the Academy of Achievement.

Renay Loper

Board Member

Renay Loper

VICE PRESIDENT, PROGRAM INNOVATION / PYXERA GLOBAL – Renay centers people as an impact strategist driven by catalyzing change & leveraging the power of partnerships to shift unjust systems. Renay advises leadership of fortune 500 corporations & has implemented social impact programs globally; created Rhetoric to Action, a series of conversations to mobilize collective action for racial justice; led grant diversification efforts for the Japan Foundation; facilitated sessions at the UN and the US Department of State; teaches Personal Leadership to sustainability MBA students; and serves on several nonprofit boards.

Jay Hirschton

Board Member

Jay Hirschton

Jay Hirschton has over two decades of leadership in social finance, philanthropy, and nonprofit sectors building teams and scaling organizations. Jay is the COO of Vibrant Data Labs, a social mission company that amplifies the impact of climate funding by leveraging AI data tools. Previously, Jay was the CEO of Full Circle Fund and has led fundraising and operations for various international and national organizations. Jay is a fellow at the Stanford d.School, a graduate of the AltMBA, and has held numerous board leadership roles including Board Member for the HATCH Network.

Susan Carstensen

Board Member

Susan Carstensen

Susan is an independent business consultant, with more than 30 years of executive experience, highly respected among her peers and is often sought out for her expertise on business and entrepreneurial start-ups. She is an advisor, activist and a patron of heroic endeavors. She has impacted many with the generous sharing of her time and talent, from inspiring and mentoring students and entrepreneurs to serving her community through leadership on local, regional and national boards. She was the COO and CFO of RightNow Technologies, instrumental in building the company to a $1.5B acquisition in 2011 by Oracle, Inc. She is a board member at Workfront, Socrata, Foundant, Quiq, PFL, D.A.Davidson, MSUAF and MSUIC. As an active investor in Frontier Angel Fund, cofounder of OpensourceMT, a mentor in PowerhouseMT, Susan is focused on growing the high-tech ecosystem in Montana. Susan is a 5th generation Montanan, high tech growth advisor, investor, mentor board member, and avid adventurer.

Elke Govertsen

Board Member

Elke Govertsen

Elke Govertsen is an Impact Producer. For over 17 years, she has built movements, communities, and organizations that make people feel genuinely seen. She founded Mamalode, growing it to 2 million+ organic readers and earning recognition as one of North America's most trusted independent media platforms. As Chief Community Officer at MyVillage, she helped scale a care network onboarding 1,000+ providers per week at peak without losing the personal touch. She curated and keynoted Parenthood: The Unconference in Abu Dhabi. She currently serves as Chief Storyteller at High Stakes Foundation and does consulting at the intersection of “projects that matter with people I love.” Passionate about creativity and art for impact, Elke sits on the boards of both HATCH and Ballet Beyond Borders.