Advisory Board

David Heleniak

David Heleniak earned an A.B. from the University of Michigan, an M.Sc. in economics from the London School of Economics, and a J.D. from Columbia University. He spent the majority of his career at the law firm Shearman & Sterling LLP, rising to become its senior partner and chief executive officer in 2001. From 1977 to 1979, Heleniak interrupted his career at Shearman & Sterling to serve in the U.S. government, first as executive assistant to the deputy secretary of the Treasury and then as assistant general counsel for domestic finance. While at Shearman & Sterling, Heleniak worked principally on mergers and acquisitions, including representing Citicorp in its merger with Travelers. He also served as Anglo American's and De Beers' principal outside corporate counsel starting in the post-apartheid era and worked closely with the Oppenheimer family.

In 2005, Heleniak became vice chairman of Morgan Stanley and a member of its Management Committee. He continued his relationships in South Africa and met with President Mbeki. He also provided advice on Nigeria's oil and gas business to President Obasanjo. In 2009, he became a senior advisor at Morgan Stanley and worked principally with its investment banking group until his retirement in March 2018.

Heleniak is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations and is active in numerous educational, community, cultural, and bilateral organizations, for many of which he served as board president, including the New York City Ballet, the MacDowell Colony, and the Council for the United States and Italy. He also served for two decades on the board of directors of the New York City Partnership and the New York City Investment Fund, among several other organizations. His education board memberships include the Provost's Advisory Committee and the Advisory Committee of the Dean of the College of Literature, Science, and the Arts, both at the University of Michigan, and the North American Advisory Board of the London School of Economics. In 2009, he was named an honorary fellow of the London School of Economics.

Edward Hightower

Edward Hightower is an EV OEM CEO, global automotive executive, entrepreneur, board director, and published author. He is the managing director of Motoring Ventures LLC. Hightower previously served as chief executive officer and president of Lordstown Motors Corp., an original equipment manufacturer of electric vehicles for the commercial fleet market. In 2022, he led the company's operational turnaround, implemented a new asset-light business strategy, and launched its first vehicle, the Endurance battery-electric full-size pickup truck. Under his leadership, more than 700 jobs were saved, and Endurance was selected as a finalist for the 2023 North American Truck of the Year. Crain's Automotive News recognized Hightower as the first African American CEO of a publicly traded automaker. He also served as CEO of the electric vehicle design and engineering joint venture between Lordstown and Foxconn.

Earlier in his career, Hightower held new-product development, engineering, strategy, brand marketing, and senior executive roles at Ford, BMW, and GM. He also worked as a growth, strategy, operations, and M&A consultant at AlixPartners LLP and served as an advisor to Kiira Motors, a Uganda-based manufacturer of electric city buses.

Hightower is the author of Motoring Africa: Sustainable Automotive Industrialization, published in 2018. Drawing on his industry experience in China, India, South Korea, Mexico, and Brazil, the book makes the case for sustainable automotive manufacturing as a pathway for economic development in Africa. Hightower presented Motoring Africa at the African Union headquarters in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, during its 2019 Industrialization Week. Originally from Chicago, he earned a B.S. in general engineering from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign and an MBA from the University of Michigan Ross School of Business. He and his family live in metro Detroit.

Thea Louis

Thea Louis is a University of Michigan alumna with a Master of Science degree in environment and sustainability. She works in corporate sustainability, specializing in voluntary disclosure, stakeholder engagement, and risk management strategy. Her work focuses on helping organizations strengthen transparency, accountability, and long-term impact through corporate responsibility. Prior to her work in corporate sustainability, she focused on federal policy in the nonprofit sector, helping to drive growth outcomes for policies related to clean water. She also served on the Mecklenburg County regional board of Keep America Beautiful, engaging local communities and businesses in environmental education and activism.

During her time at Michigan, Louis pursued coursework within the Department of Afroamerican and African Studies and taught as a graduate student instructor under Omolade Adunbi. Her studies also focused on political ecology in the African diaspora, biomimicry, and environmental justice in the School for Environment and Sustainability. She is passionate about advancing positive change by strengthening connections between academia and the public and private sectors, especially through international frameworks.

As an advisory board member, Louis is committed to supporting the department's mission of strengthening the fields of African American and African Studies, encouraging the production and publication of original research, and training informed and productive citizens. She brings a strong professional and academic background, as well as a personal enthusiasm for sustainability, to the advisory board. Louis believes that developing the next generation of leaders is crucial to creating a sustainable future for all.

Sarah Maiga

Sarah Maiga is the broker/owner of Maiga Homes Luxury Real Estate, a boutique real estate brokerage serving Southeast Michigan, and a licensed loan officer focused on consumer education, advocacy, and community-centered leadership. Since beginning her real estate career in 2016, she has guided more than 350 families through the home buying and selling process while building a business rooted in integrity, education, and equitable access to knowledge and resources.

A first-generation college graduate, Maiga earned her degree in international relations with a focus on human rights and a minor in peace and social justice through the University of Michigan's Department of Afroamerican and African Studies within the College of Literature, Science, and the Arts. After graduation, she worked in graduate school recruitment and student affairs at the University of Michigan School of Public Health, where she coordinated events and led branding, marketing, and design initiatives. That work later evolved into a successful entrepreneurship venture in branding and design before she received a full scholarship to the University of California, Davis School of Law.

Maiga ultimately transitioned into real estate, where she built a community-centered practice that earned national recognition, including Realtor Magazine's 30 Under 30 in 2020. She continues to mentor students and alumni through the University of Michigan's College of Literature, Science, and the Arts while expanding her community advocacy work throughout Southeast Michigan. She serves on the board of directors for the Greater Metropolitan Association of Realtors, has served on the organization's Government Affairs Committee since 2019, and participates in legislative advocacy related to fair housing, affordable housing, and community development. She also serves as a trustee for the Canton Community Foundation & Local Impact Alliance. In partnership with the University of Michigan's Center for the Education of Women+, she developed and taught the university's first home buyer education course.

Dalal Najib

Dalal Najib is the senior director of international networks, cooperation, and security at the U.S. National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, where she leads strategic partnerships and program development for global engagement and capacity-building activities for emerging leaders. She has developed new collaborative programs in the Global South, including in Africa, the Arab region, and, more recently, Latin America and the Caribbean. Her work includes leadership of the U.S.-Africa Frontiers Program and other initiatives that strengthen international scientific cooperation.

From 2011 to 2019, Najib served as a key member of the steering committee that co-designed and implemented the USAID-funded $130 million Partnerships for Enhanced Engagement in Research Program, where she managed the sub-Saharan Africa, Middle East and North Africa, and Central Asia portfolios. She also serves as the lead principal investigator on multiple U.S. government awards, including the NSF-funded PEER2PEER project, which aims to establish a collaborative global network of networks on transboundary water security.

Najib is a fellow of the American Geophysical Union and a recipient of AGU's 2025 Ambassador Award. She holds a Ph.D. in climate and space sciences and engineering and a master's degree in public policy from the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor. She received her bachelor's degree in aerospace and aeronautical engineering from Supaero in Toulouse, France.

Anne Petersen

Anne Petersen is a research professor at the University of Michigan's Center for Human Growth & Development and an active member of ASC's STEM-Africa Initiative, the S&T Policy Program, and the Ford Policy School, all at U-M. She is the founder and president of Global Philanthropy Alliance, a foundation making grants in Africa.

Petersen has authored 18 books and more than 350 articles and has held administrative and faculty roles at Stanford, the University of Minnesota, Penn State, and the University of Chicago, from which she also received all her degrees: a B.A. in mathematics, an M.Sc. in statistics, and a Ph.D. in measurement, evaluation, and statistical analysis. Petersen served as senior vice president for programs at the W.K. Kellogg Foundation and as U.S. National Science Foundation deputy director and chief operating officer, a role requiring presidential nomination and Senate confirmation. She also served as associate director for health at the MacArthur Foundation and worked closely with the Swiss Jacobs Foundation in various capacities. She was elected to the National Academy of Medicine and named a fellow in several scientific societies.

Petersen currently leads the Secretariat of the International Consortium of Developmental Science Societies, chairs the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine Policy and Global Affairs Divisional Committee, chairs the CRDF Global Board, and serves on the NSF International Committee, among other domestic and global voluntary boards and committees.

Zachary Petroni

Zachary Petroni is a cross-functional leader with more than a decade of experience across the not-for-profit, social enterprise, and for-profit sectors in sub-Saharan Africa. He is the chief operating officer and co-founder of Peach Cars, where the team has achieved 100% year-over-year growth across all key metrics for five consecutive years and raised more than $15 million in funding from leading global investors, including the University of Tokyo Edge Capital and Suzuki Motor Corporation. At Peach Cars and across previous engagements, Petroni has relied on human-centered design to build consumer services that work for African markets.

Petroni holds a B.A. in public policy from the University of Michigan's Ford School of Public Policy and an MBA from Cambridge Judge Business School. As the inaugural Raoul Wallenberg Fellow in 2013, he explored conservation politics and human development in rural Kenya, an experience that helped shape the course of his career as an operator on the continent. He also served on the Wallenberg Medal Executive Committee from 2022 to 2025.

Petroni is committed to connecting practitioner experience in African markets with the research and policy communities that shape the field. Through his work, he brings practical insight into entrepreneurship, mobility, consumer services, and market-building across the continent.

Michael Sudarkasa

Michael Sudarkasa is the CEO of Africa Business Group (ABG), a South Africa-based and continentally active African economic development company that focuses on economic and business development consulting; agriculture, tourism, and renewable energy projects; and capacity development. The Group specializes in private sector development, trade, and investment within Africa and between Africa and the global business community. It has also designed and manages the Global African Agribusiness Accelerator Platform as the company's principal capacity development initiative. ABG's sister company, Africa Business Energy, is the vehicle through which the group provides renewable energy and energy efficiency focused on training; advocacy and consulting; and project design, development, and implementation.

A U.S. commercial attorney by training, Sudarkasa has lived, traveled, and worked in 50 countries around the world, including 35 in Africa, and is the author of several publications, including the African Union Commission's Africa Business Directory: Toward the Facilitation of Growth, Partnership and Global Inclusion (African Union, 2014) and A Field Guide to Inclusive Business Finance (UNDP, 2012). Sudarkasa currently serves as chair of Impact@Africa, a continentally focused impact investment ecosystem development platform, and as a member of the University of Michigan Provost's Advisory Committee and the Board of Constituency for Africa. He holds a B.A. with high honors in history from the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, and a J.D. from Harvard Law School.