Jackie Copeland
*Jackie Copeland was born on this date in 1962. She is a Black environmentalist women's activist, author, administrator, and philanthropist.
Jackie "Bouvier" Copeland was born in Philadelphia, the daughter of James and Willette Copeland. She received her B.A. in literature from the School of Arts and Sciences with an African Studies Certification from the School of Foreign Service at Georgetown University. Copeland received an M.C.P. degree in city and regional planning from the University of Pennsylvania School of Design in 1990 and her M.A. in cultural anthropology from the University of Pennsylvania School of Arts and Sciences in 1991. In 1995, she married Emmitt Carson; they divorced in 2018.
She was in the Congressional Record. Copeland was a Bush Foundation Fellow in 1997 and has received the Hero for Health award. 2000 Copeland received her Ph.D. in cultural anthropology from the University of Pennsylvania. Copeland founded the WISE Fund, which provides seed funding and coaching to women of color who found organizations working to save the environment. She has also established Black Philanthropy Month, which is commemorated every August and recognized by the United Nations.
Copeland co-founded Pan-African Women's Philanthropy Network (PAWPNet), an online community for African American women that provides advice and information. Copeland wrote her first book in 2004, Creating Africa in America: Translocal Identity in an Emerging World City. She has also co-authored Applying Anthropology in the Global Village with Christina Wasson and Mary Butler, Evaluation Anthropology with Mary Butler, and African Immigrant Innovations in 21st Century Giving with Mojúbàolú Olufúnké Okome and Dr. Una Okonkwo Osili.
In 2006, Copeland founded Copeland Carson & Associates, an international community investment practice specializing in support to nonprofits, foundations, and social entrepreneurs. She has worked with the Ford Foundation, McKnight Foundation, U.S. Department of H.U.D., P.E.W., and Global Fund for Women. In 2008, Copeland developed the original design of My Brother's Keeper, which inspired President Barack Obama's My Brother's Keepers initiative. She released a jazz album called Blachant on April 14, 2022.
