Grassroot Soccer Welcomes Two Members to Global Board of Directors

-Seb Bishop and Jennifer Diamond join international nonprofit using soccer
to prevent new HIV infections–

New York, NY (Sept 30, 2012) – Grassroot Soccer announced the official appointment of two new Directors to its Global Board: Seb Bishop, CEO of digital media company goop, and Jennifer Diamond, President of the Diamond Family Foundation. Grassroot Soccer is an international nonprofit founded in 2002 that uses the power of soccer to prevent new HIV infections and save lives among youth in Africa.

“In order to reach our goal of graduating one million youth through our HIV prevention education program by the World Cup 2014, we need to have a strong team,” said Thomas S. Clark, MD, Grassroot Soccer Founder and CEO.  “Seb and Jennifer bring expertise, commitment, and passion to our mission and we are delighted to welcome them to the Board.”

Seb Bishop, CEO of goop

Seb Bishop is the CEO of goop, a digital media and e-commerce company. Goop provides curated content to a global audience on a wide variety of lifestyle subjects including food, travel, fashion, beauty and wellness along with access to exclusive limited-edition collaborations. Prior to goop, Mr. Bishop was the International CEO of (RED), the for-benefit brand that marries the private sector with the buying power of consumers to generate a sustainable flow of private sector funds to help eliminate AIDS in Africa. Prior to his time at (RED), Mr. Bishop’s experience in the marketing and advertising realm included founding Espotting, a pioneering company in online advertising, as well as creating award-winning campaigns as an art director at Publicis. Mr. Bishop is also Chairman of Steak, a global digital marketing agency (sold to Dentsu in 2011), an independent non-executive director at Future Publishing plc, a Governor of the School of Communication Arts and is a member of the World Economic Forum’s Young Global Leaders.

“Grassroot Soccer isn’t just about soccer, and it isn’t just about AIDS – it’s about connecting to young people and creating young leaders who are, quite literally, stopping the spread of HIV”, said Mr. Bishop. “I was drawn to GRS for their innovative approach and believe the organization is making a significant impact.”

Jennifer Diamond at a GRS event in Zambia

Jennifer Diamond is the President of the Diamond Family Foundation, a not-for-profit organization that develops unique methods to improve and increase access to education and healthcare by supporting those who fall outside traditional, government-sponsored assistance programs. Under Mrs. Diamond’s leadership since its establishment in 1997, the Diamond Family Foundation has supported a range of projects that particularly emphasize educational development as a vehicle for poverty reduction. Programs the Foundation has funded include research projects aimed at developing gifted and talented primary school programs in the USA, financial literacy training programs in the UK, and campaigns supporting HIV education and awareness in the USA and sub-Saharan Africa. In addition to her role with the Diamond Family Foundation, Mrs. Diamond serves as a trustee on a number of boards, is a US-UK Fulbright Commissioner and a partner in Cobble House LLC, a multimedia development company.

“Having seen Grassroot Soccer in action on the ground in both Zambia and South Africa, I’ve been impressed by the quality of their program and their commitment to transforming communities,” said Mrs. Diamond. “When you provide young people with the right information at the right time, it can make an incredible impact. Grassroot Soccer is doing this is in a unique way with soccer as the hook, and I’m pleased to be engaged on the GRS team.”