Heran Birhanu is the Adolescent Insights Associate at HCDexchange. She is a student, volunteer and young leader from Addis Ababa, Ethiopia and is currently a final year student at the Addis Ababa University, School of Law. Heran serves as a member, volunteer and leader in various organisations and initiatives in the gender equality and reproductive health and rights space.

In her most prominent role, Heran is a Young Designer for Smart Start at PSI Ethiopia. In addition to contributing to Smart Start and Economic Empowerment programmes, she has also participated in the review of the Meaningful Youth Engagement Strategy as well as the review of the Mentorship Programme Strategy atPSI Ethiopia. She helped plan and moderate the first ever Young Designers’ Conference.

In addition to PSI Ethiopia, Heran also works as an Operations and Administrative Head for Siqqee Scholars, a student initiative that is working to alleviate SRHR related problems and their effects on young

women’s educational journeys. In this role, she has participated in the design, planning and implementation of Pad Paradise Programme, through which Siqqee Scholars has provided sanitary pads and SRHR awareness training to over 700 female students.