Courtney Spence is a creative social entrepreneur and global storyteller. She is the founder and CEO of CSpence Group, a creative agency sought out for its expertise in purposeful, inclusive purpose, culture and brand strategies, with a particular focus on millennials, women and diverse audiences. Her clients include a broad range of companies and organizations, including the American Institute of Architects, Procter and Gamble, the Nature Conservancy, the Clinton Global Initiative, Pivot TV, The Clinton-Bush Haiti Fund, Duke University, Aurora Health Care, Louisiana Calling, an innovative education and workforce development organization.
Courtney is also the founder of Students of the World, a non-profit she launched in 2001 when she was a student at Duke University. Students of the World empowers and amplifies diverse and emerging millennial creatives, providing them with the skills, opportunities and distribution channels to tell stories of social good and justice. Through production experiences that have taken her from Cuba, Uganda and Cambodia to Haiti, Kosovo, Israel and the West Bank, Courtney has deepened her understanding of and expertise in inclusive storytelling and partnerships that enable companies to amplify their social impact and innovation.
Courtney was recognized by the International Youth Foundation with a Youth Action Net Fellowship in Buenos Aires, Argentina. She is the executive producer of a United Nations-endorsed feature-length documentary, The Children’s War, that captured the story of survivors of the civil war in Uganda. Courtney is also a leader in The Promiseland Project, an empathy-based communications campaign that aims to bridge the cultural divide in America. She is the co-founder of Kenzie Academy, a tech apprenticeship and coding school in Indianapolis, Indiana. She is also an advisory board member for Maverick Next, an initiative organizing the next generation of strategic philanthropists who aim to end extreme global poverty in our lifetime. She is also an advisory board member for Fringe Diplomacy, an initiative that has taken her on exploratory exchanges with investors, tech and social entrepreneurs to Myanmar and Cuba. She is currently producing a feature film as a partner in Test One Two Pictures.
Courtney’s thoughts on the transformative power of multimedia storytelling were featured at TEDxPeachtree talk, and she has shared a stage with President Bill Clinton and Paul Farmer. Currently living in San Francisco, Courtney is most frequently found on the road. From Milwaukee, Baton Rouge to Havana and Caen, Courtney brings creative leadership and design to companies and communities in need of 21st century solutions.