David Lubell

David Lubell is the founder of Welcoming America and has been executive director since October 2009. An accomplished social entrepreneur, he began his career as an advocacy and organizing director of Latino Memphis. He later founded and became executive director of the Tennessee Immigrant and Refugee Rights Coalition, where he helped to found Welcoming Tennessee, the model for what is now Welcoming America. David's award-winning concept has gained recognition nationally and internationally. In 2014, the United Nations Alliance of Civilizations and BMW Group named Welcoming America as one of the top five recipients worldwide of the Intercultural Innovation Award, honoring its work in promoting intercultural understanding. The World Economic Forum named David a 2015 Young Global Leader, one of 186 honorees from 63 countries and all sectors of society, including private, public, and civil society. David is a recipient of the Ashoka Social Entrepreneurship Fellowship as well as the Draper Richards Kaplan Social Entrepreneurship Fellowship. In 2015, he also was selected to the Georgia Trend 2015 list of 40 outstanding Georgians under the age of 40. In January 2016, The Chronicle of Philanthropy named David to their first 40 Under 40 list of young leaders who are crafting innovative solutions for tough problems, building the strength of the nonprofit world, and driving change in their communities and around the world.