About us
Inner Wings is a charitable foundation based in London, UK. Co-founded by Melissa Di Donato Roos and Darren Roos, Inner Wings' mission is to build confidence in children aged 6 to 12, especially girls. We believe that equipping children with a confidence toolkit - through our range of school programmes, events and children's books - will help them to discover their unlimited potential and pursue their dreams, whatever they may be. This is more critical than ever after the COVID-19 pandemic, which has seen children's mental health significantly impacted by lockdowns, and increased anxiety a prevalent issue.
Melissa Di Donato Roos
Mum, Mentor, CEO, Advocate
Melissa Di Donato Roos is an acclaimed American-born British business and technology leader and the first woman CEO to take a multi-billion Euro company public on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange.
Melissa currently serves as the Chair and CEO of Kyriba, a global liquidity performance software platform which empowers the world’s largest enterprises to manage their liquidity with real time insights and data.
Melissa is also a Member of the Supervisory Board of Porsche and a Non-Executive Director at both J.P. Morgan Europe and the UK Government Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT).
Throughout her 25+ year career, she has worked passionately to make the world of technology a better place for everyone, but in particular a place women want to be part of. Named one of the Top 10 most influential women in U.K. Technology, she was the inaugural chair of the 30% Club’s Technology Working Group, a global campaign to boost female representation at board and C-Suite level across the world’s largest companies.
Melissa is also the author of a series of children’s books designed to motivate and inspire young girls to find their inner strength, build their self-confidence and accomplish their biggest dreams, whatever they may be. Melissa lives outside of London, England with her husband Darren and their three children.
Darren Roos
Dad, Leader, Chairperson, Advocate
Darren Roos is a South African, Chair of Board for global software companies IFS, ThinkProject and Sitecore. Darren's career of building and scaling world class software businesses spans over 25 years, and he is a regular spokesperson on channels such as CNBC and Bloomberg TV. A committed advocate of equality and diversity, he increased the female leadership in IFS from 10% to 40% and created the IFS Foundation, raising over $250,000 to break the poverty cycle in Sri Lanka.
When not working, Darren enjoys spending time at home with his wife Melissa and their three children.
The wider team
Claudia Hogan
Trustee
Claudia has built a career as a growth strategist and marketer with technology companies around the world.
A mother to 2 young boys and a keen footballer, she is passionate about providing children with the tools needed to succeed in their personal and professional lives.
Edit Kovács
Trustee
Edit is passionate about technology, solving problems and inspiring children, young adults and professionals to find their own path.
As a Chief Product Officer she regularly volunteers and participates in Women in Tech and technology educational events like the Hour of Code.
Ilaria Magagnoli Frediani
Trustee
Following her career in the City as a top-ranked financial analyst and raising two daughters, Ilaria is passionate about empowering women and young people to reach their full potential.
As a coaching psychologist, she applies behavioural and strategic insight to help individuals develop their capabilities, resilience and performance. At Inner Wings, she helps write educational programmes to help children see challenges as opportunities and not letting their fears stop them, making a positive impact on their lives.
Ellen Shustik
Head of Programmes and External Relations
Ellen has worked for a number of INGOs around the world, and spent years working in federal and provincial politics in Canada. During her time in London, Ellen has worked for Liberal International, the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association UK, the Westminster Foundation for Democracy, the Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative and the Tony Blair Institute for Global Change.
She holds a Masters in European Studies and recently attained a Masters in Human Rights Law.
Nieta Irons
Programme Coordinator
Nieta joined Inner Wings in October 2022. She has a degree in Drama from Kingston University and a master’s in Applied Theatre from Royal Central School of Speech and Drama.
She has joined Inner Wings following on from a varied career spanning education, theatre and working with socially engaged arts organisations. Having previously worked most prolifically as a theatre-maker, contributed to fringe-circuit productions, as well as to productions at Arcola and Bush Theatre, including Fringe First and Olivier Award winning Baby Reindeer.
Nieta is passionate about the role creativity has in building confidence, a tool she champions in her work with communities.
Megan Young
Programme Coordinator
Megan is passionate about helping young children achieve their potential. Having earned a degree in Psychology and a master’s degree in Forensic Psychology, she has worked with children from disadvantaged backgrounds who have social, emotional, and mental health needs. As a caregiver for these children, Megan has noticed a lack of confidence and self-esteem among children during critical developmental stages and is dedicated to being part of a team that wants to make a difference.
Copyright ©2021 by Inner Wings Foundation
Inner Wings is a registered private limited company by guarantee (Company No. 12703942)
Registered Charity in England and Wales (Charity No. 1192877)