Peter Tavernise

Peter Tavernise is the Executive Director of the Cisco Foundation and Director of Cisco Public Benefit Investment. Peter brings over 25 years of non-profit fundraising, private family foundation, and corporate funding experience to meeting the core mission and strategy of Cisco Public Benefit Investment. We empower global problem solvers to speed the pace of social change. Global problem solvers are individuals who innovate as technologists, think like entrepreneurs, and act as social change agents. Cisco supports internet-based solutions in areas of critical human needs (food, water, shelter, and disaster relief), access to education (K-8), and economic empowerment, which can be replicated, scaled, and sustained.

Cisco Systems Foundation

Cisco Public Benefit Investment

Peter is currently a Trustee of the Cisco South Africa Education Trust, a board member of the Giraffe Heroes Project, an advisory board member of GreatNonprofits.org, and has served as a member of the American Red Cross Corporate Advisory Council, and the Contributions Council of The Conference Board. Peter is a previous Cisco Community Leadership Fellow at Public Allies North Carolina, and is a past board member of Teachers Without Borders, YouthNoise.org, and the Affordable Housing Trust of Santa Clara County. He earned a Bachelor of Arts in English from Davidson College, and a Masters in Humanities from Duke University.