Meet Jessica.

Jessica Courtney moved her family to Iraq at the height of the civil war, splitting work between the contested city of Kirkuk, Sulaymaniyah, and remote Islamist strongholds.

Jessica Courtney, HUMANITE cofounder.

After a taxi ride detour in Iraq landed her on the driver's living room floor with his little daughter, living with cerebral palsy, Jessica and Jeremy Courtney ventured into a life of service for which they were totally unprepared.

For over 15 years, Jessica has worked alongside the sick, infirmed, shut-ins, and locked-outs of society to bring peace—to their hearts, to their homes, and to their communities.

As a serial entrepreneur, Jessica has a knack for saying "yes" when the world says "no". Jessica's "yes" has unlocked global exports for artisan makers across the Middle East; provided heart surgeries for thousands of children from Libya to Ukraine; launched a school for migrant children in Iraq; a global technical institute for refugees; and helped create thousands of businesses for refugees rebuilding after war.

HUMANITE cofounder Jessica Courtney kneels in the street, surrounded by refugee children in Iraq.
Jessica Courtney with refugee Yezidi children displaced by ISIS.

Jessica's work has been covered by CNN, the BBC, Al-Jazeerah, The New York Times, and The Washington Post.

Jessica has had the honor to advise some of the world's largest humanitarian aid organizations, the U.N., and governments on impact design and local grant-making.

Love Anyway, the second book by Jessica's husband, Jeremy, documents the first decade of their service and social entrepreneurship.

Jessica lives in Iraq with her husband and their children, Emma and Micah.

LOVE ANYWAY: An Invitation Beyond a World that's Scary as Hell

LOVE ANYWAY

The popularly acclaimed book about the refugees, war survivors, and stories that started it all.

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