Thibault Manekin is a speaker, podcast host, author, community organizer, and entrepreneur. He is passionate about reimagining industries by leading with purpose and has made it his lifework to understand what keeps us as human beings apart and what brings us together. In 2002, soon after graduating from college, Manekin traveled to South Africa, where he combined his passion for bringing people together with a love of sports to help create PeacePlayers, a nonprofit with the mission of bringing together children from war-torn countries around the world through basketball and dialogue. PeacePlayers has since worked with more than 75,000 youths from over 20 countries around the world and has trained more than 2,000 coaches / change agents. In 2006, Thibault moved back to his hometown of Baltimore, where he helped start Seawall, an impact-driven company made up of passionate social entrepreneurs who believe in reimagining the real estate industry as we know it. The company focuses its energy and resources on providing discounted apartments for teachers, collaborative office space for nonprofit organizations, workforce housing, community driven retail, public markets, launch pads for chefs, and creative space for inner-city schools. In 2011, Thibault was honored by President Obama’s White House as a Champion for Change, and Seawall’s projects have received numerous national awards. Proud husband of Lola Manekin and the father of Durban and Finley Manekin, he lives in Baltimore, Maryland.
