I am joining this year’s Standard Chartered London Marathon team to fundraise for the Standard Chartered Foundation in support of Futuremakers and I need your support to make a difference to the lives of underserved young people around the world. The Standard Chartered Foundation focuses on tackling inequality. It promotes greater economic inclusion for disadvantaged young people from low-income households, particularly girls, women and people with visual impairments, providing opportunities to make a better future for themselves and their families.

This initiative particularly resonates with me as I strongly believe that some of the issues in the current polarised world we live in, can be addressed if we can collectively skill the workforce for the future for the everchanging needs of economies around the world. This is true for pretty much whichever global economy / market you think about across the Standard Chartered network and beyond.

18 months ago, I was unable to run 5k without a struggle. Signing up for this marathon has been a personal test for body and mind to explore what can be achieved if you devote yourself to it. This journey has not been without ups and downs - PBs in races to excruciating pain that needed weeks of rehab with the physio! So far, I seem to have embraced the challenges and joys of this training.

Follow me here to read more about my training and fundraising journey over the next few weeks and don’t forget to donate whatever you can! All donations are strictly voluntary but every pound will make a difference and Standard Chartered will also match donations up to USD 5million, which could double the impact of your contribution.