Leo is the visionary behind the Liberian Learning Center, which houses Liberia’s only public library and one of the country’s most environmentally sustainable buildings — demonstrating a bold model of diaspora-led, multi-sector sustainable development initiative. His leadership integrates philanthropy, public policy, education systems, and private-sector partnerships to produce scalable solutions.

As President of the Liberian Association of Canada, Leo led a comprehensive organizational transformation. Over four years, he increased annual revenue from $5,000 to more than $350,000, strengthened governance frameworks, formalized financial accountability systems, secured federal capacity-building funding, and launched nationally coordinated programs focused on youth and women empowerment. His tenure repositioned the organization as a credible national voice within the Canadian civic landscape.

Leo is a United Nations–trained Human Rights Expert and an Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion (EDI) Specialist, applying socially – conscious, human rights centered, and trauma-informed frameworks to institutional reform, and policy advocacy. His systems thinking approach centers dignity, cultural intelligence, and long-term structural change rather than short-term programmatic fixes.

Recognized globally for his impact, Leo is a United Nations Fellow for the International Decade for People of African Descent, recipient of the YMCA Peace Medal, Gandhi Peace Award, City of Hamilton World Citizenship Award, and McMaster University Global Community Impact Award. He serves as a lecturer and instructor in higher education and is a sought-after keynote speaker on systems change, refugee resilience, diaspora leadership, and sustainable development.
 

Leo’s leadership philosophy is grounded in one core principle: transformation happens when communities move from surviving systems to redesigning them.