Michaela Bakala

Michaela Bakala is an entrepreneur and manager, but most of all a philanthropist. The causes dearest to her are those related to education, the development of democratic society, and women’s role in society.

Michaela studied film and TV production and later became a public relations professional, working for major clients in the Czech Republic. She established a PR agency and the beauty pageant Česká Miss [Miss Czech] that she had led for ten years. She later co-founded Bakala Capital, a company that oversees the business activities of Michaela and Zdenek Bakala in the Czech Republic.

Currently, Michaela focuses on leading the philanthropic activities of the family, most notably as a Chair of the Boards of Trustees of the Bakala Foundation in the Czech Republic and the Fondation Zdenek et Michaela Bakala in Switzerland. With a particular focus on education, the two foundations operate scholarship programs that have enabled scores of talented students to study in their chosen fields at leading universities worldwide. Michaela is also a Vice Chair of the Board of Trustees of the Václav Havel Library, an institution devoted to the legacy of President Václav Havel, and a proud patron of the TOP Czech Woman Awards project.

Michaela has always had a very strong bond with the Aspen Institute, both in Prague and internationally. She and her husband Zdenek were involved in establishing Aspen Institute Central Europe, then called Aspen Institute Prague, in 2012.