Mildred Robbins Leet

Who was Mildred Robbins Leet?

Mildred Robbins Leet was an American entrepreneur and philanthropist. She was a co-founder and Chair Emerita of the Board of Directors of Trickle Up, a New York-based international non-governmental organization dedicated to alleviating poverty.

Trickle Up was established in 1979 to help the lowest-earning people worldwide take their first steps out of poverty by providing conditional seed capital and business training essential to the launch of a micro-enterprise.

One of the founders of United Cerebral Palsy in 1948, Leet became the first President of its Women's Division. From 1957 to 1964 she was the United Nations Representative for the National Council of Women of the USA. She served as President of the Council from 1964 to 1968, emphasizing civil rights, international peacekeeping and organizing the first Women's Conference on National Service. From 1968 to 1970 she was Vice President of the International Council of Women and became an active member on the Women's Advisory Committee on Poverty in the US Office of Economic Opportunity. She founded the UN Hospitality Information Service, resulting in the creation of the New York City Commission for UN and Consular Corps. From 1968 to 1974 she participated in the development of the International Peace Academy.