The Leadership Legacy
A creative portrait series
by Penny Bird
The Leadership Legacy
Global Initiative | Started November 2025 (indefinite)
Artist’s statement
Hello and welcome. I’m Penny Bird, a portrait photographer drawn to stories of purpose, courage, and connection.
The Leadership Legacy captures inspiring leaders around the world and invites them to share their role models, and lessons they’ve learned on their paths to leadership.
Their reflections reveal wisdom gained through experience - insights into courage, resilience, and purpose that help others grow.
A leader’s legacy is the lasting impression they leave: the people they uplift, the values they nurture, and the cultures they shape. Through portraiture and conversation, The Leadership Legacy celebrates that influence - the steady, enduring impact of people leading with integrity, empathy, and vision.
By sharing these stories, my hope is to spark reflection and enable future generations to see themselves as part of that continuum - to learn, to lead, and to create legacies of their own. Join me on my travels…
“The greatest leader is not necessarily the one who does the greatest things. He is the one that gets the people to do the greatest things.” Ronald Reagan
Cape Town, South Africa
Irene Ochem, CEO and Founder African Women Innovation & Entrepreneurship Forum
I photographed Irene at the Cape Town International Conference Centre, shortly after the October 2025 Forum. She carries the elegance of her years in Trieste, a warmth that draws people in, and a deep passion for helping others rise.
“Being bold is an act of leadership”
When Irene visited Nigeria in 2012, her mother asked a question that would change the course of her life: “What do you want to do?” At the time, Irene was between jobs and countries and uncertain of her next step. Her mother’s advice - “Make sure it matters” - ignited a spark that became the Africa Women Innovation & Entrepreneurship Forum (AWIEF).
Founded before the global wave of female empowerment began, AWIEF was Irene’s bold answer to that call - a legacy built to uplift and connect African women in business. Now in its 11th year, the Forum provides a platform for learning, networking, and funding - empowering women to grow and scale their enterprises across the continent.
For Irene, being bold means daring to dream beyond the limits of circumstance, having the passion and courage to take the first step, and finding resilience to rise each time you fall. It’s about thinking big, acting bravely, and staying steady in the face of challenges. As she says, “Being bold is an act of leadership.”
When asked who inspires her most, she didn’t hesitate - her mother.
WIEF is a non-profit, award-winning pan-African organisation dedicated to women’s economic empowerment. Granted Special Consultative Status with the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC), AWIEF is committed to closing the gender gap by driving women’s business leadership and entrepreneurship in Africa. Activities and initiatives are designed to foster an environment where women-owned businesses can thrive and contribute to sustainable economic development across the continent.
Bermuda
Dr Crystal Clay, Executive Coach, Facilitator & Speaker
There’s an effortless elegance to Dr Crystal Clay that lifts people up - she is softly spoken, deeply wise, and grounded in a strong sense of purpose. Our photoshoot at the National Museum of Bermuda was unforgettable. Standing on the steps of the Commissioner’s House, with 500 years of history beneath her feet, her message about heritage, identity and knowing your roots came through in every moment.
“Sawubona” - I See You
These words lie at the centre of Dr Crystal Clay’s leadership journey. Years ago, she sat in a town hall meeting where a CEO explained he was answering a question “from his place of self-actualisation.” Something moved in her. She realised she needed to understand her own place of self-actualisation - a place defined by freedom, purpose and an unwavering desire to help others without limits.
This realisation led her to create Olive Branch Consulting, a coaching practice that partners with leaders - especially those who feel unseen, marginalised or unsure of their identity - to recognise their value, find their voice and step into visibility. Her belief in the power of being seen is rooted in her own story: as a teenager, she greeted a visiting guest with such sincerity and presence that he sponsored her four years at university. She became the first in her family to attend university, and it was her ability to truly see others - and allow herself to be seen - that opened that door.
Her work continues to draw from her dissertation on local talent in global organisations and her belief that Bermuda, although small, punches far above its weight. Growing up on an island has taught her that community is a powerful leadership asset. For Crystal, a true leadership legacy begins with knowing your heritage, understanding your culture and understanding who you are. Your roots guide your decisions, ground your purpose, and allow you to lead with authenticity and confidence.
As a Board Member of the National Museum of Bermuda, she champions the importance of preserving and teaching Bermuda’s own history and culture - believing that leadership is a bridge between generations, where belonging, identity and shared experience shape the leaders of tomorrow.
After coaching hundreds, perhaps thousands of leaders globally, she has learned a universal truth: real validation begins within. At the heart of her work is the Zulu greeting Sawubona: “I see you. You matter. I value you.” It is a principle she believes every person deserves to experience - especially those who have felt invisible for too long.
La Gomera, Canary Islands
Angélica Belén Padilla Herrera is Consejera (Island Councillor) at the Cabildo Insular de La Gomera
Storm Emilia arrived on the day I was due to photograph Angélica, so we chose the Salón de Plenos in the Town Hall of San Sebastián for her portrait. A room usually reserved for official ceremonies and council meetings, it carries a strong sense of occasion. Yet the moment Angélica entered, the space softened. Her generosity of spirit, genuine warmth, and openness to people transformed the room entirely, along with the smile in her eyes.