Barbora Mayer

High-Value Fundraising Manager, Comic Relief

“It’s one of the things I’m most proud of as a woman: knowing that I can choose a new path, step into the unknown and still thrive.”

For this year’s International Women’s Day, we’re proud to launch a campaign that spotlights the remarkable women shaping our industry and community. Through a series of profiles, we are sharing the stories of inspiring women who are leading and innovating across our industry!

Read Barbora’s story below.

I work as a High-Value Fundraising Manager at Comic Relief, a UK charity built on a simple belief that laughter can bring the great British public together and help change lives. 

I build relationships with super motivated fundraisers in workplaces, communities and schools and help them dream big, and then support them so those dreams turn into impressive fundraising totals.  

I’m proud of pushing myself out of my comfort zone by moving abroad, more than once. Living and working in different countries taught me resilience, independence and how strong I can be when I trust myself. Each time I landed somewhere new, I managed to find work that felt meaningful and fulfilling. It’s one of the things I’m most proud of as a woman: knowing that I can choose a new path, step into the unknown and still thrive.

When I lived in Hong Kong, I joined a ‘kindness walk’ run by a Canadian teacher who simply wanted to perform one act of kindness a month by handing out food to the homeless. These walks focused on building relationships, trust, and providing immediate needs. It grew fast-one walk turned into eight, and eventually into a community space and a social enterprise offering jobs. It was all about showing up, building trust, and treating people with dignity. It inspires me because it shows how a small and heartfelt action by one individual can snowball into real change. 

International Women’s Day is my annual reminder to celebrate all the brilliant, fierce, hilarious and impossibly multitasking women in my life. 

Trust that you belong in every room you walk into. Don’t wait to feel ‘ready’, take opportunities that stretch you. Build genuine relationships, find peers who support and motivate you and be kind to yourself along the way. This work is challenging but it’s meaningful and you’re capable of more than you realise.