Lisa Sobrato Sonsini

Lisa Sobrato Sonsini is Board President of the Sobrato Foundation, a private grant making foundation established in California in 1996. The Sobrato Foundation invests in strong community-based organizations that enhance the quality of life and promote self-reliance among residents of Silicon Valley. The Foundation received the Outstanding Grantmaker of the Year award by the Silicon Valley Association of Fundraising Professionals in November 2003. Prior to establishing the Foundation, Lisa practiced for five years as a corporate associate at the law firm of Brobeck, Phleger and Harrison.

Lisa is passionate about working with at risk youth, currently serving as Board Secretary of the Silicon Valley Children's Fund and Past President of Child Advocates of San Mateo and Santa Clara Counties, Today’s Youth Matter and The Good Tidings Foundation. Lisa is also active in promoting philanthropy, serving as a Board member of Silicon Valley Social Ventures (SV2) and speaking on various panels throughout the country on the topic. Her other board memberships include the San Jose Children’s Discovery Museum, the Santa Clara County Office of Education Foundation and the Advisory Boards of the Community Foundation Silicon Valley, Giving Global and the St. Francis High School Edge Fund. She was inducted into the San Mateo County Women’s Hall of Fame in 2001, and was a member of Class XIV of the American Leadership Forum, Silicon Valley. Lisa co-authored a chapter entitled “Better Results Through Supportive Engagement” in Funding Effectiveness: Lessons in Building Nonprofit Capacity .

Lisa received her JD from Boalt Hall, University of California at Berkeley in 1991 and her BA in Communication Studies with an emphasis in Business Administration from University of California at Los Angeles in 1988. She currently spends her free time with her husband and three children.