Founder of The Mowgli Foundation

Born in Bulawayo, Zimbabwe, Tony Bury grew up in an area which borders some of Southern Africa’s most beautiful National Parks. As a result, Rudyard Kipling’s Jungle Book, the story of Mowgli and the lessons he learnt from his animal mentors, has stayed with him throughout his life.

With a grandfather who was a consulting engineer on the first iron and steel plants in India, South Africa and Canada, Tony believes that giving communities, especially in developing countries, the tools and know-how to unlock their potential is paramount to the development of a family unit, society and ultimately an economy. 

Educated at Prior Park College in Bath, Manchester University (B.Sc. Hons) and Manchester Business School (MBA), Tony has spent the past three decades founding and running start up companies across the world. These include amongst others AK Group (Qatar), AK Trading (Qatar), Nefco (Qatar), Kestrel (Australia), Tomotechnology (Canada), Contax (UAE) and its various related businesses.

Finding himself deeply moved by an encounter with the author CK Prahalad in 2005, Tony vowed to use his entrepreneurial flair to ‘give something back.’ Prahalad’s book, ‘The Fortune at the Bottom of the Pyramid’, challenges companies to revolutionize the way they do business in developing countries and advises on how to harness entrepreneurial potential. Remembering his Zimbabwean roots, the Mowgli story and the mentors who have shaped his life and enabled him to grow as a businessman and an individual, Tony was inspired and founded The Mowgli Foundation in 2008.

Classing family and friends as the most important foundation in his life, Tony Bury lives with his wife Anne and daughter Kathleen between Dubai, UAE and Dorset in the UK. When he gets the opportunity, he enjoys cooking for friends and family at home and taking a walk on the golf course from time to time.