As a child, Mawi fled civil war in Ethiopia and survived a Sudanese refugee camp for three years. After being resettled in The United States, Mawi overcame poverty, language barriers and personal tragedy to graduate from Harvard University, where he gave the Commencement address to an audience of 30,000.

Mawi is the founder of Mawi Learning, a leading provider of Social Emotional Learning (SEL) curriculum. Mawi Learning has trained millions of students in over 15 countries and earned industry-recognition for its groundbreaking online and blended courses. In 2019, Mawi Learning was acquired by the global non-profit, ACT.

In addition to his K-12 impact, Mawi has trained leaders at college and corporations such as The Boston Consulting Group, Bank of America, Chase, Accenture, Harvard University, Duke University, and Stanford University.