Team

At ACDI/VOCA, we recognize that each project, system, community, and individual with whom we work is unique and diverse. This requires our team members to represent our complex work not only through professional experience and knowledge but also through lived experience and identity. It takes people of all backgrounds and identities to successfully and sustainably execute our mission while addressing the racial imbalance in our industry and systemic racism more broadly.

Click on the dropdown menus below to meet our diverse and talented staff.

Board of Directors

Timothy Beans

Leslie Durschinger

Luis Sahmkow

Beth Keck

Asif M. Shaikh

Deborah Atwood

Christopher Cochran

Andrew Gilbert

Shonda Warner

Guevera Yao

Udai Shanker Awasthi

Patricia Garamendi

Mortimer Neufville

Charles J. Hall

Executive Team

Sylvia Megret

President and Chief Executive Officer

Anita Bhatt

Chief Financial Officer

Luke Pingel

Chief Legal Officer

Bob Fries

Chief Technical Officer

Gevorg Adamyan

Chief Integration Officer

Technical Experts

Hayden Aaronson

Managing Director, Market & Food Systems

Cristobal Aguilar

Senior Director of Agriculture and Community Development

Caroline Bailey

Associate Director, Gender and Youth

Geoffrey Chalmers

Vice President for Partnerships and Investment, Managing Director for AV Ventures

Brian Cohen

Senior Director of Environment and Climate Change

Luca Crudeli

Senior Technical Director, Market Systems

Ydun Donahoe

Technical Director of Market Systems

Valentina Echeverry

Technical Director, Partnerships & Investments

Barry Elkin

Technical Director of Commodity Management

Glenn Lines

Senior Advisor

Melissa Matlock

Associate Director, Gender and Social Inclusion

Christine McClung

Technical Manager, Partnerships & Investments

Nathalie Me-Nsope

Director of Gender and Agriculture

Morgan Mercer

Director of Gender & Youth

Kathryn Merckel

Associate Director of Nutrition and Food Systems

Paul Newall

Technical Director of Partnerships & Investment

Mark Sevier

Technical Director of Market Systems and Partnerships

Daniel Sumner

Associate Director, Gender and Youth

Cheryl Turner

Executive Vice President of Technical Learning and Application

Jenn Williamson

Vice President, Gender and Social Inclusion

HOMe office Directors

Yvonne Abuto

Senior Director of Capture and Proposal Management

Jyldyz Aliyas

Senior Director of Accounting

Maura Allen

Executive Vice President of Resilience & Growth 

Sabrina Amburgey

Vice President of Business Development

Ruth Arriaga

Senior Director of International Human Resources 

Rebekah Bakewicz

Director of Resilience & Growth

Bo Banks

Director of Business Development, Inclusive Market Systems

Elitza Barden

Senior Director of Inclusive Market Systems 

Stephanie Brennan

Lead Technical Writer 

Gregory Buchholz-White

Managing Director, Pricing, Compliance & Teaming

Nicole Chao

Managing Director of Resilience & Growth

Jill Chow

Vice President of Communications & Outreach

Sandi Crawford

Managing Director of Awards Management Services

Emmanuel Dormon

Senior Director of Inclusive Market Systems

David Fischer

Managing Director, Inclusive Market Systems

Carolyn Froeschl

Senior Director of Financial Systems

Art Gandilyan

Senior Director of Inclusive Market Systems

Patricia Gbeti

Managing Director, Project Accounting

Dana Hudock

Senior Director, Cost and Pricing

Olaf Kula

Senior Managing Director of Inclusive Market Systems 

Beth Leonhardt

Senior Director of Business Development, Resilience & Growth

Tamara Ljubinkovic

Managing Director of Project Operations 

Marc Kokosky

Senior Director of Compliance

JoEllen McGann

Senior Director of Food Security & Agriculture, Resilience & Growth 

Nadia Namken

Senior Technical Director of Inclusive Market Systems

Patrick Norrell

Senior Vice President of Inclusive Market Systems

Heidi Pilloud

Vice President of Accounting and Finance

Quanita Pokolo-Hassell

Senior Vice President of Human Resources 

Yamil Roger Nasser

Associate Director of Resilience & Growth

Laura Schauble

Vice President of Risk Management and Office Operations 

Georgia Sheehy-Beans

Vice President of Quality, Accountability, and Learning

Mike Thayer

Senior Director of Resilience & Growth

Thelonious Trimmell

Senior Agribusiness Advisor of Inclusive Market Systems

Lucas Valente da Costa

Associate Director of Resilience & Growth

Meg Weaver

Senior Director, Communications & Outreach

Jaha Zakhidov

Senior Director, International Human Resources and Compensation

Country Office Leadership

Philippines

Alfred Allaga

Country Director of the Cooperative Development Program in the Philippines

Colombia

Ricardo Amaya

Chief of Party of the Youth Resilience Activity and Country Representative in Colombia

Colombia

Erika María Arango

Chief of Party of the Program of Alliances for Reconciliation

Kyrgyzstan

Nazgulmira Arynova

The Kyrgyz Republic Farmer-to-Farmer Program Country Director

Armenia

Makrita Avjyan

Armenia Farmer-to-Farmer Program Country Director

Zambia

Jean-Frederic Beauchesne

Chief of Party, USAID Zambia EDGE Activity

Colombia

Carolina Blackburn

Executive Director, Fundación ACDI/VOCA Latin America

Kenya

Wyanie Bright

Chief of Party, USAID Kuza

Guinea

Ibrahima Camara

Guinea Country Representative

Philippines

George C. Dalire

Deputy Chief of Party of the Philippine Coffee Advancement and Farm Enterprise Project

Kyrgyzstan

Hiqmet Demiraj

Chief of Party of the USAID Enterprise Competitiveness Project in the Kyrgyz Republic

Ghana

Michael Dockrey

Chief of Party of the Feed the Future Ghana Market Systems and Resilience Activity

Kenya

Jim Flock 

Chief of Party of the Feed the Future Kenya Resilience Learning Activity

Honduras

Dun Grover

Deputy Chief of Party of Market Systems and Collaborating, Learning, and Adapting (CLA) for the USAID/Honduras Transforming Market Systems Activity 

Uzbekistan

Aziz Hakimov

Value Chain Development Manager

Tajikistan

Nodir Ibrohimzoda

Tajikistan Farmer-to-Farmer Program Country Director and ACDI/VOCA Country Representative in Tajikistan 

Bangladesh

Mohammad Kamruzzaman

Deputy Chief of Party and Nutrition Team Lead of the Feed the Future Bangladesh Livestock Production for Improved Nutrition Activity

Georgia

Magda Menabde

Georgia Farmer-to-Farmer Program Country Director 

Kenya

Simon Muli

Deputy Chief of Party of Expanding Economic Opportunities under the Feed the Future Kenya Livestock Market Systems Activity

Colombia

Jimena Niño

Chief of Party of Indigenous People and Afro-Colombian Empowerment (IPACE) Activity

Colombia

Victoria Norelid

CLA Deputy Chief of Party of the Youth Resilience Activity

Honduras

Walter F. Nuñez-Rodriguez

Chief of Party of the Food Security, Agriculture and Resilient Market Systems Activity

Myanmar

Cuan Opperman

Chief of Party of Feed the Future Burma Agriculture and Food Systems Development Activity  

Honduras

Giovanny Cuero Rincón

Deputy Chief of Party of Programs for the USAID/Honduras Transforming Market Systems Activity

Honduras

Sergio Rivas

Regional Managing Director for Latin America and the Caribbean and Honduras Country Representative

Philippines

T.J. Ryan

Chief of Party of Philippine Coffee Advancement and Farm Enterprise Project 

Kenya

Joe Sanders

Chief of Party of the Feed the Future Kenya Livestock Market Systems Activity

Bangladesh

Muhammad Nurul Amin Siddiquee

Chief of Party of Feed the Future Bangladesh Livestock and Nutrition Activity and Bangladesh Country Representative

Burkina Faso

Regis Terrien

Chief of Party of Victory Against Malnutrition Plus Project 

Laos

Sophie Walker

Chief of Party of the Laos Microenterprise Activity 

Kyrgyzstan

Aijamal Ypyshova

Agribusiness Partnerships Lead, Kyrgyz Republic