Leadership

Daniel Obst

President and Chief Executive Officer

New York City, NY, USA

Read Daniel’s bio

Amalie Ferdinand

Board Chair

Copenhagen, Denmark
Trade Union Consultant at Union of Education Denmark

Read Amalie’s bio

Executive Team

Rita Bangáné Jarecsni

Chief Financial and Operational Officer

Read Rita’s bio

Maria Grazia Brizi

Corporate Secretary, Associate General Counsel

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Hal Denton

General Counsel & Chief Risk Management Officer

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Efrem Fisher

Chief Programs Officer

Read Efrem’s bio

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Nicole Lebenson Angulo

Deputy Chief Organization Development Officer

Read Nicole’s bio

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Ann´Andreza Martins

Deputy Chief Programs Officer

Read Andreza’s bio

Lucas Welter

Chief Organization Development & Strategy Officer

Read Lucas’ bio

Board of Trustees

The AFS International Board of Trustees, a diverse group representing over a dozen countries, works in conjunction with our Partners and volunteers worldwide to realize our goal of providing the world’s youth with secure avenues of intercultural exchange.

Gustavo Sénéchal

Brasilia, Brazil (Vice Chair)
Diplomat at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Brazil

Read Gustavo’s bio

Yasmin Ahmad Merican

Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Marketing Strategist, Brand Builder & Business Transformation Practitioner

Read Yasmin’s bio

Martyn Barrett

London, United Kingdom
Emeritus Professor of Psychology at the University of Surrey, UK

Read Martyn’s bio

Matteo Biancolini

Reggio Emilia, Italy
Independent Financial Advisor and Entrepreneur

Read Matteo’s bio

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Lennart D'hulst

Opwijk, Belgium
Expert HR Project Manager at NMBS

Read Lennart’s bio

Eloise Dolan

Melbourne, Australia
Associate Director, Business Development at Value Learning

Read Eloise’s bio

Tolga Dorken

Paris, France
Founding Partner at ID Turkiye AS

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Makiko Haraga

Tokyo, Japan
Independent Writer, Translator, Adjunct Lecturer at Tokyo Institute of Technology

Read Makiko’s bio

Michaela Mariani

Venice, Italy
Head of the Legal and Corporate Affairs at Cherry106 S.p.A

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Victor Oporto

Santa Fe, Argentina
President of OPTILENT SRL, and founder and partner at CONSULFE

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Dr. Willibald Plesser

Vienna, Austria
Independent Attorney at Law

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Ernesto Rey Moreno

Bogotá, Colombia
Founder & CEO at Empresas REYMORENO

Read Ernesto’s bio

Ulrich Voss

Kronberg, Germany
Founder and Managing Partner at Kronberg Advisors

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Wantoe Wantoe

USA, Liberia
Steering Member on the United Nations Department of Global Communication Youth Steering Committee

Read Wantoe’s bio

Life Trustee

Sachiye Kuwamoto

California, USA
Regional Director, Central California, Japanese-American Citizens League (retired)

The AFS Education Committee, created by the AFS International Board of Trustees in 2022, provides input and guidance to our network-wide educational vision, impact, and research agenda related to active global citizenship, intercultural and global competence. The Committee is composed by Trustees, AFS representatives and experts outside our organization.

Meet the Committee members:

Trustees:

Eloise Dolan (2024 Chair) – Strategic Advisor at VGTI SEA – Victorian Government Trade and Investment Southeast Asia, Australia
Makiko Haraga – Independent Writer, Translator, Adjunct Lecturer at Tokyo Institute of Technology, Japan
Professor Martyn Barrett – Emeritus Professor of Psychology at the University of Surrey, UK
Wantoe Teah Wantoe – Steering Member on the United Nations Department of Global Communication Youth Steering Committee, USA, Liberia

Advisors:

AFS Partner Directors:

AFS Executive Team:

AFS International Team:

Former members:

AFS Partner Director Representatives

The AFS Partner Director Representatives, works in conjunction with our Board of Trustees and AFS Volunteers worldwide to realize our goal of providing the world’s youth with secure avenues of intercultural exchange.

Andrea Franzoi

Partner Director, Italy

Read Andrea’s bio

Marcel Krause

Partner Director, Germany

Read Marcel’s bio

Gatot Sam

Partner Director, Indonesia

Read Gatot’s bio

Watcharapoj Sapsanguanboon

Partner Director, Thailand

Read Watcharapoj’s bio

Diana Sey

Partner Director, Ghana

Read Diana’s bio

Cecilia Vasquez

Partner Director, Guatemala

Read Cecilia’s bio

AFS International Team

AFS Staff supports our volunteers, and enable exchanges to succeed by working together to ensure that the highest quality experiences are afforded to all participants and host families. The staff at AFS International provide worldwide support, quality control and development of AFS Network Organizations worldwide.

Ali Mustafa
AFS Consultant, UN Affairs

Ana Carolina Cassiano
Consultant, Head of Education Development

Andrea Kutsenkow
Consultant, Archivist

Andrés Lanza
Consultant, Educational Products Coordinator

Andrew Menges
Consultant, Data Analytics & Visualization

Brian Musyoki
Consultant, Coordination & Training Facilitator

Brice Sagbohan
Accountant, Budget & Network Finances

Cristina Bertelli
Consultant, Volunteer Development

Carlos Irias Kattan
Consultant, Digital Marketing & Website Management

David Blythe
Support Specialist, Office and Risk Management

Dylan Peterson
Specialist, Education Development

Eduardo Assed
Consultant, Network & Market Development

Eunice Neta
Consultant, Program Policy and Support Management

Fabricia Manoel
Consultant, Program Development & Innovation

Facundo Mendez
Consultant, Sponsored Programs Specialist

Gábor Csikós
Consultant, Network Support Management

Georgianna Jarrett
Manager, Human Resources

Heidy Utami
Consultant, Digital Partner Support & Training

Jennifer Edvardsson
Director, Learning and Development

Larry Barnett
Director, Risk & Crisis Management

Lauren Devan
Partnership Specialist – HEI

Linda Stuart
Director, Global Education Innovation

Luisa Novelli
Consultant, Hosting Experience Engagement Coordination

Manuela Ramirez
Consultant, Volunteer Development & Training

Martha Rivas
Coordinator, Accounts Payable & Office Services

Martin Teplanszki
Consultant, Digital Support

Milena Miladinovic
Consultant, Communications & External Affairs

Mirna Halabi
Consultant, CRM Product Specialist

Molly Stern
Manager, Global Competence Certificate

Monica Our
Director, Budget & Network Finances

Pablo Cornejo
Consultant, Education Products Associate

Paul Gamner
Assistant to the President

Pedro Junqueira
Chief Digital Officer

Saskia Kaya
Program Manager

Sean Reilly
Director, Program Development

Shiree Pointer
Manager, Program Operations & Quality Support

Stefanie Grech
Manager, Communications and Engagement

Stijn Van den Bergh
Consultant, ICT

Valeria Anghel
Consultant, CRM Product Specialist

Veronica Conti
Consultant, Marketing & Customer Experience

Yumna Khan
Director, Youth Assembly and Strategic Youth Initiatives

Zeina Haidar
Fellow, EdTech