Rene has eight years of experience in the nonprofit sector, and earned a Bachelor’s Degree in law from the University of Buea in Cameroon, and a Master’s Degree in International Relations. He specialized in international cooperation, humanitarian action and sustainable development from the International Relations Institute of Cameroon in partnership with Ca Foscari University of Venice, Italy. Rene is the founder and the Executive Director of “More Action For Disability Inclusion In Development”, a charity organization that works to promote equal opportunities and the social inclusion of persons with disabilities in the developmental processes of their respective communities. While working as a Community Resilience Program Manager with the Ecumenical Service for Peace, Rene helped improve the livelihood of vulnerable children, women, and refugees from Central African Republic and neighboring communities. Rene has worked recently with two community-based organizations simultaneously on several projects to promote inclusive education for children with disabilities and to build the capacities of youths, women, and disabled persons on income generating activities to promote self reliance to improve their livelihood. Rene has volunteered with UNICEF and UNHCR as a Child Protection Officer and a Field Associate to coordinate education in emergency programs for refugee children. Rene also worked as a Community Capacity Building Coordinator with Trauma Centre for the Rehabilitation of Victims of Violence and Torture in Cameroon. Through these experiences, Rene developed strong leadership skills in capacity building, research, project management, and fundraising. Rene is particularly interested in the sectors of education, humanitarian relief, human rights, and international development.

Host Organization: Lutheran Social Service of Minnesota

Role at Host Organization: Rene will provide leadership in working with the services for people with disabilities and the services for older adult teams as it relates to specific projects, service delivery systems, research and evaluation to enhance the service delivery systems of the organization. He will be working closely with executive leadership and their teams in a statewide delivery system structure.