Scholars

Allison Coady is a Senior Development Officer at Partners In Health Canada. Allison served as the Interim Director of Major Gifts at Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières-USA (MSF-USA). She joined MSF-USA as the Development Officer for Foundations, responsible for managing strategic relationships with US-based foundation donors. She has extensive international experience working on the ground in 13 African countries in the field of human rights. Prior to working at Doctors Without Borders, Allison was based in South Africa representing Canada’s International Centre for Human Rights and Democratic Development (Rights & Democracy) and served as Programs Manager for the Denis Hurley Peace Institute (DHPI) in Pretoria. During her time with Rights & Democracy, Allison implemented projects aimed at strengthening the capacity of civil society organizations in their efforts to document human rights violations and protect the rights of Zimbabwean asylum seekers. At DHPI, Allison coordinated conflict management, good governance, and constitution-making training programs for local leaders in Ethiopia, South Sudan, Swaziland, and Zimbabwe. Allison is a member of the associate board of ALIMA (the Alliance for International Medical Action). She holds a Master’s degree in Political Science from the University of Pretoria and a Bachelor of Arts from Mount Allison University in Sackville, New Brunswick, Canada.

Benny Katta is a Scholar of “Rural Economy and Digital Tools” with a study on Digital Agriculture, Rural Economy and Social Development. He has 17 years of professional experience in program management and project implementation on rural & social-economic development, corporate social responsibility projects, sustainable livelihood, women empowerment, digital agriculture, capacity building, and commercializing the FPOs. He is a good strategic planner, conflict manager, and social impact player. He has displayed skills in decision making, critical thinking, and demonstrated persuasive communications, team management, and leadership skills. He was recognized with the “Sitara Award” for setting up a benchmark for clean finance handling by Tata Group for DFID Project.

Kevin Thor is a Nebraska, USA native dedicated to public service through international organizations. He earned a Bachelor of Arts in Communication Studies and Bachelor of Science in Business Administration from the University of Nebraska – Lincoln and will be attending Columbia University for a Master of International Affairs. Kevin works for Operation Smile as a Regional Program Manager in Asia leading multi-year strategy and implementation for comprehensive care programs and health system strengthening initiatives in the Philippines. He is responsible for relationship engagement and multi-year center strategy with local teams, hospital leadership, government agencies, and key corporate partners to expand the collaborative impact of the organization’s work. Kevin resided in the Philippines with extensive experience across the country. Kevin previously led surgical and education programs across eight additional countries in Africa, Asia, and Latin America with Operation Smile, including reestablishing OS presence in Mozambique, multi-site programs in Madagascar, and programming following political unrest in Nicaragua. Prior to Operation Smile, Kevin lived in Viet Nam on a Fulbright Fellowship teaching and working with local nonprofits to increase student engagement. Kevin is committed to community development through cross-cultural understanding with a keen interest in human rights and humanitarian policy focused on access to quality education and reducing barriers to care. Additionally, Kevin devotes time to student development through leadership conferences and various mentorship and coaching opportunities.

Lisa Henry is a humanitarian leader who has worked for the past 25 years in humanitarian response, support to civil society organizations, and human rights work. Lisa’s experience stretches from the Rwandan genocide, the Balkans War, the Ethiopian famine, and the Haiti earthquake. The response was always organized through the input and opinions of local or national organizations and leaders. Affected populations and lived experience are valuable elements in a well-functioning team that relies on strict adherence to human rights. Lisa’s strength is understanding, spotting, and motivating the best response from her team members, while convincing external stakeholders to understand and believe in the results generated.

Mahamadou Dao is an international development professional with more than 10 years of experience in project management and operational support in nonprofit programs. Mahamadou provides project management, logistical, and programmatic support to multiple TEPHINET projects. Mahamadou earned a Master of Law degree from the University of Cote d’Ivoire and a Master of Public Administration (MPA) from the University of West Georgia. Mahamadou is passionate about women’s empowerment and social equity. He started a career at CARE International in Cote d’Ivoire as a field supervisor on a women entrepreneurship program where he trained more than 500 women associations living with HIV on income-generating activity implementation and management in a post-conflict setting which contributed to restoring their social dignity affected by extreme poverty and popular stigma. He also worked on a Return and Reintegration of Internally Displaced persons program to help bring back peace within the western Ivory Coast local communities torn by political antagonisms. Moreover, Mahamadou participated in several vaccine campaigns against Polio, Measles, and Tetanus among rural communities in Central Cote d’Ivoire. While completing his Master’s degree in Public Administration at the University of West Georgia, Mahamadou worked at the Carter Center as an intern where he supported the institution’s West African Democratic and Governance team in Niger and Guinea. Prior to joining TEPHINET, Mahamadou was a Project Assistant at the National Democratic Institute for International Affairs in Washington, DC.