As a development strategist, evaluator, capacity builder, and mediator, focusing on the aims of diverse groups in divided societies, conflict regions, and disaster zones, I assist international agencies (UN, EU, IFIs, NGOs), donors (multilateral funds, foundations, private sector), governments, and civil society in defining needs, assessing resources and capacity, and devising the structures and strategies that lead to operational excellence. I have lived and worked in more than two dozen countries, and established a network and resource center for those interested in improving relief, development, and conflict resolution interventions, as well as indigenous activism.

As an Executive Coach, I help heads of agencies and governments to resolve the impediments to effective programmes, including policies, processes, systems, staffing, and cultural factors–and their dynamics. My coaching methods follow those of mediation, in which I have more than 20 years of experience as a Supreme Court-certified and private mediator. They include communication skills, identifying issues, examining resources, generating options, status analysis, reconciling variances, agreeing a solution, monitoring results, and revision. My experience facilitating change through evaluation evidence, working in all sectors and with many parties, assures I understand the constraints and divisions between partners and headquarters and the field, in context-specific settings.

As a Conflict and Life Coach, I work with individuals facing challenges or conflicts in their professional or personal life, who seek guidance in building the skills for self and situational mastery. In addition, I engage with those living in a conflict region and seeking to find solutions to local problems. This includes residents as well as staff of international agencies facing the transitional hazards of working in fragile settings far from a familiar support system. The isolation, alienation, and difficulties encountered often require alternative approaches to maintain a balanced life.

The butterfly in the cocoon symbolizes unfulfilled capacity, ultimately representing emergence, mastery, fulfillment