Farmers in Zambia with climate change questions can now receive quick answers via SMS from a new feedback SMS system developed by the country’s National Agricultural Information Services (NAIS) together with, a local software developer, SMSize and International Institute for Communication and Development (IICD).
Through the SMSize system, farmers can send questions via an SMS from their cell phones which go directly to a computer server at the central office, where the producer researches the answer and sends back the information to the phone of the querying farmer, in the same language as the original request. With this new system, farmers receive relevant and more customized answers to their climate change questions within 24 hours.
The system replaces the traditional system as seen below:
a) A farmer with questions fills an evaluation form and send it to the nearest NAIS district office,
b) The district office passes the form to the provincial office,
c) The form is then sent to the main country office,
d) A NAIS radio producer assesses the questions, and contacts relevant specialists in agricultural research institutes and government ministries,
e) Based on their feedback, the producer prepares a response for broadcast in a the next radio program.
With this old system, farmers had to to wait for months before receiving answers to their climate change questions.
‘Instead of taking several weeks, the farmers now get the information within a day or two,’ said Kahilu. ‘We also still use the questions and concerns raised by the farmers to develop material for radio programs which will help other farmers facing similar problems.’
The increasing number of questions from farmers concerning unpredictable weather patterns in recent years to the Zambia National Agricultural Information Services (NAIS) necessitated a discussion with the local software developer which has led to the development of the system.
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ABCG, as a result, has initiated a number of communication strategies to combat the negative impact of HIV/AIDS on the environment. On this 2011 World’s AIDS Day, I find it appropriate to reflect on the role of information and communication technologies (ICTs) in increasing the effectiveness of communication strategies for combating negative impacts of HIV/AIDS on the environment.
Impacts of HIV/AIDS on the Environment and Natural Resource Management Activities
According to ABCG, HIV/AIDS has impacted the conservation workforce, conservation activities, and finances of conservation government agencies, non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and communities. The pandemic has caused accelerated rates of illnesses and deaths among park wardens, rangers, community game guards, senior officials and other conservation personnel; accelerated rates of payment of terminal benefits by conservation government agencies; created competition for scarce financial resources between HIV/AIDS demands and conservation activities; led to accelerated and unsustainable rates of harvesting of medicinal plants and wildlife; is destroying communal social structures on which community-based natural resource management (CBNRM) is based; and has led to land use changes in some places.
The program has identified the following key impacts of the HIV/AIDS pandemic on natural resource management:
Changes in land use as agricultural practices change with falling capacity for heavy labor,
Changes in access to resources and land especially when widows and AIDS orphans cannot inherit land,
Loss of traditional knowledge of sustainable land and resource management practices,
Increased vulnerability of community-based natural resource management programs as communities lose leadership and capacity, and HIV/AIDS issues take priority, and
Diversion of conservation funds for HIV/AIDS related costs.
ABCG’s Communication Strategies and the Role of ICTs
With the above recognized negative impacts of HIV/AIDS on the environment and natural resource management, ABCG has agreed that ICTs are uniquely positioned to help increase the impacts of their communication strategies. Some of the current approaches being used include:
The use of its website with updated materials including PowerPoint presentations, papers, and web links on case studies conducted on HIV/AIDS and environmental conservation.
Networking among the regional partners to share useful information on the issue.
Workshops
International Conferences
AIDS and Conservation Posters by ABCG
So how can ICTs be integrated into these strategies for effective impact on HIV/AIDS?
Looking at the great potentials of ICTs for knowledge and information sharing, the current communication approaches by ABCG may have limited use of ICTs for sharing knowledge on best practices about HIV/AIDS and the environment. A host of the emerging social media tools and platforms are excellent avenues for partners to share information on HIV/AIDS and environmental conservation activities thereby facilitating the work of ABCG in its fight for environmental conservation.
a) Blogs taking the form of a diary, journal, and links to other websites could be great tools for sharing and creating awareness of HIV/AIDS on the environment.
b) Twitter accounts can be used to share instant updates from friends, industry experts, favorite celebrities, and others of the impact of HIV/AIDS on the environment, the prevention strategies, and what’s happening around the world with specific focus on natural resource management and HIV/AIDS.
c) Social networking applications like Facebook with pages specifically created on the issue could help bring like-minded individuals and organizations together to discuss the issue online.
d) Events such as Meetup.com and free Wibinar applications such as WebEx channels may be used to connect partners and advocates together to share information and knowledge on HIV/AIDS and the environment.
e) Wikis pages are great knowledge management and collaborative tools that could be used to capture, find, share, and use information on HIV/AIDS and environmental conservation. Wikis help keep knowledge current, dynamic, and safe for members.
f) Photo sharing applications like Flicker, Picasa, Fotki, Mobile Me, Windows Live SkyDrive could be used to share real-time updates on HIV/AIDS and environment through images.
g) Video sharing tools like YouTube could be used to create awareness of the danger of HIV/AIDS on the environment.
h) Professional networking tools like LinkedIn may bring together experts from the various fields – HIV/AIDS, NRM, Climate Change, among others to discuss the issue.
When the necessary ICT policies and infrastructure are put in place among the ABCG collaborating partners and the regional networks, the use of these applications should not be an obstacle to information sharing on HIV/AIDS and the environment.
An interesting principle being used by smallholder farmers in Nigeria (particularly female farmers) to fight the global climate change within their own means is a Hausa proverb, “In Kidi ya Chanza”, which means “when the drumbeats change, the dancers have to change their steps.”
“Change In Drum Beats”– Climate Change
While farming remains a predominant occupation for the rural people of Northern Nigeria, the increasing effects of climate change is being felt in almost all areas of their farming activities. The land is becoming drier due to shorter and unpredictable rainfalls; increasing flooding resulting in crop destruction when the rains finally come; the quality and quantity of forage of the livestock is being affected; and the changes in temperature is directly affecting both crops and livestock. At the same time, the strength of their local knowledge, innovations, skills, experiences, observations and insights that used to help them overcome these challenges in the absence of scientific resources is becoming archaic, due to the same effect of climate change.
“Change In Dancing” – Information Communication Technologies
Over time, the change in ‘drum beat’ has been noticed by the local people. With support from the Climate Change Adaptation in Africa Program; the African Radio Drama Association (ARDA) in partnership with Farm Radio International and the University of Guelph, initiated a project that uses “edutainment” approach of combining entertainment with educational messages for climate change. The project has developed this special “In Kidi ya Chanza” Radio Drama Program aimed at raising awareness and providing information to smallholder farmers in northern Nigeria about climate change adaptation. Currently, there are a number episodes of drama with specific focuses that are airing weekly on several radio stations and broadcast to an estimated 20 million listeners in four northern Nigerian states targeted by the project.
The drama involves music and storytelling, which can both entertain and educate. They imitate real life and can be a vehicle for demonstrating actions to highlight comparisons and consequences. Through multi-dimensional characters, drama can credibly portray models of responsibility, community leadership, and self-efficacy, and at the same time present new social norms to drive behavior change. Episodes also encourage household discussions of otherwise difficult topics, and encourage the audience to be part of the whole process of change without being bombarded with too many messages. The listener would usually empathize with the characters and would not feel talked down to, as useful information is given out by characters they grow to love in the course of the drama.
The impact of the program is huge with a recent study conducted by the University of Guelph showing that about 78% of respondents were familiar with the radio drama; 84% of female and 68% of male listeners stated the program increased their awareness of climate change adaptation; and the vast majority (92.8%) of respondents who gained awareness from the program reported that they took action.
Photo Credit: Radio for Development
In Nigeria and other parts of Africa, radio remains an important and trusted medium for the majorities of smallholder farmers who have easy access and regularly listen to programs. Apart from being affordable, radio is appropriate because it does not necessarily rely on electrical power to operate, making it highly accessible medium. Over 85% of Nigerians have access to a radio set, making radio an effective medium for the broadcast of this series of programs.
Bharti Airtel, an international telecommunications company, has announced a deal with Ericsson, a leading provider of mobile telecommunications equipment, to use Flexenclosure’s green energy solution called E-site for upgrading an initial lot of 250 mobile phone base stations powered by diesel in Nigeria.
The contract enables Ericsson to be responsible for implementation and maintenance services for all the sites. “The new green and highly cost efficient base station solution makes not only environmental sense, but also financial sense for our customers, enabling the efficient deployment of services to previously unserved or under-served areas,” Ericsson Head of Sub-Saharan Africa Region Lars Linden said.
Airtel has successfully tested the solution in Kenya and has experienced significant reduction in diesel usage and CO2 emissions against a round-the-clock diesel powered site. The company also believes that the ‘green’ mobile initiative will improve operations and minimize base stations’ environmental impact.
Flexenclosure is a Swedish start-up that develops innovative solutions for energy-efficient mobile phone coverage in developing nations. The advanced control system of the E-site solution assures the storage of optimal power from the alternative energy sources (solar or wind) and the process is efficiently managed through the utilization of its battery bank.
The company estimates that there are 40,000 mobile phone base stations in Africa, and most of those rely on a diesel engine for power. Each base station takes anything up to 5200 gallons of the increasingly expensive hydrocarbon soup each year to ensure that people will be able to use their mobile phones. That’s around 210,000,000 gallons of diesel every single year, which isn’t good for the environment or the profit margins of the mobile providers. The technology has the potential to lower diesel usage by up to 80% – that’s a saving of 169,000,000 gallons of diesel each year for African telecommunication companies and that’s the byproducts of burning 169 million gallons of diesel that won’t be entering our atmosphere.
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At a recently ended Web 2.0 Summit held in San Francisco California, a Berlin-based startup called Changers announced the release of a portable solar charging system that aims to reduce global warming by shifting society to the use of a currency backed by the sun. The Changers Solar System gives the user a way to harness the sun’s energy, liberates the user from the grid, recharges all kinds of devices, helps the user to socialize his/her energy production, and enables him/her to compete with others to earn Changers Credits that can be spent in the Changers Marketplace.
The Changers Starter Kit which is open for a pre-order beginning now as you read this piece, includes the revolutionary Changers Kalhuohfummi solar battery and the Changers Maroshi solar module and costs $149. The Changers Kalhuohfummi is a simple, one-button device that communicates with Changers.com. Inside is advanced intelligence that accurately measures how much energy it captures and stores in the built-in battery, ready to charge any smartphone or tablet. The Changers Kalhuohfummi solar battery is powered by the Changers Maroshi flexible solar module, which generates up to four Watts per hour — enough to charge the Kalhuohfummi battery in four hours. The Changers Maroshi solar panel, which is produced in Colorado, USA, can be attached to any window or sunny surface.
The Director of Communications, Hans Raffauf explains how the technology works:
http://youtu.be/Ee9WW2J8FdE
The system helps you to:
Capture the Sun: Produce your own energy. The Changers personal solar charging kit enables any of us to produce and consume renewable energy. Now, anyone can start producing energy and know exactly how much CO2 they’ve saved. Find a sunny spot, plug it in, and start harnessing the natural energy of the sun. Pretty soon, you’ll be much more aware of where you get the best sunlight and how to optimize your energy production and consumption.
Charge your Device: Change your thinking. Plug in your Apple iPhone/iPad/iPod, Android, Kindle (or any of 1,000 other devices) and charge it using the energy you captured. The Changers Kalhuohfummi will recharge your device as fast as a regular charger and radically change the way you think about energy. Now, you’re a Changer – an autonomous producer and consumer of your own renewable energy.
Become Part of a Movement: Tell the world. Upload your energy production statistics to the Changers community to visualize your actual CO2 savings. See how much energy you’ve produced and compare your score with others. Share your experience and contribution via Facebook and Twitter. Your pioneering actions will inspire others to follow.
Get Rewarded: Turn your green behavior into Changers Credits. The amount of energy you produce is automatically converted into Changers Credits, which can be spent at retail partners on the Changers Marketplace who share your commitment to a greener planet.
To know more and become social with green energy use go to Changers
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One of the new approaches to the Climate Change menace being explored by most of the key stakeholders in the sector is the “Resilience” approach which focuses on enabling communities to better withstand, recover from, and adapt to the changing conditions posed by climate change.
This approach cannot be fully functional in this information age without the central role of information and communication technologies (ICTs) in general, and mobile technologies in specific. This is becoming obvious especially in the continent of Africa where the increase in terms of the number of mobile phone subscribers and penetration has been greatest. Recognizing this, the Global Humanitarian Forum together with Ericsson,the World Meteorological Organization, National Meteorological Services (NMSs), the Earth Institute at Columbia University,Zain and other mobile phone operators are aiming to deploy up to 5,000 automatic weather stations (AWSs) at wireless network sites across Africa within the next few years. This public-private-partnership aims to reinforce the capacities and the capabilities of national meteorological services with the goal of supporting local communities worst impacted by climate change through the improvement of weather monitoring.
In early 2009, the president of the Global Humanitarian Forum, Mr. Kofi Annan announced the Weather Information for All (WIFA) Initiative and as of the end of June, the WIFA Initiative have completed Phase I through installation of 19 AWSs in three East African countries – 1 in Kenya, 9 in Tanzania and 9 in Uganda. All 19 AWSs are fully operational and successfully transferring raw weather data to the National Meteorological Stations (NMSs). Automatic weather stations (AWS) are automated type of traditional weather stations that enable measurements from remote areas to save human labor. While AWS are known to deliver via local link to a computer system or via telecommunications or satellite systems, GSM mobile phone technology has also been used.
The clip below tells the Climate Change story and the efforts by the Global Humanitarian Forum to build the resilience for vulnerable communities:
The phase II of the Initiative is currently ongoing with the target of about 500 AWSs to be progressively installed throughout Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda, with the later addition of Burundi and Rwanda. A recent report by Uganda at the beginning of this year emphasized the utilization of mobile phone technology to develop a sustainable warning service that reduces the vulnerability of communities in the Lake Victoria Region to weather hazards. The report indicated that the quality of data being collected by the AWSs located at mobile phone mast sites is evaluated through a systematic and scientific (peer reviewed) data trial. This has led to the routine dissemination of more accurate, timely and reliable weather forecasts and warnings to the pilot communities of fishermen, in Uganda, for the duration of the trial. Seasonal and other weather information provided via Uganda Department of Meteorology website and disseminated via mobile WEB, or WAP, for the duration of the pilot for the chosen agricultural communities.
Approximately 70% of Africans rely on farming for their livelihood, and over 95% of Africa’s agriculture depends on natural rainfall – rain-fed agriculture. At the same time, rural farmers across the continent are known to utilize the strength of their local knowledge, skills, experiences, observation and insights to maintain or improve their livelihood in the absence of scientific resources. Unfortunately, the “Wicked Problem” of climate change is rendering some of these innovations and experiences unreliable. The dwindling weather and climate is preventing rural farmers from accurately predicting the weather and thereby thwarting them from making informed decisions, such as when to plant and harvest their crops.
In addition to this direct utilization of mobile technologies to gather weather information remotely and deliver up-to-date information to computer systems that are being used by rural communities, the ubiquitous use of mobile technologies could be see in a host of other subsidiary areas. A Reuters article pointed out at least ten ways by which ICTs and mobile technologies could help in climate change adaptation. Among these are:
i) The use of mobile phones, community radio and the Internet to enable information sharing, awareness raising and capacity building on key health threats, enabling effective prevention and response;
ii) ICT applications such as Geographic Information Systems (GIS) are being used to facilitate the monitoring and provision of relevant environmental information to relevant stakeholders, including decision-making processes for the adaptation of human habitats;
iii) Mobile phones and SMS are being used for reporting locally-relevant indicators (e.g. likelihood of floods) to greater accuracy and more precise flood warnings to communities;
iv) Access to insurance and information about national programs/assistance available to support vulnerable populations after floods, hurricanse, and others are being made possible through the Internet or the mobile phone;
v) ICTs are being used to enhance information about pest and disease control, planting dates, seed varieties, irrigation applications, and early warning systems, as well as improving market access, among others;
vi) Mobile phones can serve as tools to disseminate information on low-cost methods for desalination, using gray water and harvesting rainwater for every day uses, as well as for capacity building on new irrigation mechanisms, among others.
Mobile technologies are of no doubt capable of helping to prepare vulnerable communities to deal with stresses and disturbances as a result of climate change, while retaining the same basic structure and ways of functioning, hence an excellent tool for climate change resilience.
“Using ICT for a greener economy is important, but also complex. It’s a solution, but also a challenge, says former Dutch Minister of Agriculture and current Mayor of The Hague Jozias van Aartsen. Mr Van Aartsen said this during his final keynote speech at the just ended ICT for Greener Economy Mini-Conference in Developing Countries organized by IICD as part of its 15th Anniversary celebration.
Pointing out the ‘two-edged sword nature’ of ICTs in the Green Economy, the Mayor of The Hague mentioned some contributions that ICTs could make to the greener economy as well as the challenges of the new technologies. With the focus of the conference on the developing nations, Mr Van Aartsen was very passionate about the prospects of encouraging farmers in developing countries to participate in the green economy through organic farming, which could improve their livelihoods within the green economy. These farmers would have to be certified thereby enabling them to use their organic status to add value to their crops since the goods would have to be traced and tracked through the whole value chain system.
Mr Van Aartsen continued that besides tracking and tracing, ICTs also bring people together, helping them to educate themselves and improve their businesses. He cited a group of organic coffee farmers from Ecuador who are using their online network to receive essential support on inputs, crop management and marketing. He also mentioned the potential use of ICTs in water harvesting, drip irrigation, and intelligent planting schemes – all of which can help the farmer to get greater volumes and higher quality yields from the land in a sustainable way.
Touching on the other side of the coin, Mr Van Aartsen stated that “ICT use does not only result in greater demand for energy. Greater efficiency also leads to greater consumption”. He cautioned that when applying ICTs to solutions for greener economy, actors should make sure that they have made a proper cost-benefit analysis. When considering energy efficient solutions, actors should make use of clean energy sources such as solar energy. The overall goal should be “how sustainability of local economies can be strengthened, especially how income and food can be secured for the less privileged”.
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The US Department of State-funded Apps4Africa competition that began in 2009 has announced its theme for this year: Climate Challenge. Nine winners in sub-Saharan Africa will receive prize money for the applications with the most innovative solutions for solving climate problems.
Photo credit: Apps4Africa
The 2011 competition that brings NGOs, civil society, universities, and the private sector together with African technology gurus began on October 1st in West/Central Africa; it will later head to Eastern Africa and end in Southern Africa on March 30, 2012. It builds on the successes of last year’s Civic Challenge, which produced innovative apps such as the iCow that helps farmers manage livestock breeding. The Climate Challenge is meant to “center around several strategic themes that coincide with policy decisions that will be debated…by world leaders” during the COP17 conference in Durban, South Africa.
The COP17 conference, or the 17th Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), will take place from November 28- December 9. It is designed to assess progress in dealing with climate change and work toward the UNFCCC’s objective to “stabilise greenhouse gas concentrations at a level that will prevent dangerous human interference with the climate system.”
The categories for the Climate Challenge applicants are as follows:
Entry Categories
Agriculture (Distribution)
Early Warning and/or Disaster Preparedness
Resource Management
Forestry/Deforestation
Transportation/Traffic/Emissions
Food Security
Livestock
Health and Sanitation
Photo credit: Apps4Afric
Application Types
Mobile
Mobile (smart phones)
Web
Desktop
Data
Open Data Source
Crowdsourcing/Public Participation
News Aggregation
Proprietary
Other
Interested in being involved with Apps4Africa but don’t live in Africa? Consider becoming a mentor and lending your expertise to applicants.
The winners of Climate Challenge will also receive a special congratulatory message from US Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton.
Agriculture is particularly vulnerable to the effects of climate change, and this makes finding a balance between increasing food production and limiting greenhouse gas emissions a major challenge.
In fact, there are few global research projects with a focus on reducing agricultural greenhouse gases, compared to the energy and transport sectors. But this could all change for the better.
Over a year and a half ago New Zealand launched the Global Research Alliance on Agricultural Greenhouse Gases, and this year its membership grew to 30 countries. The Alliance aims to coordinate the research of the world’s top scientists in agricultural emissions in a bid to find ways of increasing food production and ensuring food security without increasing greenhouse gas emissions.
The Alliance has successfully increased international cooperation and investment in research for livestock, paddy rice production systems and technologies to limit the loss of carbon and nitrogen from crops and soils.
A French firm says it is manufacturing biodegradable SIM cards. This is the latest in a series of innovations in the global telecoms sector, but the environmentally conscious intent sets Oberthur Technologies apart—most SIM cards are made from plastic, which do not degrade.
The firm touts its latest product as ‘an eco-friendly high-tech solution to meet our 21st century environmental challenges.” Head of Product Marketing, Mobile Product Line-Cards and Services Stephane Girodon says the product has already been distributed in Europe, but it is yet to be introduced elsewhere.
Oberthur Technologies is the world’s second largest provider of security and identification solutions and services based on smart card technologies for mobiles.
Summer Hunter-Kysor currently serves as Senior Project Associate for Integra’s EE/MELDS and AEO contracts with USAID. With five years of development experience and a strong background in peacebuilding, governance, and education, she has spearheaded impactful projects with the goal of improving the lives of individuals and communities worldwide. Armed with an MA in International Development and BA in International Relations, Ms. Hunter-Kysor possesses a deep understanding and curiosity of the everchanging complexities facing developing regions and has successfully supported the implementation of notable initiatives that drive positive social impact and sustainable change.
Prior to joining Integra, Ms. Hunter-Kysor worked at Creative Associates International, where she provided backstop support to three USAID- and USAID/OTI-funded projects with values between $3-$38 million. She managed several aspects of project efforts including technical, financial, contractual, reporting & communications, HR, and operational duties. She led her teams’ knowledge management efforts to ensure that project successes and lessons learned could be adjusted and applied in different contexts. She was further dedicated to business development efforts in the democracy and governance space, serving as a contributing author on a solicitation the company won valued at $24 million. Previously, she focused on monitoring, evaluation, and learning and process improvement through her work in Pittsburgh local government and community development-focused nonprofits. Ms. Hunter-Kysor’s experience also includes federal contracting, a graduate internship with the Department of State (DoS), data research for the UNDP, and teaching English as a second language through the DoS Fulbright program.
As a compassionate leader, Ms. Hunter-Kysor is driven by a commitment to empower marginalized communities, advocate for social justice, and promote equitable access to essential services through locally led and inclusive approaches.
Gevorg Torosyan
Monitoring, Evaluation, and Learning (MEL) Director
Mr. Torosyan leads one of the firm’s practice areas as the Director of Monitoring, Evaluation, and Learning. He brings 18 years of experience in USAID and other donor-funded project management, evaluation, and consulting roles in more than 15 countries across Europe, Asia, and Africa. Half of his career was dedicated to delivering development consulting assignments in field offices as Project Director, Team Leader, and Policy Advisor in projects funded by USAID, The World Bank, ADB, UNDP, and EU. The remaining half was devoted to managing USAID-funded projects from the corporate headquarters of development consulting firms in the Washington, D.C. area.
Mr. Torosyan’s technical expertise spans a wide range of private sector development topics, such as the improved enabling environment for trade and investment, firm-level competitiveness enhancement, value chain development, and increasing SME access to finance. He also has in-depth knowledge of public sector governance reform issues, including evidence-based decision-making practices, impact assessment schemes, regulatory convergence with international standards, reform of state-owned enterprises in the energy and other infrastructural sectors, anti-corruption, and improved public service delivery via Govtech solutions.
Beyond his extensive project management and advisory work, Mr. Torosyan has a decade of experience in project performance evaluation and monitoring. He has demonstrated his expertise in Monitoring and Evaluation Lead roles at a development consulting firm in Washington, DC, and as an independent Evaluation Team Leader and Principal Evaluator of multiple donor-funded projects in Europe and Asia.
Mr. Torosyan holds a Master of Advanced Studies degree in International Law and Economics from the University of Bern, World Trade Institute, Switzerland. He was also a research fellow at the University of Muenster, Germany, specializing in institutional economics, which led to a Doctor of Economics degree from the Institute of Economic Research. He speaks Armenian and Russian fluently.
Brenda Lee Pearson
Research Director, LEAP III
Ms. Brenda Lee Pearson is the Research Director for the Integra-managed USAID Learning, Evaluation, and Analysis Project (LEAP III) and has served as Team Leader for economic growth performance evaluations in Georgia, Kenya, Ukraine, and USAID’s global programs: CATALYZE, EDGE, US-SEGA, Women’s Economic Empowerment Fund. She served as the gender and social inclusion advisor to USAID/India and Indo-Pacific Strategy from 2020-21. She has been Team Leader for democracy, human rights and governance assessments and political economy analyses in Bosnia Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Guyana, Honduras, Kosovo, Malawi, Romania and Tanzania. She served as global coordinator of nutrition programming for the United Nations World Food Programme, FAO, UNICEF and WHO. Ms. Pearson has provided technical assistance to projects funded by USAID, State Department, Millennium Challenge Corporation, DfID, AustraliaAid, World Bank, and UN agencies in 50 countries, and authored more than 100 articles. Ms. Pearson is the President of Cui Prodest, LLC, a woman-owned small business (www.cuiprodest.org) that partners frequently with Integra. Earlier in her career, she served as Chief of Party in Cambodia, Croatia, Egypt, N. Macedonia, Tanzania and Yemen.
Peter Levine
Business Development and Private Sector Specialist
Mr. Levine is a senior new business, project management and private sector development specialist with over 20 years direct experience in the design, oversight and implementation of complex international technical assistance programs, including extensive work in Latin America, Eastern Europe, Asia and Africa. He is well versed in private sector development, agriculture, land use planning and international best business practices, with a strong track record for facilitating stakeholder relationships for tangible and practical results. He has a proven track record for impact with USAID, MCC, DFID and other donors, working as both a Team Leader, Chief of Party, or key member of a multi-disciplinary team on both innovative projects and winning proposals. Prior experience as Executive or Practice Area lead who helped grow technical, financial and human capital for firms/clients, including leadership of USAID projects valued at between US$25 – $75 million.
Elizabeth Ferris
Migration Expert and Advisor
Elizabeth Ferris is Research Professor with the Institute for the Study of International Migration at Georgetown University’s School of Foreign Service and an adjunct professor in the Georgetown Law School. From January-September 2016, she served as Senior Advisor to the UN General Assembly’s Summit for Refugees and Migrants in New York. She presently serves as an expert advisor to the UN Secretary-General’s High-Level Panel on Internal Displacement.
From 2006-2015, she was a Senior Fellow and co-director of the Brookings-LSE Project on Internal Displacement where she worked to support understanding and protection of internally displaced persons. Prior to joining Brookings, she spent 20 years working in the field of humanitarian assistance, most recently in Geneva, Switzerland at the World Council of Churches. She has also served as the director of the Church World Service’s Immigration and Refugee Program, as research director for the Life & Peace Institute in Uppsala, Sweden and as a Fulbright professor at the Universidad Autónoma de México. Her teaching experience has included positions at Lafayette College, Miami University and Pembroke State University. She has written extensively on refugee, migration and humanitarian issues, including The Politics of Protection: The Limits of Humanitarian Action (Brookings Institution Press, 2011), Consequences of Chaos: Syria’s Humanitarian Crisis and the Failure to Protect, with Kemal Kirsici (Brookings Institution Press, 2016). Her latest book, Refugees, Migration and Global Governance: Negotiating the Global Compacts, with Katharine Donato, was published by Routledge in 2019. She received her BA degree from Duke University and her MA and PhD degrees from the University of Florida.
Quang Phan
Vietnam Country Director
Quang Phan has a 20-year track record of performance in running some of the most impactful projects in Vietnam and in the Mekong Region. These projects range from innovation and technology, sustainable public private policy dialogue and regulatory reform, and trade and investment facilitation. As an out of the box thinker, Quang has good judgement and a good sense of humour. He knows how to turn vision into ideas, and ideas into actions and results. He builds high performing teams and networks.
Quang has served as Integra’s Country Director in Vietnam since 2018 and leads the development and implementation of the USAID funded project in reforming PPP regulations and practices in Vietnam. Working with the home office and USAID/Vietnam, Quang has mobilized a team of international and local experts to work with the Ministry of Planning and Investment, the National Assembly, the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry and the business community on developing the first PPP Law of Vietnam. The team has built the capacity of a public private partnership committee that advocates for good PPP regulations and practices in Vietnam and piloted a PPP pipeline development tool in two provinces.
Theresa Miles Director, Business Operations
Ms. Theresa Miles is Integra’s Director of Business Operations and leads contract administrative management and oversees project operations and financial management. She guides the development of effective project operations and financial standards and operationalizing structures for delivery, risk management, reporting, and forecasting. She is also serving as the Operations Manager for the Integra-managed USAID Learning, Evaluation, and Analysis project (LEAP III), a five-year project that supports USAID globally by providing independent high-quality analytical services; strategy and project design; monitoring and evaluation; training; and knowledge management.
Theresa has 25 years of experience in international development and project management in Africa, Latin America, the Middle East, and South Asia. She has split her career between home office project support and management roles and overseas roles. She excels at organizing and increasing efficiencies by examining operations, analyzing needs, identifying duplication of effort and tailoring policies and procedures to project, organization, and donor requirements.
She has long-term experience in Ghana, Uganda, Madagascar, India, Democratic Republic of Congo and short-term experience in Mexico, Egypt, Mongolia and Tanzania. Theresa holds an MA in International Policy from the Monterey Institute of International Studies and has a general understanding of Spanish and working knowledge of French. Outside of work, she enjoys spending time with her dogs, antiquing, and refurbishing old furniture.
Theresa Miles
Director, Business Operations
Ms. Theresa Miles is Integra’s Director of Business Operations and leads contract administrative management and oversees project operations and financial management. She guides the development of effective project operations and financial standards and operationalizing structures for delivery, risk management, reporting, and forecasting. She is also serving as the Operations Manager for the Integra-managed USAID Learning, Evaluation, and Analysis project (LEAP III), a five-year project that supports USAID globally by providing independent high-quality analytical services; strategy and project design; monitoring and evaluation; training; and knowledge management.
Theresa has 25 years of experience in international development and project management in Africa, Latin America, the Middle East, and South Asia. She has split her career between home office project support and management roles and overseas roles. She excels at organizing and increasing efficiencies by examining operations, analyzing needs, identifying duplication of effort and tailoring policies and procedures to project, organization, and donor requirements.
She has long-term experience in Ghana, Uganda, Madagascar, India, Democratic Republic of Congo and short-term experience in Mexico, Egypt, Mongolia and Tanzania. Theresa holds an MA in International Policy from the Monterey Institute of International Studies and has a general understanding of Spanish and working knowledge of French. Outside of work, she enjoys spending time with her dogs, antiquing, and refurbishing old furniture.
Penelope Norton
Associate
Penelope is an Associate at Integra, where she supports a variety of USAID and MCC-funded projects. She has more than five years of experience in operations and project management and provides backstopping support on activities. Responsibilities include managing activity budgets, providing logistical support, recruiting, contracts, and travel preparations. Other experience includes data collection, program evaluation, quality assurance, and two years of program implementation in Guatemala.
Penelope holds an MS in Conflict Analysis and Resolution from George Mason University with a concentration in Prevention, Reconstruction and Stabilization, and a BA in International Affairs from James Madison University. When not working, Penelope enjoys international travel or camping in the amazing US National Parks.
Kethi Mullei
Learning and Evaluation Director
Kethi Mullei is a social researcher and qualitative analyst with over 15 years of experience working in development in Sub-Saharan Africa, primarily East Africa. Her most recent long-term position was with the BMGF CIFF & Hewlett – funded program, HCDExchange, serving as the Learning Lead. She recently joined Integra as Learning and Evaluation Director to support the USAID/Kenya & East Africa Mission.
Kethi is a passionate learner and researcher with a background in global public health and a keen interest in generating evidence on the value of applying simple, replicable yet rigorous human-centered and action-oriented methodologies for optimal application in improving the quality of global health interventions and outcomes in the Global South. She brings a great wealth of experience in health policy analysis & development, protocol & product development (learning agendas, practical guidance), literature/ desk reviews, knowledge management, and application of participatory and one-to-one learning methods in practice (e.g., capturing success stories, appreciative inquiry (AI), outcome harvesting). Having worked for 15 years collaborating with various stakeholders—civil society, research institutions, private sector, and funders/donors—she is an eager contributor to the broad field of global health.
Sarah Eissler
Evaluation Specialist
Sarah is an evaluation specialist with broad international experience designing, implementing, and analyzing mixed-methods research and evaluation projects addressing issues in agriculture, food security and nutrition, climate change, women’s empowerment, and the environment. Sarah currently works as an independent consultant to lead and support mixed-method evaluations for USAID, UN Agencies, The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, among others. She has supported several Integra activities under the LEAP III project as a data analytics and research design specialist with specific attention to the design and analysis of qualitative data. Recently, she has supported a strategic review of USAID’s Partnering to Accelerate Entrepreneurship (PACE) Initiative, a portfolio performance evaluation of the former USAID Women’s Global Development and Prosperity (W-GDP) Initiative, a strategic review of USAID’s Development Innovation Ventures (DIV) program, and evaluations and assessments in Egypt and Ukraine. She has a dual Ph.D. in Rural Sociology and Human Dimensions of Natural Resources and the Environment, and dual M.S. degrees in Rural Sociology and International Agriculture and Development from Penn State University.
Meziane Menasria
Associate
Meziane is an Associate at Integra, where he supports the MCC-funded Togo project and several other USAID projects. He brings more than seven years of experience working for a global K-12 education non-profit organization where he contributed project management, business intelligence, team management, budget tracking, and recruiting. He is a fluent French speaker and conversational in Spanish and Polish. He holds a BA in Government & Politics from the University of Maryland, College Park. In his free time, he enjoys watching club and international football (soccer) and hiking in the great outdoors.
Julienne Kaman
Technical Advisor – Papua New Guinea
Julienne Kaman serves as the Technical Advisor in Papua New Guinea (PNG) under USAID’s Asia Emerging Opportunities mechanism. Ms. Kaman has spent more than 30 years in the teaching profession, researching and doing consultancies in several PNG universities. She has taken short-term consultancies with the PNG Government and Governments of other Pacific Island countries, namely the Republic of Nauru. Ms. Kaman has also worked with international organizations such as UNICEF, UNDP, UNESCO, and the Incentive Fund Program of the Australian Government and with international nongovernment organizations in the country, namely, Save the Children Fund and Asia Pacific Bureau of Adult Education (ASPBAE) and with local companies such as Tanorama. As a certified and experienced teacher in PNG, Ms. Kaman has also written several contextualized textbooks in the Social Sciences for teachers and students to use at all levels of education in PNG.
Mrs. Hoang Anh
Business Environment Sustainability and Transformation (BEST) Director – Vietnam
Mrs. Hoang Anh Do serves as the Business Environment Sustainability and Transformation (BEST) Director in Vietnam under USAID’s Asia Emerging Opportunities mechanism. Before joining Integra, Mrs. Anh Do had experience holding several positions in the developing world and private sector. She served as Deputy Project Director of USAID/Vietnam Competitiveness Initiative (VNCI), leading three impactful initiatives, including 1) Administrative Procedures Reform of the Government of Vietnam (known as Project 30) by the Office of the Government, 2) Regulatory Impact Assessment (RIA) for Ministry of Justice and other stakeholders, 3) Public Private Partnership under Ministry of Planning and Investment, and 4) Provincial Competitiveness Index (PCI) with Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI).
She also worked on legal and economic reform in the USAID/Sustaining Technical and Analytical Resources (STAR) project, which helped the State Bank of Vietnam, the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Planning and Investment, the Ministry of Industry and Trade, the Ministry of Post and Telematics, the State Audit, different committees of the National Assembly to overwrite Vietnamese legal framework to implement Vietnam commitments under the US-Vietnam Bilateral Trade Agreement.
In the private sector, she established and chaired health tech, agri-tech, and logistics companies. Her vast experience and network in Government and private sector are valuable for her work to accelerate the transformation of Vietnam’s business environment and sustainability.
Brenna Casey
Program and Business Development Manager
Brenna is a Program and Business Development Manager at Integra. She brings five years of experience in various project management and technical capacities across the USAID and MCC portfolios. Programmatic responsibilities include leading and providing task order oversight and support on contracts, recruitment, budgets, client and subcontractor relations, reporting, and quality assurance. Business development roles include strategic planning and pipeline development, market research, partner and proposal coordination, staffing, technical writing, and compliance. Technical capabilities include research and data analysis, including sectoral, political economy, and landscape assessments; performance evaluations; and trainings, workshops, and knowledge management engagements.
Brenna has managed several activities under Asia Emerging Opportunities (AEO) and the Learning, Evaluation, and Analysis Project (LEAP III), including the USAID/Middle East Bureau’s multi-year $1.7+ million buy-in for private sector engagement (PSE). This activity supported the co-creation and implementation of PSE Action Plans for the Bureau and Operating Units in the region, including Bureau and Mission learning events, remote and in-person private sector outreach, Private Sector Landscape Assessments (PSLAs), and a report on PSE opportunities coming from the Gulf region. She supports the kickoff of the USAID Europe and Eurasia Monitoring, Evaluation, Learning, and Decision Support (EE/MELDS) and MCC Economic Analysis BPA contracts.
Ms. Casey holds a MA in Political Economy from Georgetown University and a BA in Foreign Affairs from the University of Virginia. She earned an advanced certificate in Political Economy from the ULB Solvay School of Economics and Management in Brussels, Belgium, and a project management certification from the University of Virginia. She is also certified in project management by the Project Management Institute (PMI). Additional professional experience includes a graduate internship with the Development Finance Corporation and health policy consulting in Alexandria, Virginia.
Eleanor Roberts
Associate
Eleanor is an Associate at Integra, supporting the USAID-funded Asia Emerging Opportunities task order. She assists in managing and backstopping projects, including planning, organizing, coordinating, program execution, and monitoring. Responsibilities include project reporting, budget tracking, and analysis, research and data analysis, assisting with project recruitment, ensuring contractual compliance, and providing administrative support as needed. Additionally, Eleanor assists in developing communications materials for the firm, including authoring content for Integra’s website.
Before Integra, Eleanor worked at Meridian International Center as a Program Associate implementing the International Visitor Leadership Program (IVLP) — the U.S. Department of State’s premier professional exchange. She holds a B.A. in Political Science and History from Denison University in Granville, Ohio.
Kate Fehlenberg
Director of Scaling Innovations
Kate Fehlenberg is an international development professional with over 20 years of experience across a dozen countries. She has designed, managed, scaled, and evaluated small and multi-million dollar programs in Public Health, Agriculture and Gender. With deep experience in coalition building, systematic assessments of new technologies, and strengthening local systems, Kate is uniquely skilled in Scaling sustainable solutions. Kate has worked for NGOs, researchers, and donors at headquarters and the field in over a dozen countries across Asia and Africa; sat on donor and fundraising committees; run hundreds of workshops, and trained and led teams in numerous countries. In her last overseas assignment (2015-2019), Kate managed a $15M USAID food security project across six countries in Africa. She established the SeedAssure Alliance, a public-private coalition to digitize commercial value chains in Africa to improve Ag technologies accessible to millions of farmers. She currently works with Integra as Director of Scaling Innovations, leading assessments of development investments for their market impact and sustainability potential. Kate has an MPH in Population in Family Health and Complex Emergencies from Columbia University, a Master’s in Civil Engineering from Ga Tech, and a Bachelor’s degree in Environmental Science from Samford University.
Paul Dodds
Enabling Environment Expert
Paul Dodds has a JD and over 25 years of experience in development consulting with MCC, USAID, DFID, the World Bank, AUS DFAT and ADB in over 15 countries. He has extensive expertise in legal analysis, policy reform and commercial due diligence, and experience working in AgCLIR analyses in varying capacities, with specific engagements for MCC in Tunisia, Philippines and Benin. In his AgCLIR work for USAID in Liberia, he focused on exploring the possible impacts of regulations restricting access to fresh markets for smallholder farmers and women traders.
Most recently, Paul brought technical expertise to the Integra team working in Bangladesh helping to design a support program for food safety and nutrition, and also on a detailed review of the new Vietnamese public private partnership law, providing background information to encourage the donor support needed for the law to succeed.
Paul studied Economics at Columbia and graduated from Harvard Law School. He spent the first decade of his professional career as a corporate lawyer and general counsel in Boston. He is now based in Little Rock, Arkansas where he owns and manages a growing portfolio of investments in renovated historic homes as his primary occupation. He speaks fluent German, serviceable French, Spanish and Russian and some Khmer.
Cynthia Mallory
Controller, Business Operations
Ms. Mallory has spent 20 years working with international development consulting firms. She currently serves as Integra’s Controller, and also manages Business Operations for the firm. She is an award-winning United State Air Force retiree who worked in forward locations during Operation Desert Storm and Desert Shield. She provided aid to supply officers, transportation commanders, fighter pilots and many more.
Liesl Kim
Operations Specialist
Liesl has been an Associate at Integra for nearly two years, providing project management and operations support for USAID-funded projects. She serves as the lead Associate on the Learning, Evaluation, and Analysis (LEAP III) Project, spearheading reporting mechanisms. She manages many aspects from activity start up to close, including drafting concept notes and work plans; recruiting and managing consultants; tracking budgets; organizing field work logistics; reporting on findings; and designing infographics/presentations to disseminate lessons learned. Liesl also provides support to the Asia Emerging Opportunities (AEO) Project and has worked on more than 30 unique activities, serving as the Operations Lead on 16 activities to date. She has also contributed to performance evaluations, such as the evaluations of the USAID/OFDA LAC Regional Disaster Assistance Program and the Power Africa Transactions and Reforms Program. Prior to joining Integra, she interned at the Asian Development Bank North American Representative Office, assisting in outreach efforts with stakeholders and partner organizations.
She holds an MA in International Development Studies from the Elliott School of International Affairs, George Washington University and a BA in Political Science and International Studies from Pepperdine University. She is a 5th degree black belt in Taekwondo and attributes the global sport as first attracting her to the realm of international relations.
Kaitlyn Turner
Data Analytics Manager
Kaitlyn leads Integra’s quantitative analysis and data collection work as the Data Analytics Manager. Prior to joining the Integra team in 2020, she worked in both project management, and programming and analysis of impact evaluations for a number of research-focused non-profit organizations. She has experience designing evaluation plans, managing quantitative data collection work, performing data analysis using Stata, and developing reports and other dissemination tools for internal and external stakeholders. She has spent the last three years living in Nairobi, Kenya and working throughout East Africa. She has worked in many sectors including global health, agriculture, and digital financial inclusion.
Ruta Aidis
Gender and Economic Development Advisor
Dr. Ruta Aidis is a leading expert in gender and economic development. She has more than 25 years of experience teaching, researching, consulting and publishing in the area of gender, women’s economic empowerment, entrepreneurship, innovation, institutional development and public policy. She is an award-winning author with over 50 published articles, books and reports. Dr. Aidis has conducted multiple gender-related assessments and consultancies for USAID and other international donor agencies. In 2019, she led USAID’s first global gender analysis of the recycling and waste management sector piloting both the Women’s Economic Empowerment and Equality (WE3) toolkit and recommendations for Women’s Global Development and Prosperity (W-GDP) initiatives.
As part of the LEAP III program, Dr. Aidis is serving as the deputy team lead for USAID’s portfolio performance evaluation (PPE) of the Women’s Global Development and Prosperity (W-GDP) initiative’s Round 1 funded activities. Previously she acted as the team lead for the 2020 Strategic Review of USAID’s Partnering to Accelerate Entrepreneurship (PACE) initiative.
Dr. Aidis is also a Senior Fellow at the Schar School for Policy and Government, George Mason University and founder of ACG Inc. She holds a PhD in Economics from the University of Amsterdam, an MA in International Development from the Institute for Social Studies and a BA from the University of Maryland.
Tim Schur
Chief Executive Officer
Timothy Schur is leading the company into the future by building on a foundation laid by Bob Otto, the founder of the firm in 2010. With more than 30 years of experience in advisory and consulting services, Timothy has filled wide-ranging roles in corporate finance, strategy and innovation, impact investment, business development, and business practice leadership. For the last decade he has been supporting International Development programs and investments for the United States, United Kingdom, and Australian governments as well as direct investments by governments across the Middle East, Africa and Asia. Throughout his career, Timothy has been a champion for performance-based contracting, impact investment and capital mobilization, systems enablement and knowledge sharing through technology, and program designs that result in durable solutions for economic independence.
Leading Integra is a return to the small business roots of Timothy’s career where client centric, nimble business solutions deliver impact for the investment stakeholders, beneficiaries and the individuals applying their expertise and experience to delivery. From a vantage point versed in traditional international development investors, cognizant of the capital constraints, and grounded in results measurement as the key to enduring impact; Timothy is positioning Integra as a key resource for government, private sector, and NGO clients seeking to capture and enhance both the financial and social return on their investments into emerging economies.
Robert Otto
Founder
Mr. Otto has more than 25 years of experience in international development and project management. He is highly experienced in providing consulting services and managing complex projects in private sector development, economic restructuring, and institutional development. Earlier in his career, Mr. Otto served as Chief Private Sector Officer, Financial Analyst, Project Development Officer, and Chief Environment Officer for the US Agency for International Development. Mr. Otto holds a MS in Management from MIT and a MS in Technology of Management from American University.
David Quinn
Chief Technical Officer
Mr. David Quinn is Integra’s Chief Technical Officer, where he oversees all company projects and activities. He has 15 years of experience working in international development projects and specializes in managing multiple-country, multiple-activity, mechanisms.
Currently, he serves as the Chief of Party for the Integra-managed USAID Learning, Evaluation and Analysis project (LEAP III), a five-year project that supports USAID globally by providing independent high-quality analytical services; strategy and project design; monitoring and evaluation; training; and knowledge management.
Mr. Quinn has conducted over 80 assignments across 23 countries. His technical expertise includes economic growth, policy and enabling environment reform, private sector engagement (PSE), and public-private partnerships (PPPs). In addition to his passion for international development (and Integra), he is an avid Liverpool Football Club fan.
Deanna Gordon
Director, Development Analytics
Dr. Gordon is Director of Development Analytics, as well as Chief of Party for the Asia Emerging Opportunities mechanism at Integra. She is an Agricultural Economist with a long track record in international development. Prior to joining the Integra team, she was with USAID as a Foreign Service Officer from 2005-2019. Her expertise is rooted in monitoring and evaluation, quantitative and mixed methods analysis, and impact evaluation. She has served in a variety of positions at USAID, including as Senior Agriculture and Food Security Advisor for USAID/BFS, Senior Monitoring and Evaluation Advisor at USAID/FFP, and Office Director for the Office of Economic Growth at USAID/DRC. She speaks French, Spanish, and Portuguese with professional proficiency and holds a Ph.D. in Agricultural and Resource Economics from UC Berkeley.
Kent Ford
Director, Private Sector Engagement (PSE)
Kent Ford is a pioneering international development professional with over 25 years of experience in successfully leading and delivering a range of private sector-focused programs in emerging and developing markets. Under the Learning, Evaluation and Analysis Project III (LEAP III), Kent leads Integra’s Middle East Private Sector Engagement Activity supporting the adoption of USAID’s Private Sector Engagement (PSE) Policy in the USAID/Middle East Bureau and associated Missions. This includes inter alia, writing a Strategic Vision for the Middle East Bureau, leading the development of a ThinkPiece envisioning the future of PSE in the MENA region, developing and leading monthly training webinars widely broadcasted throughout MENA and USAID/Washington, and creating an actionable approach to engaging the private sector in the work of USAID.
Kent has broad and proven strategic management and leadership experience as well as economic, political and cultural understanding from having worked in nearly 60 countries. Mr. Ford is a two-time entrepreneur, most recently as co-founder and Managing Director of Global Development Solutions, where he directed the establishment, growth and leadership of a global network of staff and consultants spanning four continents.
Kent co-developed the integrated value chain and market analysis methodology used by the World Bank, Asian Development Bank and sovereign governments to rigorously analyze agriculture and non-agriculture value chains to determine areas where foreign and domestic investment, access to finance and technical intervention would enhance the competitive position of entire market systems. He designed and spearheaded regional Trade and Investment initiatives by bringing together governments, private sector actors, NGOs, municipalities and development agencies—an innovative approach designed help businesses access new markets leading to millions of dollars in trade, investment, and market linkages. He has spent a total of eight years living in, working on and leading in-country private sector development project teams in the West Bank/Gaza, Albania, Kosovo, Nigeria and Uganda.
David Townsend
ICT Sector Advisor
Mr. Townsend is an international expert in ICT policy and economics and the leader of GBI’s Universal Service and Access Fund Support Program. For more than 25 years, Mr. Townsend has been a leading contributor to the evolution of the communications sector worldwide, and has advised governments in more than 40 countries on economic issues and policy options for ICTs. He has been one of the pioneers in the design of Universal Service Funds in numerous countries, and has worked extensively with the World Bank and the UN, among others.
Kimberly Hamilton
Director of Operations, MCC / Business Development Manager
Having joined Integra in 2012, Kimberly has provided technical and operational support for over 20 projects at the firm over the past decade. Currently, she serves as the Director of Operations for Integra’s Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) portfolio, working alongside technical staff and MCC representatives to ensure projects and deliverables meet client expectations and contractual requirements. She also serves the dual role of Business Development Manager, working directly with the CEO and CTO to pursue, manage, and execute partnerships and proposal efforts. This includes potential opportunities with a variety of USG-funded clients such as USAID, MCC, and the World Bank, among others.
Kimberly also provides operational and technical support on projects. This includes her current role as Operations Manager and Researcher for USAID’s performance evaluation of the U.S. Women’s Global Development and Prosperity Initiative, the first government-wide effort to advance women’s economic empowerment. She also provides operational oversight of Integra’s two-year-long engagement with USAID to support Vietnam’s development and implementation of public-private partnerships. In previous positions, she conducted field research for a variety of agricultural, M&E, and political economy activities, mostly in Southeast Asia and East Africa. Her favorite assignment to date was conducting field research for an agricultural market assessment in the Philippines for MCC, specifically focused on the value and supply chains of processed mango products. In addition to interviewing and analyzing data from smallholder farmers, mango traders, and exporters to inform MCC’s investments, mango tastings were a nice perk of the job.
Pin Thanesnant
Director of Operations, USAID Portfolio
Ms. Ganyapak (Pin) Thanesnant currently serves as the Director of Operations for Integra’s USAID portfolio. She brings ten years of experience in project management and operations, resource mobilization, and policy and market assessments, specifically in areas of food security and the business enabling environment. She has managed projects and implemented reform efforts across twenty countries in Africa and Asia. She oversees all operations and finances of Integra’s flagship contracts: USAID’s Learning, Evaluation, and Analysis Project III (LEAP III) and USAID’s Asia Emerging Opportunities (AEO). Under both contracts, she ensures rapid responses to rigorous, independent, and high-quality analytical services to USAID.
In just three years of LEAP III, Pin has managed over 50 activities across 30 countries and multiple sectors. In addition to project management, she also provides technical support on activities—most recently, serving as the Policy Expert for USAID’s Bangladesh Agriculture Policy Assessment, as well as the Evaluation Expert conducting an ex-post evaluation of USAID/Zambia’s Production, Finance, and Improved Technology Plus (PROFIT+) program and a mid-term evaluation of USAID/Belarus’ I3 program.
Prior to joining Integra, Ms. Thanesnant worked with Heifer International, managing all funding efforts in East Asia and Southern/East African countries through donor relations, contractual negotiations, and development and review of technical and cost proposals. Prior to this, she worked at Fintrac, Inc., where she was responsible for providing analytical services under USAID’s EAT Project. Pin holds an MA in Public Anthropology and International Development from American University and a BA in International Studies from the University of Richmond.
Brenna Casey
Operations Specialist
Brenna Casey joined Integra as an Associate in November 2018. She performs project backstopping for USAID and Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) projects, including but not limited to development of SOWs/concept notes; consultant recruitment and contracting; budget development, reporting and analysis; quality assurance and contractual compliance; travel coordination and logistics; project reporting; and project launch and close out activities. Other responsibilities include contributing to technical desk research and report writing. She also supports new business development, including responding to SSNs and RFIs, and past performance write ups, RFP/RFQ compliance, recruiting and personnel matrices, and coordination with partners and preparation of teaming agreements and cost information for proposals.
Brenna also currently serves as Private Sector Engagement (PSE) Specialist under Integra’s PSE practice area. She serves as Operations Lead for a $1.5M+ PSE Activity under the USAID LEAP III contract, where she works with a team of 12+ consultants in the co-creation and implementation of PSE Action Plans for the Middle East Bureau and nine Operating Units in the region. Activities include Bureau and Mission workshops and trainings, a listening tour, development of Mission PSE portfolio reviews and integration analyses, a PSE thought piece, and remote and in-person private sector outreach. Under this activity, she participated in a 2-week field visit across four cities in Morocco and interviewed private sector actors representing five key sectors, as well as 1-week of PSE brainstorming sessions with USAID/Egypt staff in Cairo for their PSE Action Plan and CDCS. Her favorite experience to date was leading the PSE brainstorming session with the Basic Education technical team in Cairo. As PSE Specialist, Ms. Casey has also provided technical support to the USAID/Egypt 2020 Private Sector Landscape Assessment (PSLA).
Ms. Casey holds a BA in Foreign Affairs and Psychology and a minor in Religous Studies (Islam) from the University of Virginia. She is professionally certified in Project Management from the University of Virginia and the Project Management Institute. She is currently applying to pursue her graduate studies in Washington, D.C. In her free time she loves reading a good book on the Rappahannock River in Urbanna, Virginia.
Ms. Cazier serves as an Associate at Integra, providing project management support for the USAID LEAP III and AEO projects, as well as business development support for new opportunities. Prior to joining Integra, Isabella worked on the Programs team at World Learning, managing international youth exchange programs across the Americas. She has worked extensively in Latin America on youth development programs, and credits this opportunity with shaping her interest in international affairs. Isabella is PMI certified, and holds an MA in International Affairs and Development from The George Washington University, and a BA in Anthropology and Russian Literature from Trinity University in San Antonio, Texas.
Isabella started at Integra in February 2020, and has worked on a range of projects, including the Tiger Matters Knowledge Management events which coincided with World Wildlife Day, the assessment of Democracy, Rights and Governance in the Pacific Islands region and the Mid-Term Evaluation of USAID/Rwanda’s Hinga Weze program. Working at a small business like Integra means that employees have the opportunity to develop professional skills very quickly, and the expertise on the team always leads to fascinating conversations around the virtual lunch table.
Isabella moved around a lot growing up, living in four countries before moving to the United States for college.
Ganyapak (Pin) Thanesnant Director of Operations
Ms. Ganyapak (Pin) Thanesnant currently serves as the Director of Operations for Integra’s USAID portfolio. She brings ten years of experience in project management and operations, resource mobilization, and policy and market assessments, specifically in areas of food security and the business enabling environment. She has managed projects and implemented reform efforts across twenty countries in Africa and Asia. She oversees all operations and finances of Integra’s flagship contracts: USAID’s Learning, Evaluation, and Analysis Project III (LEAP III) and USAID’s Asia Emerging Opportunities (AEO). Under both contracts, she ensures rapid responses to rigorous, independent, and high-quality analytical services to USAID.
In just three years of LEAP III, Pin has managed over 50 activities across 30 countries and multiple sectors. In addition to project management, she also provides technical support on activities—most recently, serving as the Policy Expert for USAID’s Bangladesh Agriculture Policy Assessment, as well as the Evaluation Expert conducting an ex-post evaluation of USAID/Zambia’s Production, Finance, and Improved Technology Plus (PROFIT+) program and a mid-term evaluation of USAID/Belarus’ I3 program.
Prior to joining Integra, Ms. Thanesnant worked with Heifer International, managing all funding efforts in East Asia and Southern/East African countries through donor relations, contractual negotiations, and development and review of technical and cost proposals. Prior to this, she worked at Fintrac, Inc., where she was responsible for providing analytical services under USAID’s EAT Project.
Pin holds an MA in Public Anthropology and International Development from American University and a BA in International Studies from the University of Richmond. While Ms. Thanesnant has spent over eight years in Washington, D.C., she was raised in six countries before coming to the United States to pursue her undergraduate degree. She is fluent in Thai and English, and conversational in French. She enjoys cooking, swimming, and going on hikes with her German Shepherd, Havana. More details can be found here.
