board of directors

Nafisa Al-Jaifi

A Pediatrician and Assistant Professor at Sana'a University in Yemen, Dr. Nafisa Hamoud Al-Jaifi initiated the WRA-affiliated National Safe Motherhood Alliance in Yemen and now serves as its Chair. She also currently serves as General Secretary for the Higher Council for Motherhood & Childhood and Vice Chairman of the Yemen Pediatric Association. Nafisa served as a member of the Yemeni delegation to the United Nations Committee on Child Rights. Previously, she worked as Director for the World Bank's Child Development Project. Nafisa's work has been recognized with an award from the President of Yemen for her contributions to the National Strategy for Childhood and Youth, and she recently received an award from the Ministry of Youth and Sports for her support of youth issues.

Arzu Rana Deuba

Dr. Arzu Rana Deuba is Founder and President of the WRA-affiliated Safe Motherhood Network Federation (SMNF) in Nepal, which has been successful in raising awareness about maternal mortality in Nepal and has seen significant progress in decreasing the maternal mortality ratio. Under her leadership, SMNF has grown from a group of 35 individuals and organizations to a Federation of 625 NGOs. As President of SMNF, Arzu took the lead in finalizing a bill on Safe Motherhood in Nepal. She also serves as a Board Member of the Poverty Alleviation Fund. Arzu has a Ph.D in organizational psychology from Punjab University. She has extensive fundraising experience with bilateral and multilateral donors as well as the national government and private sector in Nepal, including with the European Commission, UNFPA, DFID, USAID, ADRA, BNMT, and the Ministry of Health and Population.

Ronald Geary

Ronald F Geary, CPA, MBA is presently the CFO and Treasurer of Jhpiego, an affiliate of Johns Hopkins University and a 501(c)(3) organization dedicated to innovating ways to saving lives. Prior to joining Jhpiego, he was the Deputy Chief Financial Officer for CHF International for almost three years, a 501(c)(3) organization of over $300,000,000 in revenue. At CHF International, Ron led the successful design of a new financial accounting system and other systems in a period of rapid double-digit growth. Over a 30 year career Ron has gained extensive experience in training commercial and not-for-profits in grants and contract management as well as assessment, selection and implementation of accounting software. He has also served and worked closely with and reported to Boards of Directors. His work with government, international and domestic organizations has provided him with hands-on experience working with various organizations in over 25 countries.

Kathy Herschderfer

Kathy's interest and involvement in women's health began in 1973 as a community organizer working with underserved and poor populations, leading to her lifelong commitment to maternal and newborn health. She became a midwife in 1981 and has more than 20 years of clinical experience in community midwifery. Kathy also has experience in health education and midwifery training. She later combined midwifery with a research position concentrating in the areas of prevention of postpartum hemorrhage, postnatal care and international collaborations. From 2003 to 2008 Kathy served as the Secretary General of the International Confederation of Midwives and, representing the midwifery profession in the international arena, she worked to advocate for capacity building in maternal, newborn and child health and strong collaboration between health care professionals at the national level. During this period she also worked closely with the White Ribbon Alliance and facilitated capacity building workshops for National Alliances. Kathy has consulted for U.N. agencies, private foundations and international development organizations. Since 2008, Kathy works as freelance international advisor and consultant in maternal and newborn health on technical issues, policy and planning, and research and evaluation.

Marjorie Koblinsky

Dr. Marge Koblinsky's has pursued her interest in ensuring safe quality accessible care for women and their newborns while in the employ of many different organizations: Director of MotherCare for 12 years, of NGO Network for Health for 2 years, with IMMPACT for 2 years and now with the International Centre for Diarrhoeal Disease Research, Bangladesh (ICDDR,B) as Director of the Public Health Sciences Division. Her specialty is maternal health and mortality about which she has written and lectured extensively. She has also organized and provided technical leadership for projects in over 25 countries, led international and technical meetings, and nurtured collaborative relations with other interested agencies, research institutions and individuals. For such activities she was honored with the World Health Day Award of the American Association of World Health in 1998.

Gwyneth Lewis

A distinguished public health doctor, author and consistent and vocal advocate for improvements in global maternal health, Gwyneth Lewis OBE has helped develop maternal death audits leading to safer motherhood programmes in over 50 countries for many leading international organisations. She has over 34 years experience in clinical work and policy development and managerial experience at the Department of Health for England, where she is currently the Director for International Maternal Health. She is also the Director of International Research at the National Perinatal Epidemiology Unit and the University of Oxford and has been the director of the UK Confidential Enquiries into Maternal Deaths for the past 23 years. She is a Fellow of both the Royal College and the American College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists and also of the Faculty of Public Health at the Royal College of Physicians. She has received a number of Doctorates from distinguished universities and is a visiting professor at the Faculty of Health Sciences and Midwifery at the University of Bournemouth. She is perhaps best known internationally for her work on the World Health Organization “Beyond the Numbers” programme to review maternal deaths and disabilities to make pregnancy safer, which has been rolled out into over 64 countries. She has widespread Board experience and currently acts as an advisor to many international safe motherhood organisations as well as serving on the Board of the African Journal of Midwifery. In 2009, Queen Elizabeth 11 awarded Gwyneth the honour of Officer of the Order of the British Empire in recognition of her contribution to national and international maternal health.

Godfrey M. Mbaruku

Dr. Godfrey Mbaruku is currently working towards Millennium Development Goals 4 and 5 at the Ifakara Health Research Institute in Tanzania. His specialty is Obstetrics and Gynecology with 30-years experience as a medical doctor. Since 2004, he has served as Vice President of the National OBGYN Society (AGOTA). Beyond clinical settings, he has served as a project director, and a supervisor of the health system. His initiatives led to collaboration with various organizations such as Venture Strategies for the management of postpartum hemorrhage, the World Lung Foundation for the construction of staff houses and operation theatres of health centers, and Engenderhealth for a male sterilization (vasectomy) project. He has received awards from Hillary Clinton's Foundation and FIGO community Service.

Maria T. Nagorski

A professional manager, trainer and program developer, Ms. Nagorski has more than 25 years of experience in social justice, advocacy, international development and youth empowerment. Her areas of expertise include strategic planning and organization development, program start-up and design, leadership and management training, partnership and team building, resource development, evaluation, and management of international and multicultural teams and projects. She is fluent in Polish and has worked extensively in Poland, as well as on short-term assignments in Bhutan, Botswana, China, Egypt, Ethiopia, Ghana, Italy, India, Panama, Uganda, Zambia and the Republic of Georgia.

Sean O'Connor

Sean O'Connor joined CCS in 1994 and currently serves as Operational Vice President of the firm. He has 17 years of experience working with non-governmental organizations, academic medical centers, trade associations, private colleges, national museums, and cultural institutions. He has assisted clients with fund raising management, major gift training, organizational development, development assessments, and campaign planning and implementation.

A partial list of organizations Sean has served or is currently serving:

• Wildlife Conservation Society, Bronx, NY
• Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, Washington, DC
• New York City Center, New York, NY
• Paley Center for Media, New York, NY
• Orpheus Chamber Orchestra, New York, NY
• Maria Fareri Children's Hospital, Valhalla, NY
• Animal Rescue Fund of the Hamptons, Wainscott, NY
• The Food Marketing Institute Foundation, Washington, D.C.
• The Brookings Institution, Washington, DC
• The International Accounting Standards Committee Foundation, London, England
• Weill Medical College of Cornell University, New York, NY
• NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital, New York, NY
• Albert Einstein College of Medicine, New York, NY
• Nigeria Higher Education Foundation, New York, NY
• Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, Cold Spring Harbor, NY
• Business Leaders for Sensible Priorities, Burlington, VT

He has a degree in History from Holy Cross College (B.A.) and currently lives in Westchester County, New York, with his wife and two children.

Sean is on the board of A-HOME, a non-profit affordable housing developer in Bedford, NY., The Nigeria Higher Education Foundation and the White Ribbon Alliance in Washington D.C.

Beatrice Rwakimari

Beatrice Rwakimari has been serving as a Member of Parliament in Uganda for nine years and currently serves as Chair of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on HIV/AIDS and member of the Parliamentary Social Services Committee, which oversees the Ministries of Health and Education. She is also Founder and Director of ARISE, an NGO that focuses on improving reproductive health, preventing and controlling HIV/AIDS and malaria, and promoting good nutrition in the rural communities of Ntungamo District. Beatrice is a champion for safe motherhood both in Parliament and within her constituency; she has lobbied the government to increase funding for reproductive health, and she has secured equipment from various organizations, including Rotary Clubs, to facilitate safe delivery in lower level health centers. She is a volunteer for Reproductive Health Uganda and Publicity Secretary and Activist for the Advocacy Forum for Women Members of Parliament on Maternal Health. Beatrice holds a Masters degree in Public Health Leadership from Uganda Christian University and a Masters in Public Administration and Management from Makerere University.

Theresa Shaver
Director, White Ribbon Alliance for Safe Motherhood, Global Secretariat--Washington, DC USA

Theresa Shaver is a nurse-midwife and has over 20 years of experience in international health program management and implementation, focused primarily on maternal and reproductive health. She is currently the Director of the White Ribbon Alliance for Safe Motherhood (WRA) Global Secretariat. As Director, Ms. Shaver serves as the spokesperson for the WRA, provides technical assistance in community mobilization, capacity building, advocacy and maternal health to WRA National Secretariats and members. She also leads all fundraising efforts and is responsible for WRA administrative and financial management. She has provided technical assistance and worked throughout Cambodia, Ethiopia, Fiji, India, Malawi, Tanzania, Tajikistan, Vietnam, and Zambia.

Lyn Thomas

Lyn Thomas held various posts in the International Planned Parenthood Federation (IPPF), where she worked from 1980 to 2010. These posts have been administrative, programmatic and managerial, initially with an emphasis on reproductive health programme development in Southern Europe. Her appointment as Europe Regional Director in 1990 coincided with the political changes that occurred throughout Eastern and Central Europe and the USSR, and from that time until 2002, she worked to establish non-governmental organisations in more than 20 countries in this region, with a specific emphasis on Romania and Russia. As the Regional Director, she undertook extensive consultations and negotiations with Ministers of Health and Education, government officials and health professionals, motivating them to provide support, leadership and to also volunteer their time to Member Associations. Ms. Thomas has been a technical consultant to the United Kingdom Department for International Development on reproductive health programmes in Russia, and she was a member of the World Health Organisation Europe Regional Advisory Panel and on the Editorial Board of the World Health Organisation Europe’s Entre Nous magazine. In 2002, she was appointed to the position of Deputy Director General of the IPPF, based in its Central Office in London. She was the Chief Operations Officer of the Federation, responsible for finance and human resources, and she established the Safe Abortion Action Fund. In July 2009, she also took on the role of Director of Operations Division of the Central Office, overseeing the work of the Five ‘A’ (Adolescents/Advocacy/AIDS/Abortion and Access) teams and resource mobilisation