Dr. Andrew John Bennett, CMG

Andrew Bennett is President of the Tropical Agricultural Association (UK). He is Chair of the Boards of Trustees of the Centre for International Forestry Research and of the SciDev.Net and a Trustee of the International Baccalaureate Organisation (UK). He is a member of the Executive Board of the Generation Challenge Programme - CGIAR. He is a Director of the Syngenta Foundation for Sustainable Agriculture, and of the Doyle Foundation. He was Director: Rural Livelihoods and Environment for the British Department for International Development where he was responsible for professional advice on policy and programmes in the fields of livelihoods, natural resources, environment, sustainable development and research. He has over 40 years experience in international development and disaster management, having worked in development programmes in Africa, Asia, Latin America, the Pacific and the Caribbean. He also has extensive experience of international negotiations on natural resources, research, environment and development.

Dr. Benchaphun Shinawatra Ekasingh

Dr. Ekasingh holds a B.C.A in Commerce and Administration and an M.P.P in Public Policy from Vitoria University of Wellington, New Zealand and a Ph.D. in Agricultural Economics from Michigan State University, U.S.A.

She began her carrier as the Head of the Department of Agricultural Economic, Faculty of Agriculture, Chiang Mai University, Thailand in 1992.
She serves as the Associate Professor from 1997 until now and the Head of the Department of Agricultural Economic, Faculty of Agriculture, Chiang Mai University, Thailand.

From 2002 to 2005, she was the Chair of Board of Trustees for the International Network for Improvement of Banana and Plaintains (INIBAP) and the International Center for Plant Genetic Resources (IPGRI). She was also a member of the Genetic Resource Policy Committee of the Consultative Group of Agricultural Research (CGIAR) in 2003-2005.

Dr. Jürgen Blaser

Dr. Blaser is the Head of the Forest-Environment Division and Deputy Head of Intercooperation, the Swiss Foundation for Development and International Cooperation, Bern, Switzerland since 2002.

He worked since 1981 in international development cooperation in the natural resource sector in various functions and institutions, including as a senior forester in the World Bank in Washington D.C. (1996 to 2001), as university teacher in the University of Antananarivo in Madagascar (1987 to 1993), as chief technical advisor in various countries of Swiss bilateral development cooperation (1981-83, 1993-96), as researcher in e.g. the Agricultural Research Centre CATIE in Turrialba-Costa Rica (1983 - 1987) and the University of Goettingen in Germany.

He gained a Masters in International Agriculture from the Swiss Institute for Technology in Forestry (1980) and a PhD in Tropical Forest Ecology from the Georg-August University, Goettingen, Germany (1987).

Dr. Blaser was Chair of the International Tropical Timber Council and co-chair of the negotiation of the new International Tropical Timber Agreement 2006 within UNCTAD. He is currently a board member of CIFOR since 2004

Prof. M. Hosny El Lakany

Dr. M. Hosny El-Lakany holds a B.Sc. in Agriculture and a M.Sc. in Forestry from Alexandria University, a Ph.D. in Forestry from the University of British Columbia, Canada and a D.Sc. honoris causa from Laval University, Quebec, Canada.

He began his professional career as an instructor in horticulture, then in forestry at Alexandria University, Egypt. He studied and did research in Forest Genetics and Tree Breeding in Canada and became professor of Forestry and subsequently Chairman of the Forestry Department at Alexandria University. He served as Professor and Director of the Desert Development Centre of the American University in Cairo, spent a year as a visiting fellow at the Australian National University and became a member the CGIAR Technical Advisory Committee (TAC). He has published more than 110 scientific papers and co-edited one book.
In 1995, Dr. El-Lakany joined FAO as Assistant Directeur de Cabinet, then Assistant Director-General of FAO/Head of the Forestry Department in 1998 until his retirement in December 2005.

Dr. El-Lakany is a member of several scientific and professional organizations including the Boards of Trustees of CIFOR and ICRAF (Ex Officio) , the Canadian Institute of Forestry, the Executive Board of the Commonwealth Forestry Association, the External Advisory Group on the Forest Strategy of the World Bank (2003-2009), and the Editorial Board of the International Journal of Food and Nutrition.

Since his retirement from FAO, Dr El-Lakany undertook several international consultancies including Financing Sustainable Forest Management (SFM) commissioned by the World Bank; Review of IUCN Forest Programme; ITTO Forestry Diagnostic Mission to Papua New Guinea, and the CPF Strategic Framework on Forests and Climate Change (Lead author).

Currently, he is Professor Emeritus at Alexandria University, Egypt and Adjunct Professor/Director of International Program at the Faculty of Forestry, University of British Columbia, Canada. Dr. El-Lakany Chairs the International Partnership for Forestry Education (IPFE) and lectures and conducts research in International Forestry Policies and Natural Resource Management.

Ms. Claudia Martinez Zuleta

Claudia Martinez is Colombian, studied Business Administration at the Los Andes University in Bogotá and holds a Masters Degree in Development Economics and a Masters Degree in Environmental Studies from Yale University.

She coordinated the environmental programs at the Latin American Bureau of the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) in New York. She then became Director of Sustainable Development of CAF (Andean Development Bank) in charge of developing CAF’s strategic vision on sustainable development as a corporate goal.

She was later appointed Deputy Minister of Environment of Colombia for 4 years, in charge of coordinating the National Environmental System composed of 33 Regional Environmental Corporations, 5 research institutions and the National Park Service.

She was chosen as Vice President for Social and Environmental Development at the Andean Development Bank (CAF), where she managed the Environmental Division, the Small and Medium Enterprise Division and the Social Development Division, that manages the Bank’s loan portfolio for education, health, water and sanitation, agriculture and rural development.

She is the founder and director of E3 – Ecology, Economics and Ethics. E3 is an advisory service company working to support public and private corporations in the promotion and application of principles of ecology, economy and ethics as integral components of every business endeavor.

She is a member of the board of Tropenbos International and the Yale University Environmental Leadership Council.

Ms. Frances Seymour

Frances Seymour became CIFOR’s Director General on August 20, 2006. Prior to CIFOR, Ms. Seymour was the founder and Director of the Institutions and Governance Program at the World Resources Institute ( WRI), where she guided the launch of The Access Initiative, a global civil society coalition promoting citizen involvement in environment-related decisions. She has authored and contributed to several WRI publications critically examining the role of public and private international financial institutions in promoting sustainable development. She previously served as Director of Development Assistance Policy at World Wildlife Fund, and spent five years in Indonesia with the Ford Foundation, where her grant-making focused on community forestry and human rights. She has served on numerous boards and advisory committees, including those of World Neighbors, the International NGO Forum on Indonesian Development, the African Centre for Technology Studies, and the Center for Biodiversity and Indigenous Knowledge in China. She is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations. She holds a masters degree from the Woodrow Wilson School at Princeton University, and a B.S. in Zoology from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Ms. Lynn Haight

Lynn Haight is the Chair of ICRAF’s Board of Trustees. She serves as Chief Operating Officer of the Independent Order of Foresters, a mutual life insurance company based in Canada. Prior to her appointment as COO, Lynn served as Foresters Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer. Before joining Foresters, Lynn was the Vice President, U.S. Fixed Annuities at Manulife Financial, and previously their Chief Accountant. Prior to joining Manulife Financial, Lynn spent seven years with the Bank of Nova Scotia, including five years as a Vice President.

Ms Haight has an MA from Oxford University, and has pursued extensive business-related professional training. A fellow of the Canadian Institute of Chartered Accountants and of the Canadian Institute of Certified Management Consultants, Lynn has spent most of her career in the financial services sector. She serves as the vice president of the International Council on Management Consulting Institutes, a director of the Foundation for Responsible Computing, and is a member of the Canadian Advisory Board of Sybase Corporation, and a director of the Standards Council of Canada National Committee. She has also spent several years consulting for the United Nations and the United Nations Development Program, in New York and internationally.

Lynn's volunteer and professional activities include a term as President of the Institute of Certified Management Consultants of Canada. She is currently a trustee on the Ontario Arts Council, and has also served as President of the Board of Tafelmusik Baroque Orchestra.

Ms. Nancy O. Andrews

Nancy O. Andrews is the President and Chief Executive Officer of the Low Income Investment Fund (LIIF). LIIF is a $600 million Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI) that has invested over $700 million in community projects. LIIF’s investments have leveraged $5 billion in private capital for poor communities in 26 states across the U.S.

Established 25 years ago, LIIF has served over 600,000 low income people by providing capital for 54,000 affordable homes for families and children, 100,000 spaces of child care and 43,000 spaces in schools. LIIF targets the poorest of the poor and builds bridges out of poverty for low income people and their communities. LIIF is a national CDFI with staff and offices in San Francisco, Los Angeles, New York City and Washington, D.C. 

Ms. Andrews’ career spans 30 years in the community development field.  In addition to her work at LIIF, Ms. Andrews serves on numerous boards and committees of community development and environmental organizations, including Housing Partnership Network, National Low Income Housing Coalition and Center for International Forestry Research. She is a recognized expert on the challenges facing America’s neighborhoods and is frequently asked to testify before Congress and speak at conferences and events.

Previously, Ms. Andrews served as the Deputy Director of the Ford Foundation’s Office of Program Related Investments, where she assisted in the management of a $130 million social investment portfolio. She also designed and launched the foundation’s housing policy program, which focused on national housing and capital market issues.

Following her tenure at the Ford Foundation, Ms. Andrews was the Chief Financial Officer of the International Water Management Institute, a World Bank-supported development organization with offices in ten countries.  Ms. Andrews has also been an independent consultant specializing in community development, social investment programs, financial analysis and housing policy.  During the Clinton administration, she consulted for the Department of Housing and Urban Development to restructure the $18 billion multi-family mortgage portfolio and for the Department of Treasury to establish the Community Development Financial Institutions Fund.

Ms. Andrews received an M.S. in Urban Planning with a concentration in Real Estate Finance from Columbia University.

Dr. Ir. Tachrir Fathoni, MSc.

Dr. Fathoni is currently the Director General of Forestry Research and Development Agency (FORDA) at the Indonesia’s Ministry of Forestry.

He has held various senior posts at the Ministry including: Secretary of the Directorate General Forest Protection and Nature Conservation, Director of Forest Training Agency, Director of the Information Bureau, and Forestry Attaché at the Indonesian Embassy in Tokyo, Japan.

Dr. Fathoni is a forester by training. He is graduated from Gajah Mada University in Yogyakarta, Indonesia, and holds a PhD from the University of Edinburgh, UK.

Dr. Idah Pswarayi-Riddihough

Dr. Pswarayi-Riddihough is the Program Coordinator and Lead Natural Resources Management Specialist for the Environment and Natural Resources Management Unit, in the World Bank, Washington, U.S.A from 1994. She has covered South Asia, Middle East, East Asia and the Pacific now in the Africa Region and led a variety of projects and analytical work in rural development, environment, agriculture, climate change and disaster risk management.

She was the Field-based Country Sector Coordinator in Manila, Philippines where she led the work program for the rural development and environment sector (2003-2006), a Natural Resources Management Specialist and Anchor for Forestry and NRM in Middle East and North Africa (MENA) from 1997 to 2003 where she served as member of the Implementation of the Rural Development Strategy Group and served in the NRM Thematic Group. She also served as one of three anchors for CDD activities; and prepared the Rural Development CDD strategy.

Her additional role was as the Regional coordinator for WWF/Bank Partnership and Program for Forestry (PROFOR) for MENA; Disaster Risk Management focal point for the East Asia Sustainable Rural Development Unit.

She holds a Doctor of Philosophy in Natural Resources Management/Forestry (Genetics) from University Of Oxford, (Completed - 1993) and a Bachelor of Science: Biology; University Of Zimbabwe, (Completed - 1987)