Brazil
Program Manager
Luciana Holtz de Camargo Barros is a psychologist specializing in Psycho-Oncology and Bioethics. She has worked with cancer patients, their families and professionals for the past ten years, in her private practice and in public and private health institutions. Seven years ago, Luciana developed the website, Oncoguia — a far-reaching, informative and interactive portal for cancer patients in Brazil. In 2009, due to the great social impact of the website, the Oncoguia team launched an NGO called the Oncoguia Institute: The Voice of Cancer Patients. Luciana is the president of the Oncoguia Institute, leading projects related to advocacy, education, and social support for cancer patients. As a result of her work with Oncoguia, Luciana was named a young Outstanding Person by Junior Chamber International (JCI) in 2006. Since December, 2008, Luciana is the host of a national weekly Radio Talk Show called Talking About Cancer.
Master Trainer
Maria Teresa Veit has been working in Sociological and Psychological fields for over thirty years. In the last thirteen years she has focused her professional activities on Psycho-oncology with an emphasis on breast cancer. Her program “Knowledge Saves,” aims to increase early detection and treatment of breast cancer. This program presents an effective method to reduce the time between a woman’s first contact with a public health service and her medical treatment. It was recently selected for funding by the Avon Institute’s “Kiss for Life” Initiative. Maria Teresa has also developed interdisciplinary software to correlate data among members of multi-professional health teams and track the bio-psycho-social needs of each patient. Maria Teresa is in charge of the Psychology department of a Senology Institute and has published sections of the Brazilian Senology Society Reference Book, “Senology Services: The Ideal Model for Integrated Assistance”. She has also conceived of and contributed to the book, “Transdisciplinarity in Oncology: Paths for an Integrated Care”.
Costa Rica
Program Manager
Fabiola Gamboa Ross has managed the Komen Global Initiative in Costa Rica since the program’s inception in 2007. She worked as a corporate lawyer for five years, focusing her extensive pro bono work on serving victims of domestic violence. Fabiola’s involvement with cancer began after the death of a loved one, after which she negan volunteering as a lawyer at cancer foundations. Fabiola has a degree in corporate law and has completed her MBA. She is a public notary and is currently pursuing a certificate in Program Management from the Costa Rican Technological Institute.
Egypt
Program Manager
Dr. Heba Sweed is a qualified physician with 10 years’ experience in the medical field, including a managerial position in a multinational pharmaceutical company developing and managing patient and healthcare provider education. She most recently held the position of Quality Improvement Specialist for a project focused on integrated maternal and child health at all levels. As part of her MBA, Dr. Sweed focused her thesis on exploring and identifying the healthcare needs of communities in rural areas, and building the capacity of small NGOs to develop, manage and promote micro-health insurance schemes to these communities based on their needs.
Master Trainers
Dr. Maha Mowafy
A physician by training, Dr. Mowafy has eight years of training and project management experience in the health care field in Egypt. Concurrently, she continues to work as a trainer/consultant for different international research and public health projects in Egypt.
Dr. Rafeek Ramzey
Dr. Ramzey began his career as a physician, and has spent the last fifteen years working with public health and civil society organizations as a manager and trainer. He has worked closely with many NGOs to build their capacity, vision, and programs to bring a human rights approach to development.
Training Coordinator
Nervana Thabet
Ms. Thabet is an administrative professional who has five years experience with working at the Population Council as well as a private software technology company in Cairo. She holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Business English from Cairo University.
Mexico
Program Manager
Miriam Ruiz Mendoza has been working for women, their rights and health for more than 16 years in Mexico. She initially focused on childbirth education and midwifery. She worked for nine years at CIMAC, a civil society organization that aims to put women’s issues at the front page of the national and local media. She reported on health and other issues, coordinated the international news agency, supported activists media campaigns, and trained and fostered networks among journalists. She also managed projects and created the institutional development area of CIMAC. Miriam was a visiting scholar at the Human Rights Advocates Program (HRAP) at Columbia University, where she mastered skills in campaigning and fundraising. She has been extensively published in print media throughout Latin America and is the co-author of the books “Women and Elections 2000″ and “Change Without Direction.”
Master Trainer
Livia Olvera-Snyder holds a Bachelor’s degree in social psychology with the UAM- Xochimilco in Mexico City. She has also studied Education for Peace, Nonviolent Conflict Resolution, Facilitation and Consensus with the International Institute for Facilitation and Change (IIFAC), and a Women`s leadership diploma course with the Simone de Beauvoir Institute in Mexico City. She participated in the Itinerating University in Public Policies and Health with the Latin American and the Caribbean Women´s Health Network (RSMALC). She is interested in group processes, communication, human rights, and holistic health, themes she works with through diverse ways including workshops. She has collaborated with a number of diverse NGO`s over the last 15 years.
Panama
Program Manager
Amalia Aguilar Nicolau is a journalist and has written for women’s issues in Panama. She is a member of the Women of Panama Alliance, and has coordinated the Women and Development Forum as well as directed the association’s strategic communication. She also is a member of the Network of Journalists on Gender for Mexico, Central America and the Caribbean.
Amalia has worked actively on advocacy campaigns, most recently for a domestic violence law campaign, and has in-depth knowledge of civil society in Panama. In addition, she has worked as a consultant for the Spanish International Cooperation Agency, the United Nations and the Ministry of Agro-industrial Development. As a journalist, Amalia has worked as the editor of the lifestyle magazine Revista Agenda; the weekly supplements for Nosotras y Estilos (Styles and Us) dedicated to topics on health, culture and general interest items for women; and as editor for Ellas which is a weekly women’s edition of the Daily La Prensa, among other publications. She has a Masters in women’s studies from the National Autonomous University of Mexico.
Master Trainer
Cristina Hernandez works as a consultant, trainer and business coach in Panama City specifically in the areas of empowerment, communication and Human Resources both at the corporate and micro enterprise level. She has taught at the Interamericana University in Panama City as well as the Universidad Latina, Colegio Episcopal and Colegio Bilingue de Cerro Viento. Cristina has extensive experience leading seminars, and workshops on leadership, motivation, and stress management. She has worked closely with the non-profit FUNDES Panama which focuses on trainings for small to medium-sized companies. Her clients have included the U.S. Embassy, the City of Knowledge, CEMEX, Focus Insight Institute and MAERSK, HSBC, among others. Cristina focuses on creating workshops that are dynamic, creative and interactive. She has worked with diverse audiences including young people, women and mothers and with programs for adults. She is energetic and extremely excited about leading Komen’s Course for the Cure™ workshops, adapting the material to be relevant in Panama, and creating participatory, dynamic workshops that are helping create a network of activists in Panama.
Romania
Program Manager
Carmen Suraianu has been in the social field for 9 years, during which time she has worked in partnership with governmental and non-governmental organizations to promote community development and mobilization projects. Working with the Society for Education on Contraception and Sexuality (SECS), she has promoted non-discrimination and universal rights to quality medical services, coordinating a project in 11 Romanian cities to increase the access of disadvantaged populations to Family Planning and Reproductive Health Services. The project was a groundbreaking, integrated approach to reproductive health issues in Romania, which included medical and social institutions and was implemented in partnership with local organizations. Carmen coordinated the creation of localized intervention plans and trainings for local professionals on developing a community action plan and implementing and monitoring reproductive health activities. She has managed the Komen Global Initiative for Breast Cancer Awareness in Romania since 2008.
Master Trainer
Elisabeta “Violeta” Horhoianu is a certified trainer, program manager, and medical doctor with a degree in International Relations. After working as a family physician for ten years, Violeta transitioned in 1991 into the emerging non-profit sector in Romania. She has worked with U.S.-based NGOs such as the Free Romania Foundation, Brooke Foundation, and Education Futures International. A curriculum developer also, she co-authored the first curriculum for Physical Therapy for children with developmental delays due to institutionalization, and she has trained over 100 staff members in Romanian orphanages in child development and rehabilitation. In 1996, Violeta founded Per Aspera Ad Astra, an NGO that provided a wide range of child protection services for Romanian orphans. Since 2000 she has worked for the Society for Education on Contraception and Sexuality (SECS) as a project coordinator and trainer in Reproductive Health.
Ukraine
Program Manager
Olesya Bondar has over ten years of experience in development work. For five years, she worked as the program coordinator at the Open Society Institute (Soros Foundation) office in Ukraine. She helped to organize a joint project with the countries of Central and Eastern Europe to support practical cross-border sharing of best practices in resolving urgent development issues and promoting social innovation and activism. Since 2000, Olesya has been working in the area of women’s rights—first as the women’s program coordinator of the OSI in Ukraine, then as a program coordinator at the Ukrainian Women’s Fund (UWF). In 2007 she became the Director of the UWF, and the next year became Country Manager for the Global Initiative for Breast Cancer Awareness. Olesya holds a Master’s degree in foreign languages (German) and finance. She has represented Ukraine in many international conferences on women’s rights, including AWID, and she has coauthored two articles dedicated to women’s rights.
Master Trainer
Dr. Galyna Maystruk holds an MD from the National State Medical University, Kyiv, in Obstetrics and Gynecology and has practiced as a gynaecologist-oncologist since 1991. She has also been active in the public health sphere, working as a medical consultant in reproductive health and family planning for the UN mission in Ukraine, a national medical consultant for the USAID/PATH Breast Cancer Assistance Project, and a national representative and member of the executive board of the European Breast Cancer Coalition, “Europa Donna.” Galyna is the Founder and Head of the Board of the Ukrainian NGO “Women Health & Family Planning,” a member of the council of the National NGOs Coalition, “Advocacy Against Cancer,” and a faculty member of Kyiv-Mogila Academy Public Health School.