Who We Are
International Board of Directors
  
The International Board of Directors is composed of:
- Scott Hitch, President
- Eduardo Stevens, Vice President
- Kathie Stasko, Treasurer
- Chuck Pugh, Secretary
- Gary Gotfredson
- Nora Martinez
Ecuador Consultative Board of Directors
The Ecuador Consultative Board of Directors is composed of: (L-R)
- Jeff Pugh, President
- Diana Palacios, Secretary
- Monica de Contreras
- Roberto Contreras, Vice President
- Jack Rodriguez, Treasurer
Founder and Executive Director, CEMPROC - International
 Jeff Pugh is the Founder and Executive Director of CEMPROC - International. In addition to his work with CEMPROC,
Jeff is an instructor and doctoral candidate in International Relations at the Johns Hopkins University. He received BAs in Political Science and Speech Communication from the University of Georgia, summa cum laude, and his MA in Political Science from the Johns Hopkins University. Jeff currently mediates in Baltimore, MD through the Community Mediation Program, and he is a certified Civil Mediator through the Baltimore Courts. Jeff has received training from the Institute for International Mediation and Conflict Resolution (IIMCR) at the Tec de Monterrey, Mexico; Baltimore Community Mediation Program; the Maryland Association of Community Mediation Centers; and many others. He worked in the U.S. State Department in Washington D.C., and he served for three years on a selection committee for the Delta Prize for Peace and Global Understanding, whose recipients have included President Jimmy Carter, Archbishop Desmond Tutu, and President Mikhail Gorbachev, among others. Jeff has conducted research on sustainable development NGOs in Ecuador, with an article published by the Bulletin of Latin American Research, and he planned, coordinated, and moderated a symposium at the University of Georgia on the conflict in Colombia. He has conducted research and presented on different methods for managing conflict, including the impact that gender has on conflict style, and has trained hundreds of adults and children from countries around the globe in conflict resolution and peacemaking skills.
[Click here for full resume]
Director, CEMPROC - Ecuador
Diana Palacios has been CEMPROC's Ecuador director since January 2005. In addition, she offers mediation services
in Quito. She is an attorney by training who specializes in mediation, arbitration, and alternative dispute
resolution, and she teaches law at la Universidad Alredo Perez (UNAP) in Quito. A native of Cuenca, Ecuador,
Diana received her doctorate of jurisprudence, as well as designation as
an Arbiter and Conciliator from the MERCOSUR International Tribunal of Conciliation and Arbitration. She has also
received certification as a mediator from the Catholic University of Ecuador. Through her work with CEMPROC, Diana
has trained hundreds of community leaders, youth, and children in conflict resolution skills. She worked as a Judicial Assistant
in the Superior Court of Justice for nine years, as well as in the Almeida Guzman Judicial Consortium for a year.
She has served as a legal or judicial advisor to the Foundations “Con Cristo” and “Tutelar”, as well as to the
businesses “SEMACAR” and Nyse C. Laboratories. Diana has also been an active proponent of social change through
political activism, and she has served as the regional director for Pichincha of the Civic
Christian Movement for the Community. Diana’s professional aspiration is to foster conflict resolution,
based on mediation, through which parties in conflict can seek a mutually beneficial solution outside of the
courtroom. Diana is married to Jack Rodriguez and has two daughters.
Volunteers and Additional Staff
Any Stevens is the coordinator of CEMPROC's children's program in
Cumming, GA. A teacher by training, Any has been extremely active as
a volunteer supporting the Hispanic/Latino population in Forsyth County
through educational and social service organizations and service. Originally
from Chile, Any is married to Pastor Eduardo Stevens, and they have
three children.
Kristen McCaskey is CEMPROC’s Program Assistant in Ecuador and is currently pursuing a Master’s degree in Conflict Transformation at
the School for International Training. She also worked as a case manager for refugees and victims of human trafficking in her hometown of
Philadelphia, providing orientation trainings for her clients. Kristen earned her bachelor’s degree in psychology and Spanish at Goucher
College. Her professional goal is to be an agent for social justice and peace building.
Jeffrey Akomah is a program intern for CEMPROC in Ecuador. Before attaining a Joint Honours B.A. in Religious Studies and Political Science
he had spent three months in India conducting research on inter-religious dialogue and the effects of social displacement. He has volunteered
as a Community Development Officer in the village of Pomacanchi, Cuzco, Peru, and has also served as a youth rehabilitation facilitator for juvenile
delinquents in Cuzco´s urban core. Seeking to attain his Masters in International Studies, Jeffrey wishes to transform the knowledge he has gained
from his days as a professional actor into an exchange program that will train youth who
are trapped in communities surrounded by violence in techniques for the peaceful resolution of conflict.
Alexandra Visser is serving as CEMPROC’s Public Relations intern and will try to improve its publicity and
outreach strategies. Holding a Bachelors degree in International Relations and a Diploma in Roman Languages
and Cultures from The University of Groningen in The Netherlands, she has much experience raising awareness
for grassroot development causes. While specializing in International Order, Power, and Security she had
organized a conference on sustainable development, and during 2006 and 2007 was a board member of TEIMUN
(The European International Model United Nations) Foundation. Acting as its Public Relations Officer she
organized a Model United Nations Conference that involved more than 200 students from over 40 different
countries. Alexandra has a Masters in International Relations with a specialization on Identity, Culture
and Development,
and after her internship here at CEMPROC she is aiming to complete another Masters in Humanitarian Relief.
FORMER INTERNS:
Karoline Popp is the program intern for CEMPROC in Ecuador. Originally from Germany,
Karoline completed high school at the United World College of South East Asia (UWCSEA) in Singapore, an international school dedicated
to promote peace and understanding among young people from a wide spectrum of cultural backgrounds. During her time at UWCSEA Karoline was
involved in social service and various student activist groups, including the founding of "Initiative for Peace". She helped to organise and
run "Focus on Kashmir", the initiative's first peace conference for young people from India and Pakistan. Karoline went on to read Geography at
Oxford University (UK), attaining a first class degree and the top mark of her year in 2006. She also won a university prize for her undergraduate
dissertation on the topic of borderspaces and immigration at the Strait of Gibraltar. Karoline's interests revolve around political geography, peace
and conflict, and migration. A six-month internship in the migration policy division of the International Organization for Migration in Geneva
(Switzerland) allowed her to explore aspects of international policy making in the field of migration. Her current internship at CEMPROC is an
important step on her way to pursuing conflict management and mediation professionally. In September 2007, she will commence a Masters Degree in
Dispute and Conflict Resolution at the School of Oriental and African Studies (London, UK).
Contact us for more info
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Dr. Edward J. Larson
Pulitzer Prize winner, Professor of History and Law at the University of Georgia
Dr. Salomon Cabezas
Bishop of the United
Methodist Church of Ecuador, former Vice-Rector of the Central University of Ecuador
Dr. Brenda Vanegas
Mediation Coordinator, Committee for Cooperation with the Interamerican Commission on Women (CECIM) and author of Human Rights and Gender Equality in Mediation
Dr. Fabiola Cuvi
Director
of the Ecuadorian Institute for Women's Research and Training (IECAM), a UN Focal Point; former Ecuadorian Undersecretary in the Ministry of Health,
Dr. Fausto Sarmiento
University of Georgia Dept. of Geography
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