Who we are
Peace Direct is an award-winning, international NGO supporting local people in some of the most challenging conflict environments worldwide.
We are based in London, UK, and have offices in Washington, DC and New York.
If you’d like to work for Peace Direct, visit our jobs page to see current vacancies for interns or staff.
Bridget Moix, US Executive Director
Bridget serves as Peace Direct’s US Executive Director, sharing our work and the work of our partners with the US peacebuilding community, funders, and policymakers. She has worked for 20 years on international peace and conflict issues, with a focus on US foreign policy. Prior to joining Peace Direct’s staff, she was part of its founding US board for four years. From 2013-2015, Bridget served as Atrocity Prevention Fellow with USAID’s Office of Conflict Management and Mitigation. She spent nine years lobbying on US foreign policy and peace issues with the Friends Committee on National Legislation, where she developed and led the Peaceful Prevention of Deadly Conflict program. She has also worked with the Quaker United Nations Office, Oxfam America, American Friends Service Committee, and the World Policy Institute. Bridget directed the Casa de los Amigos in Mexico City, a Quaker center of hospitality and international understanding, from 2006-2008. She also worked in Capetown, South Africa, with the Quaker Peace Centre during her graduate studies internship. Bridget holds a PhD with George Mason University’s School for Conflict Analysis and Resolution, where she focused her dissertation on understanding the motivations of local peacebuilders and how the international community can better support them. Her book, “Choosing Peace: Agency and Action in the Midst of War“, describes how local and global peacebuilders can work together. She has taught graduate and undergraduate courses in peacebuilding, conflict resolution, and Quaker studies at a variety of institutions, including Haverford College, Columbia University, George Washington University, and Eastern Mennonite University. Bridget lives in Washington, DC, and has two sons who challenge her peacebuilding skills every day.
Contact: [email protected]
Contact: [email protected]
Christine Trillana, Administrative and Development Assistant
Christine handles the office development and nurtures Peace Direct’s continued growth in the U.S. She is responsible for ensuring both UK and US offices act unilaterally and have a unified voice in public outreach. She is also in charge of the US databases and general office management; adapting these systems to Peace Direct’s continued growth and exposure in the US. She received a BS in International Studies from Fordham University and is happy to put this and her experience as an ambulette dispatcher into good use. Contact: [email protected]
John Guinan, Director of US Philanthropy
John Guinan serves as Peace Direct’s Director of US Philanthropy overseeing charitable giving and partnerships. John has a breadth of experience managing fundraising efforts for leading non-profit organizations. His background also includes working in peacebuilding and youth development both internationally and domestically in Northern Ireland, Cuba, the Dominican Republic, Chile, as well as Washington DC and New York City. He resides in Washington DC and is an accomplished visual artist. Contact: [email protected]
Gay Rosenblum-Kumar, UN Representative
Gay is Peace Direct’s New York Representative where she interacts at the UN with Member States, UN staff and NGOs on efforts to support Peace Direct’s local peacebuilding partners in conflict affected countries. She worked at the United Nations for 25 years on conflict transformation and peacebuilding issues primarily in sub-Saharan Africa. She has been involved in: conflict analysis, capacity-building for mediation and dialogue, electoral violence prevention, and conflict-sensitive policy and practice. Gay has designed numerous peacebuilding programmes and co-founded the UN’s first cadre of peace and development advisors. Prior to that, she administered anti-apartheid capacity-building projects for refugees in southern Africa. In addition to representing Peace Direct at the UN, Gay is a senior advisor to Nonviolent Peaceforce and undertakes project formulation, analyses and evaluations of peacebuilding projects around the world. Contact: [email protected]
Vahe Mirikian, Peacebuilding Fellow
Vahe is Peace Direct’s Peacebuilding Fellow. He is supporting Peace Direct’s US Office with policy and advocacy where he focuses on youth, peace and security, atrocity prevention, countering violent extremism, and locally led peacebuilding. His regional focuses are Africa, the Middle East, and Central and South Asia. Prior to joining Peace Direct, Vahe interned with Search for Common Ground as a policy and advocacy assistant with the Global Affairs and Partnerships department. While at Search for Common Ground he focused on peacebuilding in the Middle Belt of Nigeria, Central African Republic, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. He also has experience as a legislative intern working with Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., on Capitol Hill. Vahe has an M.A. in International Affairs from the American University of Paris and a B.A. in Politics from Saint Mary’s College of California. Contact: [email protected]
Larisa Epatko, Senior Communications Officer
Larisa serves as Peace Direct’s Senior Communications Officer, helping with the organization’s media relations, social media, public events and engagement. She previously worked as a reporter and producer for the foreign affairs team at the PBS NewsHour, reporting in places such as South Sudan, Pakistan, Haiti and Iraq. Her coverage included writing profiles of remarkable people around the world who are working to improve their communities. Larisa also covered Congress and administration policy for the nonpartisan Environment & Energy Daily. Contact: [email protected]
Staff in the UK
Dylan Mathews, Chief Executive
Dylan Mathews comes to Peace Direct from Y Care International a youth focused international development agency working in 20 countries around the world, where he was Director of International Programmes. His commitment to supporting local organisations in the global south spans over a decade. He has worked for a range of UK based international development and humanitarian organisations, including Oxfam, Landmine Action, the British Red Cross and Oxford Research Group. Whilst at Oxford Research Group he authored ‘War Prevention Works’ which profiled the role of non-state actors in conflict prevention and resolution – a publication that helped launch Peace Direct in 2004. Dylan has been a trustee of Peace Direct for six years. He holds an MBA from the Open University and an MSc in Development Studies from London South Bank University. Contact: [email protected]
Charlotte Melly, Head of International Programmes
Charlotte oversees Peace Direct’s International Programmes, providing guidance and strategic direction to the work, team and partners. She has worked in peacebuilding and human rights throughout her career, including as a human rights accompanier in Colombia and at Conciliation Resources, where she worked on programmes in Latin America, Africa and Asia. Charlotte has an MPhil in International Relations and a BA in Modern and Medieval Languages. Contact: [email protected]
Katarzyna Khider, Head of Finance and Operations
Kasia is responsible for financial management, HR, IT systems, information security and admin of Peace Direct. She is a CIMA qualified Chartered Global Management Accountant and has a MSc degree in Finance Management from AGH University in Krakow, Poland. She has over 12 years’ experience in UK charity accounting and was previously involved in work of Charity Retail Association. Kasia came to Peace Direct from Emmaus Greenwich, a charity running a residential working community for previously homeless people. Contact: [email protected]
Claire May, Head of Programme Development
Claire is responsible for helping our partners to develop their programmes and to liaise with government and other institutions to secure the necessary funding. She is an English Literature graduate who has worked in a fundraising capacity for Orchid Project (working to end FGM through grassroots initiatives) and NAT (National AIDS Trust). Contact: [email protected]
Gemma Britton, Head of Fundraising and Communications
Gemma leads the Fundraising and Communications team at Peace Direct, helping to grow the funds we need to bring about real change in areas of violent conflict and to raise the profile of Peace Direct and peacebuilding in general. She has 13 years’ experience in the UK charity sector and holds a BSc in Economics from Loughborough University. Contact: [email protected]
Adrienne Monteath-Van Dok, Interim Head of Policy and Research
As interim Head of Policy and Research Adrienne oversees Peace Direct’s Advocacy work and Research projects, as well as Peace Insight. Before joining Peace Direct, she was a Director of Consulting with the Social Innovation Partnership in London, and previously to that she worked for Plan International, where she helped set up the Global Research and Knowledge Management Team and was the lead researcher on Plan’s sponsorship database of 1.4 million children. Adrienne has founded and grown several social ventures, including Atma Mumbai (an accelerator for education in India, helping numerous NGOs through successful change processes) and the Muktangan Educational Trust (supporting seven schools in India with an innovative education methodology). She holds a MPhil in Development Studies from the University of Cambridge and a Master’s in public administration from the Erasmus University in Rotterdam, the Netherlands. She also holds a diploma in Spanish and International Communications from Tec de Monterrey in Mexico. Contact: [email protected]
Scarlett Kassimatis, Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning Adviser
Scarlett is the lead on Monitoring and Evaluation for all projects, helping build the capacities of local partners and ensuring projects have a strong M&E focus. Scarlett also oversees organisational learning and has come from a programme management background, mainly focused on the Middle East but in particular on Iraq and Palestine. She has an MA in Human Rights Law from SOAS and has written for Open Democracy, Middle East Monitor and the International State Crime Initiative. Contact: [email protected]
Léo Vuillermoz, International Programmes Officer
Leo works within the International Programmes team to manage relationships with partners abroad and helps prepare narrative and financial reports and proposals. Prior to Peace Direct, Leo worked as Finance Officer for Renatura, a Congolese NGO. From 2014 to 2016, he was the Coordinator of the Moroccan branch of Le Partenariat, working mainly on WASH and environmental projects. He has a BA in Political Science from the Jean Moulin University and an MA in Humanitarian Affairs from the IRIS research centre on international relations. Contact: [email protected]
Alice Coulibaly, International Programmes Officer
Alice works within the International Programmes team, focusing primarily on projects in countries such as Zimbabwe, Sudan, Somalia and DRC. She holds a Masters from SOAS University in Politics of Conflicts, Rights and Justice and a Masters in International Expertise from Sciences Po Aix en-Provence. She previously worked at Concordis International as a Project Intern, assisting the implementation of peacebuilding programs in Cote d’Ivoire and, CAR and Nigeria. Before arriving at Peace Direct, Alice was interning at the UN Department of peacekeeping Operations. Contact: [email protected]
Emily Spence, Senior Programmes Officer
Emily manages an atrocity prevention and response project, providing rapid and flexible funding to support local peacebuilding efforts. Emily previously worked at Peace Brigades International, as an international human rights observer in Guatemala and at the UK office where she provided programmatic and advocacy support to the organisation’s global projects in their accompaniment of at-risk human rights defenders. Emily has an MA in Understanding and Securing Human Rights from the University of London and a BA in Spanish and Cultural Studies from the University of Sussex. Contact: [email protected]
Claire Payne, Senior Programmes Officer
Claire manages Peace Direct’s work on youth, peace and security currently in Mali, CAR, DRC and Pakistan, with a focus on supporting youth-led peacebuilding and promoting youth-led advocacy within the project. She previously managed projects in Syria, Lebanon and Turkey for the EU Commission, and has experience working with refugee populations from Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan. She has an MA in International Security and Conflict Resolution, and an BA in French and German.”. Contact: [email protected]
Henry Costello, International Programmes Finance Officer
Henry manages all of the finances for the International Programmes team. He provides support to partners in their financial systems and processes including monitoring spend on projects, reporting to donors and applying for new grants. He also works closely with the Peace Direct Programme Development team helping to put new proposals together and reporting to donors, and the Finance team monitoring Peace Direct’s internal finances. Henry graduated from University College London with an MSci Theoretical Physics degree in 2015 and spent several months volunteering with the human rights organisation Liberty before spending two years working within the Finance team at Conciliation Resources. Contact: [email protected]
Sam Crocker, Senior Trusts & Foundations Officer
Sam is responsible for liaising with trusts and foundations to secure funding for Peace Direct and our partners. Having graduated with an MA in International Development from University of Sussex, he has since worked in Madagascar for the charity SEED Madagascar and for WWF, developing projects and seeking funding from various donors. Contact: [email protected]
Rosemary Forest, Senior Advocacy Officer
Rosemary leads Peace Direct’s advocacy in the UK and EU, engaging with policy makers and building collaborations with other organisations. She has a diverse background in international development and peacebuilding, including recent work on on climate and disaster risk financing, as well as global disaster risk reduction policy. Rosemary holds an MA in Conflict Resolution from University of Bradford and a BA in Development Studies from University of Sussex. Contact: [email protected]
Megan Renoir, Research Manager
Megan manages two USAID-funded projects at Peace Direct, “Facilitating Financial Sustainability” and “Stopping As Success.” The aim of both activities is to identify how local organisations can move towards financial sustainability and local ownership, and to influence donor systems to be more supportive of local initiatives. Megan has previous experience as a researcher with Plan International. She holds a BA in Philosophy and International Relations from Boston University and an MSc in Conflict Studies from the London School of Economics, where she focused on identity, land politics and root causes of conflict in the DRC. Megan is also currently conducting a PhD at the London School of Economics, which focuses on the politics of peacebuilding aid and land reform in the DRC. Contact: [email protected]
Dimitri Kotsiras, Research Analyst
Dimitri is responsible for coordinating the Local Voices for Peace report series as well as Peace Insight and the USAID-funded “Facilitating Financial Sustainability” research project. He has previously supported democracy strengthening programmes at Westminster Foundation for Democracy. He also acted as a researcher and campaigner with Crisis Action and Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East, and he previously worked at the United Nations reporting on the UN Security Council. Dimitri holds a BA in Political Science from Concordia University and an MA in Conflict, Security and Development from King’s College London. Contact: [email protected]
Joel Gabri, Peace Technology Programme Officer
Joel supports the web infrastructure and development of the Peace Insight and Peace Direct websites. He also leads on our work looking at how technology can support local peacebuilders, including advanced approaches to mapping and incident reporting and monitoring. Joel has a degree in Peace & Conflict Studies and Politics, with his final year dissertation focusing on how the Internet can be used to promote and assist conflict resolution. Contact: [email protected]
Aji Ceesay, Research Assistant
Aji is responsible for supporting Peace Direct’s research and advocacy work on locally led peacebuilding in conflict-affected and fragile contexts. Her work currently focuses on supporting two USAID-funded projects at Peace Direct: “Facilitating Financial Sustainability” and “Stopping As Success.” Aji has previously worked as a Junior Research Analyst at Zinc Network and M&C Saatchi World Services in strategic communications. In these roles, she provided research informing campaigns concerned with creating positive social change and counter-terrorism/extremism messaging. She holds a BA in International Relations and an MSc in Conflict Resolution, both from the University of Essex. Contact: [email protected]
Oscar Lester, Fundraising and Engagement Officer
Oscar is responsible for raising the charitable profile of Peace Direct and building strong relationships with our supporter base. He holds a BSc in Politics, Governance and History from Canterbury Christ Church University, and an MA in Peace and Conflict Studies from the University of Manchester, where his thesis examined the contemporary limits of Euro-American Statebuilding in both theory and praxis. Contact: [email protected]
Melanie Moran, Digital Fundraising and Marketing Officer
Melanie is responsible for identifying and measuring Peace Direct’s digital activities, while developing engaging content to encourage people to get involved. Melanie has expertise in gender studies and gender-based violence, having recently worked in gender-based violence advocacy in the charity sector and as the Communications and Gender Advisor for STOP THE TRAFFIK Nederland. Melanie holds a BA in Comparative Literature and Film Studies from Queen Mary, University of London, and a MA in Gender Studies from Utrecht University. Contact: [email protected]
Sarah Phillips, Senior Communications Officer
Sarah is jointly responsible for Peace Direct’s digital marketing and communications. She manages the running of the Peace Direct website and all social media channels, and produces all print publications. She is jointly responsible for the blog content on the Peace Insight website. Sarah previously worked in Mexico with the British Council, and before joining Peace Direct was working for an international social justice charity as Communications and Projects Assistant. She has over three years experience writing and editing for online communications. Sarah holds a BA in French and Spanish from Newcastle University and an MA in International Relations from the Central European University. Contact: [email protected]
Jo Dodd, Communications Officer
Jo is jointly responsible for Peace Direct’s outward communications, including writing blogs and stories, producing print publications and acting as the main media contact, ensuring that Peace Direct maintains a constant profile in the mainstream media. She has a background in communications with non-profits working to empower local voices; she spent three months in Guatemala interning with fair trade NGO Mercado Global, and as a student at Edinburgh University helped to set up and managed communications for a social enterprise that connects refugees in Scotland to local artists. Contact: [email protected]
Holly Spencer, Executive Assistant to the CEO
Holly is the part-time executive assistant to the CEO. She helps him to manage his schedule, as well as undertaking various support roles for him and the team. She holds a joint BA in International Relations and Development from Sussex University, as well as an MA from the same, in Conflict, Security and Development. She has campaigned for arms control since university and currently also works part time for Stop Fuelling War, a small France based NGO working on arms control and military spending. Contact: [email protected]
Parmjit Heer, Finance & Compliance Officer
Parmjit is responsible for ensuring Peace Direct is compliant with rules, regulations and good practices to give funders complete confidence in decision making processes which empowers local people to create, develop and sustain peace and self efficiency. Parmjit has over ten years of experience in two FTSE Head Offices as a Chartered Accountant (FCCA), and also holds BA in Creative Writing and English Literature. Contact: [email protected]
Áine Donnelly, Finance Officer
Áine is responsible for processing payments and maintaining accurate financial records, in order to support the Finance, Fundraising & International Programmes teams with reporting and financial management. Áine graduated from the University of Oxford with a BA in Geography, and also holds a GradDip in Economics. Since graduating, she has volunteered with Teach A Child-Africa in Kenya, and has one year of experience as a Finance & Admin Officer at Restless Development. Contact: [email protected]
Katya Curran, Admin & HR Officer
Katya works to support and develop Peace Direct’s office systems and HR needs. Katya has a degree in Philosophy, Politics and International Relations from the University of Auckland. She has been involved with NGOs, local council and political movements in NZ. She previously also managed a small surveying company. Interested in peacebuilding, Katya has represented her university internationally in mediation and undertaken research around community safety in Bougainville (PNG), a vibrant island rebuilding from a decade-long civil war. Outside of work, Katya is interested in philosophy and religion, and enjoys the arts and the outdoors .Contact: [email protected]
Richard Andrew, Database Officer
Richard is responsible for data management at Peace Direct, ensuring supporter information and donations are effectively captured and processed, with a remit to further develop data systems. Richard graduated from the University of Hertfordshire with a BA in Media Arts and has a background in web, print and data management, with over 15 years’ experience working in the non-profit sector. He has previously worked with Kidscape, NHS Lambeth and Minority Rights Group, as well as smaller freelance projects, and volunteered for the Campaign Against Arms Trade. Contact: [email protected]
US Board
Stacey Haefele, Chair
Stacey is a Global Agency Lead at Facebook, where her work focuses on building out alliances with management consultancies. Privately, she is active in promoting non-dualism, civil discourse, sustainable development and the advancement of women’s, human and non-human rights. From 2008-2016 Stacey served as CEO of HNW, Inc., a marketing services and software firm focused on the high net worth segment. Previously, she was VP, Director of Digital Strategy at Digitas and a Consultant with CSC Index where her focus was corporate strategy and strategic marketing. She began her career in 1991 with Treuhandanstalt, the German privatization agency, where she aided East German companies in their efforts to be acquired by American businesses. Stacey holds a Masters in International Affairs from Columbia University’s School of International and Public Affairs, where she was a Fellow at the Institute for War and Peace Studies and a BA in International Relations from Wellesley College. Stacey lives in New York City and Kent, Connecticut.
Keith Johnson, Treasurer
Keith is retired from Deutsche Bank where he served as Vice-President for data processing Deutsche Bank. He serves as Trustee and Treasurer of Chatham Summit Quaker Meeting in New Jersey, as well as a member of the Personnel Committee and Supervisory Committee for the General Secretary of New York Yearly Meeting of the Religious Society of Friends. Keith serves as President of the 31-41 Church St. Condominium Association. He is an Emergency Medical Technician and Member of South Orange, NJ, Volunteer Rescue Squad. Keith holds degrees from Colgate University (B.A.) and Union Theological Seminary (M.Div.).
Michael Ryder
Michael began his career in diplomatic service with the British Foreign Office in the 1980s, when he focused on East-West relations during the Cold War, and then was the UK’s Special Representative on International Drugs Issues. More recently, he was the UK’s Special Representative to Sudan and South Sudan during the period of South Sudan’s independence; the UK’s Senior Civilian Representative in Helmand, Afghanistan; and Deputy Ambassador in Kabul. In 2010, he ran the London Conference on Afghanistan. Michael has also worked as head of the Foreign Office’s Security Policy department, dealing with international defence and security, and as the UK’s Permanent Representation to the European Union in Brussels, where he was responsible for the EU’s common foreign and security policy.
Evelyn Thornton
Evelyn is a management and strategy coach to a diverse array of mission-driven leaders. Previously, she was the Chief Executive Officer of Inclusive Security, a Washington-based non-profit organization that increases women’s influence in preventing and ending violent conflict. During her tenure, she established an innovative shared leadership structure and dramatically expanded Inclusive Security’s impact through programs in seven conflict zones, a network of partners in 45 countries, and strategic communications and advocacy campaigns that influenced thousands. Evelyn also spent several formative years working in India for His Holiness, The Dalai Lama’s Foundation for Universal Responsibility. She holds a master’s degree in conflict resolution from Georgetown University and a B.A. from Virginia Tech. Evelyn lives in Washington, DC with her husband and their two vivacious young daughters, and frequently returns to the Blue Ridge farm where she was raised.
Jackson Jeyanayagam
Jackson is currently Vice President and General Manager of the Nutranext Direct-to-Consumer business at The Clorox Company. Prior to Clorox, Jackson was the Chief Marketing Officer for Boxed where he oversaw growth, performance media, brand, above the line, CRM & loyalty, creative, SEO, CSR, Communications, CX and trade marketing. In 2018, Jackson was named to the Forbes CMO Next 2018 list. Previously, Jackson was Head of Digital for Chipotle responsible for leading all digital marketing efforts including mobile, social media, content, CRM, digital direct response and analytics. Before that Jackson was SVP, Digital at Taylor where he built and oversaw the digital marketing practice and supported a number of brands including Diageo, P&G, Jordan Brand, NASCAR and Starwood. At Citizen Paine, Jackson led social media integration and influencer marketing for Old Spice as well as Dentyne, working closely with each brand team to create and implement through the line campaigns. Personally, Jackson has served on the Board of Directors for the University of Oregon Alumni Association as well as the Arts & Business Council of New York. He is currently on Advisory Boards for three startups: Dynamic Signal, Paybear and Miles.
UK Trustees
Michael Ryder, CMG, Chair
Michael began his career in diplomatic service with the British Foreign Office in the 1980s, when he focused on East-West relations during the Cold War, and then was the UK’s Special Representative on International Drugs Issues. More recently, he was the UK’s Special Representative to Sudan and South Sudan during the period of South Sudan’s independence; the UK’s Senior Civilian Representative in Helmand, Afghanistan; and Deputy Ambassador in Kabul. In 2010 he ran the London Conference on Afghanistan. Michael has also worked as head of the Foreign Office’s Security Policy department, dealing with international defence and security, and as the UK’s Permanent Representation to the European Union in Brussels, where he was responsible for the EU’s common foreign and security policy.
David Cutler, Trustee
David Cutler has been the Director of the Baring Foundation since 2003. The Foundation is one of the UK’s best known independent funders, giving grants on social justice issues in the UK and in Africa. Before that David has worked for a number voluntary sector organisations both at the local and national level. He is a trustee of the Equally Ours, a civil society collation on equalities and human rights and has been a board member of a number of charities including Amnesty International UK and THET (the Tropical Health Education Trust which links NHS organisations to health centres in the developing world).
Eleanor Harrison, Trustee
Eleanor Harrison is Chief Executive of GlobalGiving UK, a digital charity working with 487 grassroots charities in 89 countries. Previously she was Executive Director of Action for Children in Conflict, a grassroots charity working with street children in Kenya. Prior to this, Eleanor worked for the Refugee Council developing and implementing office and community projects for refugees and asylum seekers (West Midlands, UK). Other experience includes working with young people in Uganda (HIV/AIDS), peace and conflict work in Kenya, Bosnia and Australia.
Daniel Jones, Trustee
Daniel is a qualified accountant. After training at the world’s largest consumer goods company, he is now following his passion for food and drink as a finance manager for Innocent Drinks. His interest in working with the charity sector began at university, where he wrote his Masters dissertation on how private and public sector organisations can work together to share skills and knowledge and further each other’s ability to meet their financial and social objectives. Since then he worked with the charitable arms of both his current and previous companies.
Niamh Neville, Trustee
Niamh has 15 years marketing and fundraising experience and has worked with over 100 charities. She is experienced in a diverse range of fundraising disciplines and channels gained at creative agencies, directly for charities, consultancy and in the field as a volunteer fundraiser in Zambia. Most recently she’s acted as a senior level fundraising consultant but has previously held roles at The Scout Association and WaterAid.
Karen Triggs, Trustee
Karen is a senior communications and engagement advisor, who works with public servants, from the centre of government to the public services frontline, helping them show that their organisations are accountable to the people they serve. She adopts an appreciative, solution-focused approach, looking to build on the best work organisations are currently delivering. Notable assignments include Director of Communications at the Legal Services Commission and provision of strategic communications advice to the Government of Somaliland.
Patrons
Scilla Elworthy
Dr Scilla Elworthy is a distinguished activist for peace and has worked on peace related issues for over 30 years. In 1982 Dr Elworthy founded the Oxford Research Group, dedicated to researching defence-decision making and developing effective dialogue between nuclear weapons policy-makers and their critics. For this work she was nominated three times for the Nobel Peace Prize and awarded the Niwano Peace Prize in 2003. From 2005 to 2007 Dr Elworthy helped to set up The Elders Initiative and acted as an advisor to Nelson Mandela, Desmond Tutu and Richard Branson. In 2002 she co-founded Peace Direct alongside Carolyn Hayman OBE.
Sir Mark Rylance
Sir Mark Rylance, Oscar winner, actor and former Artistic Director of the Globe Theatre, is a supporter of Conscience, Campaign Against the Arms Trade (CAAT), The Peace Pledge Union and World Development Movement (WDM). He was born in England in 1960 and raised in America until 1978. After training at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA), he was given his first job by the Citizens’ Theatre, Glasgow in 1981. Mark is also an Associate Artist of the RSC, a Friend of the Francis Bacon Research Trust and Chairman of the Shakespearean Authorship Trust. He is also a trustee of the Murray Cox Foundation, and an honorary bencher of the Middle Temple. He lives in London with his wife and two daughters.
More about us
