Download the email addresses and locations for our board and staff as a PDF file.
Board of Directors
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Kumari Beck (Canada)
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Lawrence Fryer (Germany)
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Lusana Blond (USA)
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Raphael Bate
(France)
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Luke Penseney (Canada)
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Mardijah Simpson (Australia)
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Rasjidah Flores Torres (Mexico)
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Uraida Vacacela (Ecuador)  Uraida was born in Quito Ecuador. One of my dreams was to create a new kind of school for native and peasant communities in my country. I found out about Subud in 1985 while working in Pestalozzi School, where I met Pedro. One of his dreams was to create a fair and cultural school for his native community. We got married and in 1986 started Inka Samana, an active, alternative, trilingual (Spanish, Kichwa and English) school in Saraguro. Since that year we have studied and worked together. We got a teaching major in 1992; a kichwa linguistic major in 1995; a pedagogy major in l998. Then I got an English teacher major in 2003 and studied for a History of Education PhD in Salamanca Spain from 2004 to 2006 - I am now writing my thesis. We created Inka Samana’s community-participative curriculum and also work with other schools participative curriculum as consultants. Inka Samana has influenced the National Native Education Direction in order to offer a participative curriculum for native communities. One year after Pedro, I became a Subud member in Amanecer during 1993 World Congress we joined Susila Dharma as members with our project. |
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Romina Vianden-Prudent
(Germany)  Romina combines her expertise as photo-editor with her present job as project manager in the field of life-long-learning. She creates tools for adult-education like trainings for mothers after the family phase of life, a web-based platform for families, and conferences for teachers. She coordinates a regional network for business women and has founded a local parents’ school. Organising events and bringing together ideas and people are her favourite tasks. Romina has been in Subud for thirty years and during that time has taken on various responsibilities. She is at present Chair of SD Germany.
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Haris Wolfgang (United States)
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Kumari Beck is an Assistant Professor in the Faculty of Education at Simon Fraser University in BC, Canada. She teaches courses in social issues in education, global education, intercultural and international issues, and contemporary issues in curriculum and pedagogy. She also works with student teachers and with undergraduate and graduate programmes. Her main research focus is international education. Kumari was on the Board of SDIA from 1993-2005, and the chair from 2001-2005.
Lawrence Fryer has a mathematical background and works in the fields of industrial organization and computer applications. He has been involved in Susila Dharma for the last ten years, as a partner for projects in India and as treasurer of Susila Dharma Germany. Lawrence hopes to make a positive contribution by helping SDI strengthen its material basis to realize greater support for the network.
Lusana Blond brings a background in organizational sociology and cultural anthropology to the board, along with her knowledge of international projects through her husband’s work with the World Bank. She is a former Susila Dharma USA Chair, and is a trustee of the L & D Blond Charitable Trust.
Raphael worked at Edinburgh University in the Department of Education. He has a background in arts education.
Luke Penseney is married and has two children at McGill [University]. He manages his own capital markets-based strategic research business out of suburban Toronto. The focus is on strategic advisory to CEOs and senior executives in global gold mining companies at all levels of development. His background includes strategic research, marketing and executive search in North America and Europe. Early training includes a BA (Honors) in Geography and Economic Development with special reference to Africa and Asia. Also an MSc.in Urban and Regional Planning with a thesis on 'Pre-disaster planning in LDCs' After almost 40 years involved with kedjiwaan/organisations, his new role of WSA (non-executive) chair centres on working with the WSA executive and core/wing organizations to open the way for the development of Subud in the world via support for a more effective organization. This implies further 'putting our house in order', raising our levels of professionalism and attendance/support for key events 2010-14.
Mardijah Simpson served as Australia’s Subud Brotherhood International Foundation representative (the predecessor to SDIA) encouraging local members to initiate social projects and support others in developing countries. She has worked in Sydney with Aboriginal people, migrants and refugees, youth, homeless and the aged. Now she is involved in cultural and environmental projects. Mardijah hopes to work closely with national Susila Dharma co-coordinators (and encourage more national committees in Asia to have Susila Dharma co-coordinators) to collaborate in developing even more effective information, sponsorship and support networks between members and projects.
Rasjidah studied International Relations and did post graduate study in Public Policy and Management of Non-profit Organizations. She has been a consultant for several NGOs and at the moment is the Executive Director of ICYE Mexico-SIIJUVE, an International Federation that offers exchange programmes through voluntary service, where she provides training for volunteers and projects.
Haris Wolfgang has served for more than 35 years fulfilling numerous positions on local, regional, and national committees for non-profits, community development and caring services. With two decades of experience as a Commercial and Residential Real Estate Broker, his expertise includes business experience in design, marketing and strategic planning/promotion on behalf of national corporations. On the SD USA Board, he has served as liaison for SD projects Mithra Foundation, Anisha, International Almoners, and Quest Integrative Health Center (Project Quest)Staff
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Virginia Thomas (Montréal, Canada)
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Rosanna Hille (Vancouver, Canada)
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Cassidy Jake Sterling (Boston, USA) Cassidy degrees in music, education and environmental economics. He has has worked in a number of non-profit organizations and picked up his skills in writing, editing, graphic design, desktop publishing, web mastering, and database design along the way. |
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Samuel Chapleau (Montréal, Canada)
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Solen Lees Gratiet (Colombia)
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Virginia was appointed Executive Director in January 2007. Virginia is a Socio-Economist, Researcher, Evaluator, Trainer, Mediator, Consultant specialising in organisational management; human rights and gender analysis/mainstreaming, democratic development and good governance; violence prevention; program evaluation and performance monitoring; program planning; special interest in women’s, children’s and minority rights.
Rosanna has been SDIA communications coordinator and continuity adviser since 2007. She has worked with Susila Dharma for 20 years, first in Canada and internationally as Chair (1993-2001) and Executive Director (1993-2005). Rosanna is a manager, educator, writer, editor, community developer, trainer and facilitator specializing in non-profit and community organizations. Rosanna has a special interesting in facilitating local capacity, participatory approaches, evaluation and increasing understanding between cultures.
Samuel is the bookkeeper for SDIA and deals with all financial transactions. Samuel also volunteers as a English French translator.
Solen was appointed as UN connections, volunteer and translations coordinator in 2008. With a background in linguistic work (teaching and translating), she became interested in international development while living and travelling in Latin America and Africa. Solen has worked with humanitarian and environmental associations and was on the board of Susila Dharma France from 2001-2009 where she looked after communications and liaising with projects in South America. She has recently moved from France to Colombia with her family to work with Fundacion Amanecer.