Alliance Welcomes New Staff in Latin America, India, and Washington, DC
With 2015 comes the official kick off of Phase 2 of the Alliance’s efforts to build upon its early momentum and success and ensure that we reach our goal of 60 million households adopting cleaner and more efficient cookstoves and fuels by 2017. To support this endeavor, we are pleased to announce a number of new additions to the Alliance team, both at the Secretariat in Washington, DC and in key clean cooking markets and regions around the world.
Brian Smith – Chief Operating Officer. Brian was previously at PSI and brings with him 17 years of experience designing, implementing, and evaluating social marketing and behavior change programs aimed at increasing access to and use of health products and services. Brian has managed field programs in Rwanda and Mozambique, and served as PSI's regional director for Asia. Most recently, as chief strategy and resources officer, Brian developed PSI’s strategy and guided the alignment of planning at all levels of the organization. Brian also oversaw PSI’s health area technical teams, fundraising, corporate partnerships, strategic research, and metrics. Prior to joining PSI, Brian worked for the Peace Corps in Cameroon after completing his volunteer assignment in Botswana. Brian holds Masters degrees in Public Administration from Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government and in English Literature from the University of Virginia.
Richard Grinnell – Director of Market Development for Latin America, based in Guatemala. Richard brings over 13 years of experience in the clean cooking sector, largely in Central America and Mexico, as well as Haiti. He has been directly involved in the manufacture, sales, distribution and implementation of improved cookstoves and has shared his experiences in the sector in many forums worldwide including with the Alliance, the Partnership for Clean Indoor Air (PCIA), the World Bank, and the Organization of American States (OAS). Richard has been a Board Member of ETHOS (Engineers in Technical and Humanitarian Opportunities of Service), a Board Member of HELPS International Incorporated from 2009 to 2013, and co-chaired the Alliance’s ‘Reaching the Consumer’ Working Group. He is a founding member and first President of the Board of Directors for the Cluster of Improved Cookstoves and Clean Fuels in Guatemala, and collaborated with three other Latin American stakeholders to create the Latin American Alliance for Clean Cookstoves. Richard is a graduate of North Carolina State University.
Kip Patrick – Director of Communications. Kip will lead the Alliance’s global communications work, including awareness building, digital strategy and content development. Kip has more than 15 years’ experience building and implementing communications programs for nonprofits, corporations and government agencies. Previously, Kip worked as a Senior Communications Consultant with the World Bank, supporting global efforts to increase access to safe water and improved sanitation in developing countries. Prior to that, he and his wife Liz spent 16 months volunteering across Asia, Africa, and Central America, for which they were named 2014 National Geographic Travelers of the Year. Kip has also served as a Senior Communications Officer with The Pew Charitable Trusts, and has worked for two global public relations firms, most recently as Vice President at Ketchum in Washington, DC. A longtime writer and photographer, his work has been published by CNN, National Geographic, and Men’s Journal. Kip earned a degree in journalism from Northwestern State University in Louisiana and a graduate certificate from The George Washington University School of Political Management.
Amit Antony Alex is the Enterprise Development Manager and heads up the Alliance’s capacity building initiatives, based in India.
Amit Antony Alex is the Enterprise Development Manager at the Global Alliance for Clean Cookstoves. Amit’s role is to develop and implement capacity building initiatives to strengthen clean cooking enterprises and help get them ready for investment. This includes programs such as the Capacity Building Facility, which funds capacity building services when coupled with committed growth financing; the Alliance's Country Catalytic Small Grants program, which provides locally owned companies with funding to improve their operations and implement growth initiatives; and the Boost program, a three day workshop that teaches entrepreneurs basic business planning and financial management skills. Prior to joining the Alliance, Amit headed the Start-up Services at Ennovent working with social enterprises in helping them refine their business models across the world. Prior to Ennovent, Amit handled dual responsibility with Pepal & Palma Interface where he helped set up partnership models between corporate, marginalized communities and NGOs in delivering social and commercial goals. He was also part of the management team at Ziqitza Healthcare that operates emergency medical service in India handling marketing, communication, operations and business development. Prior to moving to the social sector, he was a head hunter with leading search firms in India. Amit has an MBA from Hult International Business School, USA and an undergraduate degree in Mechanical Engineering from R.V. College of Engineering, Bangalore.