Meet the Team

• Julia Kurnia
  Master's degree in International Economics. Developed grant projects in Africa for the US government and worked with Kiva and MyC4 field partner microfinance organizations before founding Zidisha. Enjoys practicing Indonesian martial arts.

Julia Kurnia   |   Director

Sterling, VA, United States          LinkedIn

• Rodrigo Reyes
  Master's degree in Computer Science. Has been programming since he was 12 and has worked for startups all over the world for the last 10 years. He also worked as volunteer coordinator for HdC, an Ecuadorian NGO. Loves reading, movies and Yoga.

Rodrigo Reyes   |   CTO

Guayaquil, Equador

• Ale Cors
  Developed Payments for Ecosystem Services for communities in the tropical rainforest. Led operations team of a P2P transportation marketplace, YAXI. Loves the ocean, scuba diving and her family.

Ale Cors   |   Operations Coordinator

Mexico City, Mexico          LinkedIn

• Aliz
  Master's degrees in Economics & International Relations. Background in banking and a passion for development finance and social responsibility. Spent several years in the Middle East. Enjoys traveling, sports & cooking.

Aliz   |   Anglophone Liaison

Budapest, Hungary

• Arianna Miller
  Master of Public Administration with special interest in international development. Originally from Nashville, TN but a very mobile individual! Enjoys French, reading, brunching, and wine tastings.

Arianna Miller   |   Anglophone Liaison

Washington, DC, United States          LinkedIn

• Abdelkabir Mandili
  Master’s student in Political Economy at the University of Amsterdam. Participated as a Global Citizen fellow in Malaysia. Passionate about international development. Enjoys travelling and sports.

Abdelkabir Mandili   |   Anglophone Liaison

Amsterdam, Netherlands

• Ronny Wijaya
  An engineer who worked in fin-tech & mobile-payment fields in the Bay Area. Curious on what could happen if we help others to grow. Enjoys finding intriguing topics; also enjoys basketball.

Ronny Wijaya   |   Indonesia Liaison

Jakarta, Indonesia;, United States

• Lauren Finkenthal
  Undergraduate student at Georgetown University studying Africa, French, and Women's and Gender Studies. Passionate about social justice on a global scale. Enjoys cooking, singing, and debating competitively.

Lauren Finkenthal   |   Francophone Liaison

Washington, DC, United States          LinkedIn

• Betsy Ramser Jaime
  Bachelor's degree in Business Administration. Master's Degree in Entrepreneurship. Business Instructor and Mentor. Originally from the Midwest and currently living in Florida. Loves travel, K Pop, and reading.

Betsy Ramser Jaime   |   Entrepreneur Story Writer

Gainesville, Florida, United States          LinkedIn

• Leah Silverman
  A current student at the University of Virginia working towards a degree in Public Policy. Interests include vegan advocacy and sustainability.

Leah Silverman   |   Francophone Liaison

Reston, Virginia, United States

• Emily Silber
  Born in Connecticut. Bachelor's Degree in International Business, University of Connecticut. Master's Degree in Accountancy, GWU in D.C. Passionate about international relations/finance, travel, music, the beach, photography, and her pets.

Emily Silber   |   Accountant

Arlington, Virginia, United States          LinkedIn

• Siddharth Shankar
  Economics/Law student at UNSW Sydney. Passionate about development economics and entrepreneurship. Cricket nerd who loves traveling, art and photography.

Siddharth Shankar   |   Anglophone Liaison

Sydney, Australia

• Jyoti Diwan
  Born and raised in India. Recently moved to the U.S. Master's Degree in Business Administration with specialization in Finance; over 7 years of experience working across domains. She has always wanted to work for a nonprofit.

Jyoti Diwan   |   Anglophone Liaison

New York State, United States          LinkedIn

• Ting
  Bachelor's Degree in International Management, 2016. Currently learning French. Planning to go to graduate school to study Business.

Ting   |   Anglophone Liaison

Virginia, United States

• Lauren
  Graduate of Elon University with a degree in International Studies and soon to be law student at Case Western Reserve University. Passionate about international development and women's empowerment. Loves hiking, history museums, and horseback riding.

Lauren   |   Anglophone Liaison & Francophone Liaison

Texas, United States

• Bethany Plummer
  Master's Degree in International Studies and Diplomacy from The School of Oriental and African Studies, London. Specialisms in African Politics and Political Social Media. Enjoys cycling and travelling. Currently based in Western Kenya.

Bethany Plummer   |   Anglophone Liaison

London, England, United Kingdom

• Wolfgang
  Retired from senior positions in I.T.; for the past 10 years, has been mentoring companies in Germany and Canada. Helping the Zidisha team adds a new and inspiring challenge. Enjoys swimming, diving, and traveling.

Wolfgang   |   Anglophone Liaison; Francophone Liaison; Mentor/Consultant

Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada

• Reema Mukherjee
  Raised in India, Reema moved to the U.S. recently. Keenly interested in meaningful & impactful contributions and understanding the myriad roles of finance in society. Relishes traveling, reading, and meeting new people.

Reema Mukherjee   |   Anglophone Liaison

California, United States

• Christie Young
  Recent graduate in International Affairs, based in Boston and working for a community solar company. Found Zidisha when writing a paper on Microfinance last year!

Christie Young   |   Anglophone Liaison

Boston, Massachusetts, United States          LinkedIn

• Yujie
  An Economics student at Bocconi University. Currently spending a gap year travelling around Southeast Asia. Loves eating, travelling, and exploring the unknown. Always looking for meaningful and innovative ways to help others.

Yujie   |   Anglophone Liaison

Ipoh, Malaysia

• Camille Smith
  Studying Finance and Spanish at Truman State University, studied abroad in Spain and Costa Rica. Interested in international development and microfinance, passionate about financial empowerment for women. Loves running, cooking, and reading.

Camille Smith   |   Anglophone Liaison

Kansas City, Missouri, United States          LinkedIn

• Raquel Salgado
  B.A. in Business Administration; attended the Frankfurt School of Finance & Management certificate program in Microfinance. Has traveled to over 13 countries and has lived in India and Taiwan; recently got married in Italy.

Raquel Salgado   |   Accountant

California, United States

• Zack Burt
  Businessperson and technologist who embraces practical solutions for providing community.​ Loves art and learning new things.

Zack Burt   |   Country Expansion Lead

New York, New York, United States          LinkedIn

• Claudia
  Master's Degree in Physics and PhD in Engineering; working as researcher in Italy with short secondments in UK and USA. I teach Italian as a volunteer and manage the website of a non-profit organization. I Love traveling, reading, and movies.

Claudia   |   Anglophone Liaison

Milan, Italy

• Emily Johnson
  Born and raised in Texas, but currently spending time in Taiwan and in Idaho. Pursuing a a bachelor's degree in History and Non-Profit Management. Passionate about supporting and empowering children and families. Loves hiking, skiing, and reading.

Emily Johnson   |   Francophone Liaison

Taipei, Taiwan;, United States

• S​ara Haire
  Graduated from the University of Alabama with majors in Economics and International Studies and a minor in Italian. Pursuing a career in international development and/or microfinance. Avid book reader, traveler, and striving to be a polyglot one day.

S​ara Haire   |   Francophone Liaison

Athens, Georgia, United States

• Aleena Saha​​
  A (mad) cognitive scientist turn designer discovering how to empower creative human success. Revels in strategically welding minds and ideas for a more sustainable and equitable society. Reads voraciously and dances ballet.

Aleena Saha​​   |   Media Outreach

Cupertino, California, United States

• Kavitha Ashwin​​
  Born in India. Previously worked in advertising. Mother of two boys. Enjoys creative and artistic pursuits. Keen to help people help themselves through Zidisha.

Kavitha Ashwin​​   |   Anglophone Liaison

Sydney, Australia          LinkedIn

• Mai Nguyen
  Born in Vietnam, educated in the U.S. Currently a CPA working for a healthcare company in Nashville. Passionate about solving problems through economic freedom and equality. Enjoys reading, traveling, cooking.

Mai Nguyen   |   Accountant

Nashville, Tennessee, United States

• Cameron
  Pursuing a Bachelor's Degree in Economics and International Affairs at James Madison University. Grew up in various European countries. Interested in development economics, travel, and history.

Cameron   |   Anglophone Liaison & Francophone Liaison

Harrisonburg, Virginia, United States

• Pooja Kumar
  Studying Business Administration and Economics at UC Berkeley. Passionate about microfinance and helping internationally-focused nonprofit organizations.

Pooja Kumar   |   Accountant

Berkeley, California, United States

• Abdoulaye Tandia
  Young finance professional from Senegal. Moved to Toronto in 2010. Spent most of youth travelling and saw firsthand the disparity of opportunities across the first and third worlds.

Abdoulaye Tandia   |   Francophone Liaison

Toronto, Ontario, Canada

• Mary
  A rising senior at George Mason University, majoring in Global Affairs with a concentration in Human Security. Became interested in Zidisha after taking an Environmental Policymaking class focused on developing countries.

Mary   |   Anglophone Liaison

Fairfax, Virginia, United States

• Ruth Prosko
  Pursuing an MBA at Ohio University. Interested in technology and developmental economics. Enjoys traveling, cooking, and sports.

Ruth Prosko   |   Anglophone Liaison

Athens, Ohio, United States

• Linda
  Masters in Global Studies and International Relations with a concentration in development in Latin America. Lived and worked for a year in Guatemala. Enjoys traveling, painting, and running.

Linda   |   Anglophone Liaison

Massachusetts, United States

• Paige
  Master's Degrees in Public Administration and International Development. Interest ed in economic development, global health, and agriculture. Likes reading, listening to music, and playing the balafon.

Paige   |   Francophone Liaison

Senegal & East Coast, United States

• Jessica Scazzero
  Studying Economics, Statistics, and Italian at Harvard College. Interested in social entrepreneurship and financial empowerment of women. Loves traveling, hiking, and cooking.

Jessica Scazzero   |   Indonesia Liaison & Anglophone Liaison

Boston, Massachusetts, United States

• Abhisek Sahoo
  From California; studying Business Administration and English at the University of California, Berkeley. Interested in poker, basketball, and spending time with friends.

Abhisek Sahoo   |   Anglophone Liaison

Berkeley, California, United States

• Namu Hichilo
  Passionate about technology, history and Africa. Background in software engineering. Always looking for something new to learn.

Namu Hichilo   |   Anglophone Liaison (& helps Ale w/Operations)

Lusaka, Zambia          LinkedIn

• Evan Metzner
  Raised in Connecticut; pursuing B.A. In Economics and History w/a Minor in International Studies. Admittedly indecisive w/his broad choice of studies, has a voracious appetite for knowledge & hopes to use it to solve inequities around the world.

Evan Metzner   |   Anglophone Liaison

Fairfield, Connecticut, United States

• Laurie
  Bachelor's Degree, SUNY, self-financed w/grants, scholarship & summer work; Cumulative GPA: 3.8/4.0, Rank: #15/814. Passionately helping the disadvantaged! Disciple of Tom Shadyac, his excellent "I AM" film & great book: LIFE'S OPERATING MANUAL :-)

Laurie   |   Anglo/Francophone Liaison (& helps Ale w/Operations)

East Coast, United States