AMIGOS OF COSTA RICA - Key Persons

Job Titles:

• Affiliate Coordinator

Agua Tica is the first public-private water fund in the country. The watersheds of the Grande and Virilla Rivers suffer increasing contamination and degradation from high population growth, lack of planning, and unregulated development. Agua Tica works to protect the sub-watersheds of the Grande and Virilla Rivers in the GMA where 57% of the population lives and where 75% of the nation's industry can be found.

Job Titles:

• Business Owner
• Chairman of the Board
• Member of the Leadership Team

Ann Becker has been a business owner throughout her career. Today, as the CEO of Travel with Ann Experiential, Ann is dedicated to supporting and strengthening responsible travel small businesses, nonprofit organizations, and leaders by forging strategic connections; contributing fresh perspectives; including and elevating diverse voices; and strengthening organizational capacity. Her quest to ensure that the travel industry puts connections among local hosts, small communities and visitors front and center responsibly is unwavering. With more than three decades of experience in meeting/event management and strategy consulting combined with a passion fortravel rooted in deep, mutually beneficial human encounters, Ann started Travel with Ann Costa Rica in 2005. She created and led more than 40 small group experiential trips in Costa Rica, neighboring countries and Chile for 15 years. Ann has a BA in Political Science from the University of Colorado and a MA in Science, Technology and Public Policy from the George Washington University's Elliott School of International Affairs. She received her Certificate in Sustainable Tourism from the Global Sustainable Tourism Council (GSTC) in spring 2020 and was thrilled to have been a participant in the RISE Travel Institute's Pilot Program in Sustainability and Anti-Oppression in Travel in summer 2021. She is currently the Principal Strategic Advisor for RISE and the board chair of Amigos of Costa Rica.

Job Titles:

• Member of the Leadership Team
• Vice - Chair of the Board

Cathy Kading is an accomplished tech exec turned entrepreneur, with over 20 years working in SaaS, with some of the biggest names in the world including Live Nation Entertainment, Gap, Inc. and American Express. After decades of consulting for corporate clients, she focused her skills and talents to giving back to groups and individuals, in the Health and Wellness space. She founded Pomona Wellness, Inc. in 2021 with the goal of helping high performers with chronic illness from across the world, continue to lead rich and fulfilling lives, without compromising their health. She writes, coaches and grows medicinal plants from the green hills of Costa Rica. A reflection on why Cathy joined the Amigos of Costa Rica Board:

Costas Verdes believes that the active participation of local communities in these activities and environmental education is vital in these processes. To this end, Costas Verdes involves school children in its activities, and organizes workshops in local schools and communities. In most cases its activities are supported by local businesses, which donate funds, materials and the time of their workers. Students from the country's universities as well as international visitors also volunteer their time. Costas Verdes also establishes nurseries in coastal communities with the support of local families, schools and businesses, which provide the plants and trees necessary for its work. Costas Verdes receives support from public agencies such as the National System of Conservation Areas and the Ministry of the Environment and Energy. The GCF, with resources from the Harmony and CRUSA Donor Advised Funds, has supported Costas Verde's Barriguiones, their biggest beach forest restoration project in Nosara, as well as outreach to public schools in the Nosara Area. Costas Verdes is also a local partner in the Rio Nosara Biological Corridor Initiative.

Job Titles:

• Program & Administrative Coordinator

Daniel Arce-Bobadilla, who was a Costa Rican and USA citizen, was the inspiration for the creation of Asociación Proyecto Daniel. When he was diagnosed with cancer at age 15, he decided to build a hospital for adolescents in Costa Rica. Daniel Arce-Bobadilla a Costa Rican and USA citizen, was the inspiration for the creation of Proyecto Daniel. He was diagnosed with cancer at age 15. When he was diagnosed, he realized that Costa Rican adolescents older than age 13 were treated with, and as, adults in adult hospitals with no spaces specifically for teenagers. He decided at age 15 that he would build a hospital for adolescents in Costa Rica; God had other plans and he passed away at age 19. Proyecto Daniel was founded in 2010 by Daniel's parents and it helps youngsters between ages 13-25 with any type of Cancer have a better quality of life. During these seven years it has impact the lives of more than 1000 adolescents and young adults with cancer and their families.

Job Titles:

• Member of the Board
• Member of the Leadership Team
• Product Director for Wear OS

Dennis Troper is the Product Director for Wear OS by Google. He joined Google in 2003and has worked on several product areas since then including AdWords, Google Workspace and Google Fiber. Prior to Google he held positions at Oracle, Concur Technologies and Deloitte Consulting. Dennis holds a BA in Economics from the University of Texas at Austin and an MS in Applied Economics from the University of California, Santa Cruz. He lives in Los Altos, California with his wife and five children.

Job Titles:

• Executive Director
• Member of the Leadership Team

Job Titles:

• Member of the Board
• Member of the Leadership Team

Katherine is a journalist, author, and communications consultant who has also worked in nonprofit management, education, and Costa Rica's public sector. Her passion for reducing inequality in Costa Rica has led her to co-found and lead projects including JumpStart Costa Rica and the Costa Rica Corps, both of which focus on engaging volunteers in creating opportunities in low-income rural communities. She is also the former editor of The Tico Times and served as a speechwriter for Nobel Peace Laureate Oscar Arias during his second presidency; she is the English Editor of the international nonprofit organization SembraMedia. As the co-founder and editor of El Colectivo 506 (elcolectivo506.com), a bilingual media organization focused on in-depth solutions journalism for and from Costa Rican communities, Katherine and her co-founder, Costa Rican photojournalist Mónica Quesada Cordero, headed the team of six journalists from El Colectivo 506 that was honored with the First Honorable Mention of the 2022 Pío Víquez National Journalism Award, part of Costa Rica's National Culture Awards. Katherine has also been awarded the Mental Health Journalism Fellowship from the Carter Center (USA) and is the Mercury Phoenix Trust HIV Journalism Fellowship. She lives in San José with her Costa Rican husband Adrián and their daughter Emma, for whom she wrote "Love in Translation: Letters to My Costa Rican Daughter," published in 2016. "Amigos made it possible for me to fundraise for my first nonprofit project in Costa Rica, thus making an impact on the lives of hundreds of kids we would never have been able to serve without this support. Since that time, I've seen Amigos open similar doors for more outstanding projects than I can count. I am proud to be a part of an organization that builds bridges between Costa Rica and the many people around the world who want to make a difference in this country."

Job Titles:

• Member of the Board
• Member of the Leadership Team

Job Titles:

• Member of the Board
• Member of the Leadership Team
• Founder / CEO of Story

Michale Gabriel is Founder/CEO of Story by Design. She is an award-winning storyteller, international speaker, author, workshop facilitator, storytelling guide, and leadership coach, founder of Storytell International, the Young Storytellers for Peace US/USSR Exchange program, and the Storytelling Residency Program at Seattle Children's Hospital. For the past 38 years, Michale has worked with corporate, governmental, non-profit, educational and entrepreneurial leaders worldwide including The Boeing Company(US and India), helping thousands of leaders to effectively craft and deliver their messages for the purpose of building trust, resonance and alignment to a common vision and purpose. A third generation Alaskan, Michale resided in Washington State for 40 years before moving to Costa Rica 9 years ago. Immediately, Michale investigated how she could be of service and contribute. She served on the non-profit Board of the Women's Club of Costa Rica for 6 years and was president for two. Under her leadership, the Club doubled their fundraising support for university scholarships as well as for providing schoolbooks for children in rural and indigenous areas. She also serves as a consultant to Animales de Asis Sanctuario, a no kill animal shelter in Heredia. Michale's touchstone is the quote from Margaret Mead:

Muni was born in Costa Rica. She held positions in the Costa Rican government as Director of Investment and Trade Promotion, the Minister of Foreign Trade, and a Special Presidential Trade Representative in support of the Caribbean Basin Initiative. In the 1990's she became the Division Chief for Trade and Integration in the Inter American Development Bank and then as their External Relations Advisor. In 2010 she was appointed the Ambassador of Costa Rica to the United States. Over the years Muni has served on the boards of many nonprofit organizations. Muni was present at both CRUSA's and Amigos' origins, as she formed part of the generation that implemented the plan, jointly conceived by USAID and the Costa Rica government, to create future-oriented, transformational institutions. Later, when Amigos was founded, she identified closely with its goals of tying the US-CR connection even tighter, turning tax exemption and philanthropy into a tool for sustainable development. When she was offered to lead Amigos in 2015, it seemed predestined, and she's been grateful ever since.

Job Titles:

• Member of the Board
• Member of the Leadership Team

Raquel is a Costa Rican attorney with a more than 15 years of experience in the corporate and real estate industry in the country. A passionate advocate for equity, inclusion, and sustainable development, she founded Legal She, a purpose driven boutique law firm that promotes women's participation in leadership roles within the legal profession and supports non-profit organizations that focus on fostering a fair and diverse society, in the communities where they operate in Costa Rica. She holds a Juris Doctor degree from the University of Costa Rica, a Postgraduate Degree in Commercial Law, Torts and Contracts from the University of Salamanca, and an MBA from the Aden Business School.