STAFF

Elaine Zuckerman, President and Founder

Gender Action represents Elaine Zuckerman's life, work and passion to ensure social justice, and equal rights and opportunities for women. Elaine joined the World Bank when she heard that China was becoming a borrowing member in 1980 and worked there as an economist on China. This preceded the advent of structural adjustment loans (SALs) and protests against the Bank. Witnessing the unfolding of structural adjustment, in 1987 she created the Bank's first program to globally mitigate SALs' harmful impacts on the poor, especially on women. Later she worked in the World Bank's gender unit where she had an opportunity to analyze Bank investments around the world across sectors. She was struck by the paucity of Bank operations that try to empower women despite Bank rhetoric and studies expressing the urgency to do so in order to reduce poverty. In the 1990s at the Inter-American Development Bank (IADB), Elaine designed a strategy for the Amazon that prohibited future investments in roads and ranching that damaged indigenous groups and the environment, and instead promoted health, water, education and renewable resources. She was also Coordinator of the IADB's Social Agenda Policy Group which promoted equitable education and health financing for all men and women, girls and boys.

While working in the International Financial Institutions (IFIs), Elaine realized that citizen groups, that began proliferating worldwide during the 1980s, were designing the most dynamic, responsive solutions to development problems. This inspired her, in 2002, to launch Gender Action, a non-profit advocacy campaign to hold the IFIs accountable on their promises to empower women and leverage the IFIs' power to redress the unacceptable feminization of poverty. Gender Action's exposure of how over a trillion dollars in IFI "assistance" has largely neglected and often harmed poor women is pushing the IFIs to start keeping their promises to empower women.

While at Gender Action, the IFIs, and consulting for bilateral aid agencies and civil society organizations such as the International Center for Research on Women and Oxfam, Elaine has worked extensively on China, Latin America, Africa and Southeastern Europe on gender issues, poverty, poverty reduction strategies, the social impact of macroeconomic policies and structural adjustment reforms, social investment funds, education and health financing, rural development, infrastructure, and environment projects. While serving on the Association for Women's Rights in Development (AWID) Board of Directors during the 1980s, she designed and chaired the first AWID Forum workshop that examined the negative impacts of structural adjustment on women, featuring presenters from Africa, Asia and Latin America who told their stories firsthand.

Elaine studied in China for over three years during the Cultural Revolution on Canadian and Chinese government scholarships. During this time, she experienced Chinese life by living with Chinese and working on communes and in factories. She completed her studies in political economy at McGill University, the University of Toronto and Beijing University and in business administration at Georgetown University. She speaks and reads Chinese, French and Spanish. Currently Elaine Chairs the National Council of Women's Organizations' Global Task Force, and serves on the Jubilee USA Network Council -- which works to cancel the illegitimate debt of poor countries, the Real Wealth of Nations Public Policy Initiative Advisory Council, the UK-based Chronic Poverty Research Centre Advisory Council, and in numerous coalitions fighting for social and gender justice.

Elizabeth Arend, Programs Coordinator

Elizabeth joined Gender Action in 2010 and leads the organization's work on IFIs, gender and reproductive health, HIV, gender based violence and food insecurity. In addition to writing primers and country case studies on these topics, she co-authored Gender Action's Essential Gender Analysis Checklist and Governing Climate Funds: What Will Work for Women? Elizabeth has also conducted IFI and gender capacity building workshops for Gender Action's civil society partners in Cameroon, Kenya and Uganda. Elizabeth holds a BA in Feminist and Gender Studies from Bryn Mawr College and an MPH from Johns Hopkins School of Public Health. As a Thomas J. Watson fellow in 2002-2003, Elizabeth conducted an independent study on reproductive health law and policy in Ireland, South Africa, Egypt and Holland. Following her fellowship year, she worked as a social worker for chronically ill foster children at the Children's Aid Society in New York City. After earning her master's degree in 2006, Elizabeth completed a post-graduate fellowship with the Clinton Foundation/Yale University Ethiopian Hospital Management Initiative, and then worked with orphans and vulnerable children on behalf of the Olive Leaf Foundation in Khayelitsha, South Africa from 2007-2009. Prior to joining Gender Action, Elizabeth served as the Associate Director of Monitoring and Evaluation for Partners in Health in Rwanda.

Sonia Lowman, Programs Associate

Sonia came to Gender Action in November 2010 from the Middle East Department at the International Monetary Fund. She is responsible for Gender Action's programmatic work related to post-conflict reconstruction, extractive industries and climate change. She co-authored Gender Action's Essential Gender Analysis Checklist and Governing Climate Funds: What Will Work for Women?, and authored Broken Promises: Gender Impacts of the World Bank-Financed West African and Chad-Cameroon Pipelines. She holds a Master's degree from the London School of Economics and International Relations and a BA from Boston University, both in international relations. Sonia has interned and worked in a number of non-profit, government, and social enterprise settings, including a stint in Bosnia in 2006. Besides traveling, Sonia loves yoga, creative writing, playing music, volunteering for worthwhile causes, and spending time with her community of friends.

Lisa Vitale, Executive and Communications Assistant

Prior to joining Gender Action in 2010, Lisa worked for Freedom House on their Middle East North Africa and Exchanges programs. She holds a B.A. in Political Science from the University of Arizona, and has studied and lived in countries including Australia, Honduras, and Jordan. She has a strong interest in promoting gender equality and combating gender based violence. Outside of work, she enjoys traveling, scuba, reading, and watching old movies from the silver screen.

Joel assists Gender Action in a variety of strategic, policy and communications areas. A longtime public affairs professional, Joel's work has often focused upon gender, human rights, international affairs, international financial institutions, and HIV/AIDS policies. Joel handled IFI policy issues during his seven years of service on Capitol Hill, including as a senior legislative aide to a member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, and the House Banking Committee. Joel has also crafted public affairs strategies for major clients at the prominent Washington firm Podesta Associates, subsequently co-owned a boutique consulting firm, and served as Director of Media Relations for Planned Parenthood. Joel has developed public affairs strategies for a broad array of entities across the public and private sectors, including United Airlines, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, America Online, American Foundation for AIDS Research (AmFAR), American Association of University Women, People for the American Way, and many others.

ASSOCIATES

Ashley Garrett (2003-2005), Eritrea IPRSP Analysis and Fieldwork around Engendering the PRSP and Food Security Strategy; Mozambique PRSP gender analysis; Co-author of Do Poverty Reduction Strategy Papers Address Gender Issues? A Gender Audit of 2002 PRSPs.

Marcia Greenberg (2004-2007), Co-author of Gender Action's Gender Dimensions of Post-Conflict Reconstruction Paper Series.

CURRENT VOLUNTEERS AND CONSULTANTS

Gender Action carries out its work by relying on a corps of superb volunteers and consultants listed below.

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CFC#: 57340