Our team
Our programs are led by those who speak the local languages, know the culture and understand the unique challenges of each community. More than 95 percent of our worldwide team members are from the countries where they work. Their hard work and personal commitment to success helps lift their neighbors from poverty.
Are you a Mercy Corps person? See opportunities to join our team ▸
Meet some of our team members
Emmett Freeman, Program Coordinator, Liberia
Emmett has a remarkable way with those we serve, helping war survivors talk freely about what they've endured and what they need. Emmett is taking personal responsibility to help heal his battered country. He loves Liberia and his people, and is working hard to help them use their own initiative to make new lives after so many years of war
Rosy Choudhury, Program Director, Northeast India
Since 2007, Rosy has led Mercy Corps’ Community Health and Advancement Initiative (CHAI) in India’s fractious and impoverished Assam State. She grew up in northeastern India and is today responsible for guiding programs that offer educational and economic opportunities to tea workers, and give women of all ages the chance to learn how to read, write and manage their own finances for the first time.
Christine Adong, Administrative Officer, Uganda
Christine survived years of terrible conflict in northern Uganda. As a child, her family was forced to flee their village when rebels attacked. As a young woman, she moved to the capital, but couldn't turn her back on her home and her people. In 2006 she became Mercy Corps' first employee in Uganda, and has been helping us bring peace, prosperity and hope to northern Uganda ever since.
Diana Roa, Chief of Land Mine Assistance Program, Colombia
Diana has committed herself to helping land mine survivors — in Yemen, Nicaragua, Afghanistan and now her native country, Colombia, home to the largest number of new mine victims in the world. “Every time I meet a land mine survivor is a completely new experience,” says Diana. “But each one inspires me with their resilience and inner strength. They overcome so many challenges to rebuild their lives.”
Our executive leadership
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Neal Keny-Guyer, CEO
Neal Keny-Guyer is a social entrepreneur committed to creating a more just and peaceful world. A native of Tennessee, Keny-Guyer holds a B.A. in Public Policy and Religion from Duke University, an M.A. in Public and Private Management from Yale University, and an honorary Doctor of Humane Letters from Portland State University, Oregon. Neal’s Bio ▸ -
Linda Mason, Chair
Linda Mason is chairman and co-founder of Bright Horizons, the largest worldwide provider of worksite child care and early education. Bright Horizons operates more than 750 high quality child development centers for employers in 45 states, Europe and India. Linda’s Bio ▸
Our founders
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Dan O'Neill, Founder
In 1979, Dan co-founded Save the Refugees Fund, an emergency relief task force assisting Cambodian refugees following the infamous “Killing Fields” catastrophe. In 1980, he attended White House Cambodia Crisis Committee events at the request of then-First Lady Rosalynn Carter, who has continued to lend her support and encouragement over three decades. In 1981, Dan incorporated Mercy Corps with a mission to alleviate suffering, poverty and oppression by helping people to build just, secure and productive communities. Dan’s Bio ▸ -
Ells Culver, Co-Founder
Ells Culver served as President from 1984 to 1993 and Senior Vice-President until his death in August 2005. His interest in international humanitarian work began at an early age: he spent his early childhood in China, where his parents were missionaries. Throughout his life, he was committed to bringing relief, understanding and hope to the world’s poorest families. Read Dan’s tribute to Ells ▸