Meet The Team

An American living in Germany, Lisa considers herself a global citizen. She's co-founder and board member, Apolitical.co, a serial entrepreneur and former public servant. Lisa has co-founded several political training and leadership institutes over the last 25 years. She has worked on numerous campaigns and counselled CEOs, Nobel Peace Prize winners, politicians and philanthropists.  She was a World Economic Forum Young Global Leader. (She/her/hers)

Suki is a Bolivian-German strategist, political enthusiast, women’s rights advocate, entrepreneur, and researcher. A political scientist with expertise in political communications, public policy, and digital strategy, she co-founded a strategic communications firm in Bolivia. With over 15 years of experience leading teams across Latin America, Suki has worked with governments, multilateral organizations, cooperation agencies, and the private sector. As a professor, she has taught Innovation in the Public Sector and published studies with UNDP, GIZ, and various organizations. (She/her/hers)

A former journalist, Rebekah's career spans reporting, international relations and now political leadership. After moving to Berlin from Australia, she became a 2018/19 European Journalism Fellow and later worked on Asia-Pacific projects for the EU's European External Action Service. She covered courts, royal commissions, politics and was a correspondent in northern Australia for Australian Associated Press. (She/her/hers)

A Peruvian in Germany, Ximena is a Master of Public Policy candidate at the Hertie School. Author of the book in Spanish "Toolbox for Strategic Political Training". With the aim to strengthen democracy and build a fairer society, she has been working for the last two decades in the promotion of political participation, especially in the field of political training. She has extensive experience in managing multi-stakeholder projects. She speaks Spanish and English. (She/her/hers)

Born and raised in South Africa, Khadija is a media strategist with extensive expertise in political communications. A former journalist, her work has appeared in leading print and broadcast media in South Africa and internationally. Khadija is an alumnus of the International Visitor Leadership Program (IVLP) and a former Chevening Scholar.
She holds a postgraduate degree in Political Science and is currently pursuing a Master’s in Development Economics at the University of Chinese Academy of Social Sciences (UCASS).

Originally from Odesa, Ukraine, Veronika earned a Bachelor's in Management in Warsaw, Poland. With finance experience in Warsaw and controlling in Berlin, she brings valuable expertise to the Better Politics Foundation as an Administrative and Finance Assistant. Veronika speaks English, Polish, Russian, Ukrainian, German, and Spanish and is dedicated to ensuring smooth financial and administrative operations. (She/her/hers)

Originally from Pakistan and now residing in Berlin, Naveera Amjad brings a diverse academic background in security and sustainability to her work. She holds a Master’s degree in International Affairs from the Hertie School, and has expertise in policy analysis, stakeholder engagement, and project management. Naveera is driven by a strong work ethos centred around fostering inclusive and equitable development particularly in areas of politics, climate finance and education technology. (She/her/hers)

Born and raised in South Africa, and now living in Berlin, Helen is an interdisciplinary professional with a diverse background spanning legal analysis, policy research and advisory, parliamentary reporting, and data-driven ESG-aligned impact evaluation. With two Bachelor’s Degrees in Political Science and Law, as well as a Master of Public Policy from the Hertie School, she has long been committed to learning how to build more inclusive, effective, transparent, and future‑oriented public institutions. Her passion for democratic innovation and fostering better leadership within these institutions brought her to the Better Politics Foundation. (She/her/hers)

Originally from Colombia and Chile, Samuel is a Master of Public Policy candidate at the Hertie School in Berlin. His work centers on strengthening democratic resilience through civic education, inclusive leadership, and evidence-based public policy. With experience in Latin America and Europe, he has contributed to projects on misinformation, well-being, and political training. He speaks Spanish, English, and intermediate German. (He/him/his)

A Filipino-American in Germany, Ran is a Master of Public Policy candidate at the Hertie School. His studies focus on digital innovations in democracy and how to utilize them to enhance government effectiveness. Ran comes from a background working in public health nonprofits, focusing on how to improve the social determinants of health through community-led solutions. (He/him/his)

Kim came to Germany from Australia and via Burundi and Haiti. She is a lawyer and non-profit strategist who has helped to found non-profits and social enterprises in Haiti, Burundi and Australia. Before joining the Better Politics Foundation team, Kim was Partnerships Manager at Apolitical.co. She has partnered with government, UN agencies, philanthropy and civil society to design high-impact workshops and training for diverse groups. She speaks English and German. (She/her/hers)

A Canadian living in Berlin. Anna is passionate about enabling access to education for young people. She previously led global projects at an EdTech start-up in Berlin and helped establish a leadership programme for young change makers across Africa. (She/her/hers)

A Jordanian living in Berlin, working on promoting freedom, democracy, and human rights. With 10 years of experience in political education and civic engagement, Hussam specializes in youth empowerment and strengthening political organizations. Hussam holds a Master's degree in Public Administration from the Hertie School, specializing in digitalization and big data. Committed to fostering inclusive dialogue and advancing democratic principles globally. He Speaks English and Arabic.  (He/him/his)

Natalia is an Obama Scholar ‘19 with over 10 years of experience in government at the local and national level in Argentina. She was a member of President Obama’s Inclusive Economies Working Group. During her different appointments in government she worked on developing youth-centered public policy impacting +1.5 million by focusing on shifting paradigms around government engagement with youth. Natalia holds a BA in international studies (UTDT), an MA in development studies (IDS-Sussex).

Cäcilia is an intersectional feminist with a background in human rights advocacy and disability rights work. From her previous experiences, she brings expertise in project management, advocacy, and stakeholder engagement in the civil society space and in political campaigns. In her work, she strives to empower people from marginalized groups and people with disabilities to stand up for their rights and to provide them with a platform for self-advocacy and skills development. (She/they)

Originally from Syria and now based in Berlin, Rahaf brings over a decade of experience in humanitarian response, civil society, and international development. She began her career in Damascus, leading a psychosocial support project for IDPs, before moving to Turkey to manage multi-million-dollar initiatives advancing women’s empowerment, civil society, and alternative governance in Syria. She later directed a program on open-source human rights documentation and legal advocacy, before continuing to build partnerships and oversee grants with governments and international NGOs. Fluent in Arabic and English, Rahaf is deeply committed to amplifying underrepresented voices and fostering inclusive leadership in complex political environments. (She/her/hers)

Born and raised between Paraguay and Brazil, Dino studied International Relations and Diplomacy in Taiwan before moving to Berlin to complete a Master’s in International Affairs at the Hertie School. Along the way, he worked with Hertie’s Alumni Affairs team and supported communications at the European Federation of Academies of Sciences. Dino is passionate about the intersection of communications, politics, and society, and how they influence each other. He speaks Spanish, Portuguese, and English fluently, is conversational in Mandarin Chinese, and is still bravely tackling German. (He/him/his)

Born and raised in São Paulo, Brazil, Dora is a Master of Public Policy candidate. Her work focuses on how societies and governments can enhance women's visibility and representation in politics. She has published articles about gender equality, women's representation, and feminist activism. She speaks Portuguese, English, German and Spanish. (She/her/hers)

Chirag is a Master of Public Policy candidate at the Hertie School in Berlin. An analyst by training, he brings a multidisciplinary background spanning policy research and implementation, digital health, grassroots non-profit, and analytics consulting. Before joining Hertie, he worked with the International Innovation Corps at the University of Chicago, supporting the Government of Karnataka, India, in executing statewide digital health strategies. He has also worked at EPIC India, contributing to environmental policy research and stakeholder engagement. (He/him/his)