About the Alumni Committee

The Alumni Committee:

• David Loquercio (Coordinator, NOHA-Louvain, 1999/2000)

After taking part in the NOHA programme in Louvain and Uppsala (Erasmus) in 1999-2000,  David joined the ICRC and worked during four years as a delegate, head of office and head of sub-delegation in Kuwait, Jerusalem and Afghanistan respectively. He further trained himself in management and implementation of development projects at the Institute for Development Policy and Management in Manchester and started researching and writing about staff turnover in humanitarian agencies. He then joined Oxfam’s emergency pool, working as Humanitarian Support Professional for two years in Zimbabwe, Chad, Peru and Pakistan. Going back to Geneva, David worked as manager for KPMG Advisory with clients in the non profit sector. A member of the alumni committee since 2010, David is currently on a one year round the world trip.

• Selma Scheewe (Secretary, NOHA-Groningen, 2005/2006)

Selma Scheewe completed her Masters in Humanitarian Action at the NOHA Programme in Groningen in 2005-2006 and focused on human security and gender issues. Selma has worked for a number of NGOs and international organisations in the Horn, East and Central Africa, including Africa Humanitarian Action (Ethiopia), UNFPA (Uganda) and the UN Peacekeeping Mission in DRC. In these organisations she worked on the prevention and response to gender based violence, gender mainstreaming, research and capacity building, working with a range of constituencies from military and police to women's organisations and academia. In 2008, Selma joined the Social Science Research Council as a Program Coordinator and worked on the establishment of a new International Center on Gender, Peace and Security. Selma has joined the alumni committee in 2010 as a Alumni Liaison Officer and is currently the Secretary.

• Linda Sparre (Treasurer, NOHA-Dublin, 2008/2009)

A NOHA graduate from Dublin (2008-2009) I have after nine years on the move returned to Norway this last month. My great interest has been concentrated around disaster risk reduction and I have worked on this in India and Burkina Faso. The first half of 2011 I interned with the Norwegian Permanent Mission to the UN in Geneva where I was a part of the humanitarian team at the mission. Back in Norway I am applying for jobs and currently doing a course to become a guardian for asylumseekers who are under-aged.

• Bo Hurkmans (Webmaster, NOHA-Dublin, 2009/2011)

Bo has done his undergraduate in International Relations & International Organisation at the University of Groningen, The Netherlands. During his studies in Groningen he volunteered with the local branch of The Netherlands Red Cross. He has studied NOHA at University College Dublin, Ireland and Uppsala University in Sweden, and did his internship with the Civil-Military Coordination Section at the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs in Geneva, Switzerland. Currently, he is interning with the Disaster Services Department of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, also in Geneva. Bo joined the Alumni Committee in January 2010 as Webmaster, and will continue in this role for the coming year.

• Lena Zimmer (Alumni Liaison Officer, NOHA-Bochum, 2009/2011)

Before studying the NOHA program in 2009/2010 in Bochum, Uppsala and New York, Lena Zimmer worked as a social anthropologist, filmmaker and humanitarian practitioner in South and Southeast Asia for six years. In her work she specialized on Myanmar, children's affairs, migration, and the politicization of aid. Brussels-based she worked in DG ECHO after her graduation, and is presently a staff-member of Save the Children's EU advocacy team. In August 2011 she joined the Alumni Committee as Alumni Liaison Officer.

• Sherry Panggabean (Alumni Liaison Officer, NOHA-Uppsala, 2008/2010)

Sherry was working in the US before finally deciding to return to Indonesia in 2005, soon after the tsunami struck her native country Indonesia. She worked for the UNDSS CISMU and UNORC, which focused on tsunami and post conflict recovery activities in Aceh province until her enrollment in NOHA Uppsala 2008-2009. After completing NOHA, Sherry again returned to Indonesia and joined the Center for Disaster Risk Management and Community Development Studies with HKBP Nommensen University, which seeks to strengthen capacity for disaster risk reduction through right-based empowerment of communities. She is also a member of NOHA Alumni Committee, and serves as the Alumni Liaison officer for 2011-2012 term.

• Gabriella Irsten (Public Relations Officer, NOHA-Bochum, 2009/2011)

Gabriella spent her second NOHA semester in Uppsala and the third at University of Western Cape in South Africa. Gabriella has an undergraduate in International relations from Stockholm’s University in Sweden. Throughout her studies she has been active in different activist groups focusing on women’s rights and gender mainstreaming. Currently she holds a project associate position at Women’s International League For Peace and Freedoms in Geneva, were her work focuses on multilateral disarmament. Gabriella joined the Alumni Committee in February 2011.

• Viren Falcao (Professional Career Development Officer, NOHA-Bochum, 2007/2008)

Viren Falcao was a student of the NOHA programme at the Ruhr-University Bochum and University College Dublin between 2007-08. His educational experiences include a prior MA in International Relations and an undergraduate degree in Economics. Since completing his NOHA Masters, Viren has worked with Sphere India - a country pilot of the Sphere Project and a coalition of humanitarian agencies in India and as an independent consultant on a range of assignments. His areas of experience include emergency coordination, disaster risk reduction, emergency response and the strengthening of quality and accountability in humanitarian action. Viren is currently based in Afghanistan as the Emergency Response Project Manager with an international NGO.

• Myrthe Wajer (Professional Career Development Officer, NOHA-Groningen, 2009/2010)

Myrthe holds a BA in International Relations and International Organisation from Groningen University, the Netherlands. She graduated NOHA in Groningen and Uppsala (2009/2010). For the third semester she conducted research on the legitimacy of external transitional governments in the aftermath of conflict at Columbia University. Previously she gained experience at the Crisis Management Division of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Netherlands, the Dutch Council for Refugees and at Makerere University in Uganda.  Currently she works with needs assessments at the assessment capacities project (ACAPS) in Geneva. For the NOHA Alumni Committee she will focus on internship possibilities.

• Daniela Kaschel (Professional Career Development Officer, NOHA-Bochum, 2006/2007)

Before joining the NOHA network, Daniela studied cultural science at the European University Viadrina in Frankfurt/O.. After two internships in South Africa and Berlin she did the NOHA programme in Bochum (2006/2007). Shortly after completion she joined the NOHA team in Bochum, organising the 2008/2009 course. She left Bochum at the end of 2008 and started working for Malteser International as programme assistant spending 6 month in South Sudan. Then Daniela joined the Malteser team at Headquarters in Cologne working there as programme officer for the South Sudan programmes.

• Margot Steenbergen (Professional Development and Learning Officer, NOHA-Groningen, 2006/2007)

Margot completed NOHA in 2006-2007, in Groningen. She found a great internship through a NOHA alumnus, with Save the Children in Pakistan. Unfortunately, the political situation became such that this internship had to be finished prematurely. However, through yet another NOHA alumnus, Margot found the opportunity to do a second internship. This time with the UNHRC, in a refugee camp in Nothern Kenya. After this, she has worked for a charity fundraising site for a while, before starting to work for the Netherlands Red Cross. The first two years, Margot worked in their  Headquarters, as a Programme Officer for Central Asia. In March 2011, Margot has swapped The Hague for Manila, where she is currently supporting a disaster risk reduction project.

Previous members of the Alumni Committee:

• Alicia Gimenez Garcia (NOHA-Deusto, 2008/2010)
• Pilar Mendoza (NOHA-Uppsala, 2008/2010)
• Ciara Eustace (NOHA-Dublin, 2006/2007)
• Coleen Heemskerk (NOHA-Uppsala, 2003/2004)
• Susan van Duijl (NOHA-Groningen, 2002/2003)
• Karin Werkman (NOHA-Dublin, 2008/2009)
• Cecile De Milliano (NOHA-Groningen, 2005/2006)
• David Knaute (NOHA-Groningen, 2004/2005)
• Kordian Kochanowicz (NOHA-Bochum, 2006/2007)
• Sylvia Stoll (NOHA-Dublin, 2007/2008)
• Petra Olsson (NOHA-Uppsala, 2004/2005)
• Hanna Radberg (NOHA-Uppsala, 2004/2005)
• Cornelia Walther (NOHA-Louvain, 2002/2003)
• Mart Leys (NOHA-Louvain, 2005/2006)
• John Lakeman (NOHA-Bochum, 2006/2007)
• Gemma Bennink (NOHA-Groningen, 2001-2002
• Miguel Angel Prieto Vaz (NOHA-Deusto, 1996/1997)
• Ulla Pape (NOHA-Groningen, 2004/2005)
• Shay Shoham (NOHA-Bochum, 2005/2006)
• Marije Mellegers (NOHA-Dublin, 2004/2005)
• Sylvie Hessel (NOHA-Dublin, 2003/2004)
• Maartje Voojis (NOHA-Groningen, 2005/2006)
• Suzanne Versteegh (NOHA-Groningen, 2000/2001)
• Ela Serdaroglu (NOHA-Groningen, 2001/2002)
• Goossen Hoenders (NOHA-Groningen, 2002/2003)
• Lutz Krebs (NOHA-Dublin, 2003/2004)
• Sven Peterke (NOHA-Bochum, 2000/2001)
• Christian Schmitt (NOHA-Bochum, 2000/2001)
• Octavio de la Varga (NOHA-Deusto, 1997/1998)
• Gorka Gurrutia (NOHA-Deusto, 1997/1998)