CIVICUS Staff

Michaela holds a Bachelors of Administration degree in International Relations from the University of Pretoria, and is currently completing her Bachelor of Commerce in Business Administration at UNISA. Being an advocate for the empowerment of African youth, she is also a member of BRICS Youth, and a MINDS Alumini. In her role as Michaela provides content support and is the first point of contact for any Crisis Response Fund related queries. The administrative support provided branches throughout the grant management cycle and dissemination of reports.

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Adele Manuel, Head of People, influences the people agenda encouraging teams to implement policies and practice at the heart of CIVICUS 's core values. Spanning twenty years’ experience working mostly across Africa, Adele's most exciting work has been in facilitating courageous conversations, finding the potential in people and processes to embrace diversity and inclusion, creating space in the organisation for people to innovate and spread bold ideas that work and ensuring that the people agenda is transformed into action that ensures collective wellbeing.

Sunil is an experienced HR professional with over 13 years of diverse experience, managing all the aspects of human resources across various sectors, including the UN, NGO's, INGO's, and the private sector. His strong passion for HR and the responsibilities that come with the role fuel his professional journey.

Throughout his career, he has excelled in recruitment, employee relations, staff engagement, and performance management. Sunil holds a Bachelor's degree from the University of Bolton and a Postgraduate Certificate in Business Administration from Edinburgh Napier University.

He lives in Kathmandu, Nepal, and is married with two children. Outside of work, Sunil enjoys cycling, hiking, and attending live music events.

Emmanuel has worked in Monitoring and Evaluation for organisations including the University of Global Health Equity, Options Consultancy Services, Christian Aid, International Cocoa Initiative, Catholic Relief Services (CRS) and World Vision. He has experience in designing, monitoring and evaluating development interventions and programmes across various sectors such as governance, transparency and accountability, health, disability inclusion, agriculture and livelihoods, education, WASH, emergency response among others. Emmanuel is a Member of the Africa Evaluation Association (AfrEA), Network for Advancing and Evaluating the Societal Impact of Science (AESIS Network), Colorado Evaluation Network (COEN), Vienna Evaluation Network (VEN) and Ghana Monitoring and Evaluation Forum (GMEF)!

Tapfumanei is the Impact & Accountability Officer for European Union and European Commission (EU/EC) projects.Tapfumanei is a dedicated Monitoring, Evaluation, Impact and Accountability (MEIA) Specialist with over 8 years proven experience in designing and implementing results-based and participatory MEIA systems. He is adept at employing evaluation methodologies such as Utilization-Focused Evaluation (UFE), Contribution Analysis and Outcome Harvesting. Tapfumanei is a seasoned expert in developing and disseminating MEIA knowledge products and peer-to-peer learning initiatives. Tapfumanei has previously partnered with several international development organizations, including Practical Action International, Southern Alliance for Indigenous Resources, Mercy Corps International, and Worldwide Fund for Nature International. He is a holder of Master of Arts in Monitoring and Evaluation, MCom Strategic Management, MSc Climate Change and Sustainable Development, BSc Hons Sociology & a BSc Hons Monitoring and Evaluation.

Thalía is a feminist human rights defender driven by social justice. Based in Mexico, she brings 15 +years of experience in resource mobilisation, advocacy, and organisational development. Thalía holds a master’s in law and is an experienced advocate for human rights. She is sensitive to issues of privilege (including her own) and believes in the need to bridge people with their causes.

Based in Nigeria. Ifunanya is a versatile and experienced young professional in Non-Profit, Administration and Management with over five years of experience developing and executing development projects and programs, shaping narratives and developing policies in sustainable practices, social inclusion and human rights across the globe. She is passionate about humanitarian aid, administration and diplomacy. Loves reading, listening to music and watching select movies. Ifunanya is mostly triggered by Goal 16 of UN SDGs, which calls for just, peaceful and inclusive societies.

Oriana Castillo is the Community Building Officer for Membership and Networks. She finds innovative models and tools for facilitating online community exchanges that enable peer, cross-sectoral and trans-local learning in multiple languages. Oriana has worked with marginalised communities and minorities worldwide to advocate for equality, diversity, and inclusion to contribute to strengthening civil society actors and promoting feminist leadership principles.

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Tarryn, Database Development Officer, manages the CIVICUS CRM database of members and partners, all membership queries and processes. Members are what make CIVICUS Alliance powerful, as we stand together in solidarity working toward a more just and inclusive world. Tarryn is currently based South Africa. Tarryn's interests range from artivism, with poetry being the art of choice but not limited to this, sexual and reproductive rights, gender equality and all things data. Tarryn also has a passion for understanding society, it's people and influences. Tarryn enjoys working with others and learning about their experiences and how to work and grow together.

Anna is CIVICUS' Youth Engagement Coordinator, leading its youth engagement strategy, network and projects. She is a grassroot activist, advocate for dismantling systems of oppression through meaningful civic engagement and inclusion. Anna was a Leader in the Student Movement of Venezuela, implementing non-violence strategies for mobilizations. She is also the Founder of “El Círculo”, a Latin American Female Leadership network of 7 countries that cooperates and promotes active women's leadership and critical mass. Anna also founded “Juventud Cívica”, a Venezuelan youth program that aims to increase youth civic engagement, through socio-political dialogue spaces, and skill sharing hubs. She is a member of European Union Youth Sounding Board, and the Co-creator of Peace Direct’s Global Peace Campaign.

As Membership Engagement Specialist/Coordinator, Sian plays a critical link between the vast CIVICUS membership and the secretariat. She ensures those in the alliance are not only satisfied with, but can get the most out of, their membership experience.

After voluntary experiences overseas, Sian dedicated herself to supporting people on the move in Europe. During this time, she was part of a founding team who focused on water, sanitation, and shelter. She continued her humanitarian focus both academically and professionally. Her experience of humanitarian action from grassroots beginnings to more formal settings, instilled in her a passion for systems change so local actors, grassroots groups, and affected populations have a seat at the table and are leaders within their contexts.

Sian loves the opportunity to share cultural experiences with others, and she speaks French and Spanish.

Ignacio is the Membership Community Building Officer of CIVICUS, responsible for fostering meaningful interactions across all stages of the membership journey and managing the CIVICUS online community, among other responsibilities.

Ignacio has an extensive experience working with national and global NGOs, as well as government agencies. His professional goal is to continue growing within organizations that strive to make a difference and contribute to building a better, more equitable world.

Wasurat Suwattanadeja joins CIVICUS as an ICSW Intern in support of ICSW 2025. He holds a degree in International Studies from Monash University and brings hands-on experience in program coordination and stakeholder engagement. Driven by deep empathy for diverse communities and a strong commitment to inclusive development, Wasurat has worked with The Asia Foundation and Thammasat University, where he helped deliver impactful events and strengthen regional partnerships. Eager to contribute to the success of ICSW 2025, he looks forward to working collaboratively to advance civic space and empower communities around the world.

Karen Webber oversees travel, facilities, operational systems, data security, contracting and policy within CIVICUS. Karen is based in Johannesburg, and has a degree in counselling psychology and a diploma in website development, as well as varied experience in technology and creative arts. Karen's passion is systems and their application to streamlining and improving systems.

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Precious joined CIVICUS in August 2017 as the Travel Liaison & Finance Administrator. She has 12 years of wide-ranging experience in providing logistical and administrative support where she led the coordination of conference and workshop logistics, the management of flights, ground transportation and accommodation. Precious has worked for several NGOs including Freedom House Southern Africa.

As an Operations Officer, I work closely with the team to ensure the smooth implementation of various projects and operational processes. With a strong focus on strengthening operational procedures and systems, I review agreements to ensure compliance and manage risk assessment for partners and service providers. I have created Dashboards in Smartsheet and have also developed some chat bots on the Bot Platform. I am always excited about working on new projects and collaborations with other clusters.

Benedict Ibanga is an accomplished Data Security Officer with expertise in strategic IT management. Currently serving as the Data Officer, he was previously the Information Systems & Technology Manager at Save the Children, leading data security and privacy initiatives and ensuring international compliance standards. Benedict excels in developing and implementing data security policies, fostering data protection awareness, and driving innovative solutions.

Mbali is a skilled Operations, Facilities, and Travel Administrator with extensive experience in the non-profit sector. On any given day, she expertly handles administration, expense management, flight and accommodation bookings, and provides top-notch assistance to partners and staff with travel inquiries. Her role also involves maintaining the office environment, managing facilities, and efficiently uploading invoices. One of her standout achievements includes successfully coordinating the EU event in Riga and developing a comprehensive documentation archival system using Smartsheet. What truly fuels her passion for her work is the constant presence of new challenges that require innovative thinking, alongside the opportunity to collaborate with both internal and external stakeholders.

Sylvia assists Finance and Operations teams by capturing agreements, as well as uploading and correctly indexing supporting documents for the team. Sylvia also tags agreements and documents, making sure that processes go smoothly. Sylvia has been with CIVICUS for 10 years and finds her decade-long experience exciting. FIlled with love for learning, she is excited and interested in learning about new systems and fresh perspectives.

Sylvia assists Finance and Operations teams by capturing agreements, as well as uploading and correctly indexing supporting documents for the team. Sylvia also tags agreements and documents, making sure that processes go smoothly. Sylvia has been with CIVICUS for 10 years and finds her decade-long experience exciting. FIlled with love for learning, she is excited and interested in learning about new systems and fresh perspectives.

My role is to provide IT services needed to achieve CIVICUS’s vision. This inlcudes supporting the effective functioning of IT infrastructure, management systems and information management tools. My role provides administrative support within the IT function and also contribute to various IT projects, i.e. supporting with the planning of the related IT infrastructure, assessment of applications and technology, formulating and presenting IT support solutions to staff and management.

Francesca coordinates the NORAD grant, 'Civil society and citizen action to enhance civic and democratic spaces' which has a significant learning component to better understand our ways of working internally and our financial partnership practice.

She brings 20 years of international experience in project coordination, communications, advocacy and research initiatives, with a focus on human rights and social justice for marginalised populations.

She is passionate about inclusive learning, making meaningful connections, and building agency across organisational work and collaborations with partners and donors so that our work is coherent and strategic and learning from practice is embedded in planning and decision-making.