Board and Staff

BOARD of DIRECTORS  |  STAFF

Staff by Location

NEW YORK
WASHINGTON, D.C.
ARGENTINA
BRAZIL
CHINA
COLOMBIA
EUROPE
INDIA
INDONESIA
MEXICO

New York

Walter Hook | Executive Director

Walter Hook has been the executive director of ITDP since 1993. Under his leadership, Walter has transformed the organization from a small advocacy nonprofit to a leading international organization with over 60 staff members in offices in Africa, Asia, and Latin America. He has worked directly in over 15 countries and 25 cities on promoting non-motorized transportation and bus rapid transit systems.

He worked to make the transport lending of large international financial institutions like the World Bank and the Asian Development Bank, and United Nations development agencies like UNDP and UN-HABITAT, more environmentally sustainable and equitable, redirecting hundreds of millions of dollars to sustainable transport projects. Under his guidance, ITDP has initiated bus rapid transit projects in over 10 cities around the world.

He co-edited the Bus Rapid Transit Planning Guide and authored the Non-Motorized Transport Sourcebook for GTZ, as well as helped developed the Non-Motorized Transport Training Course. He has also written numerous articles for publication.

Walter received his doctorate’s degree in urban planning from Columbia University in 1996 and formerly taught as an adjunct professor at Columbia University’s School of Architecture and Urban Planning. He holds a master’s degree in international affairs from Columbia University’s School of International and Public Affairs, and a bachelor’s degree from the Johns Hopkins University.

Melinda Eisenmann | Financial and Administrative Director

As the Financial and Administrative Director, Melinda Eisenmann is in charge of the administrative and financial management of the organization in the US, as well as overseas. Joining in 2004, Melinda has managed a 78 percent growth in budget while maintaining the same level of administrative costs and personnel. Previous to joining ITDP, she worked at the Center for Puerto Rican Studies at Hunter College on human rights and political persecution projects and as an office manager for a real estate company. Melinda also spent a semester working in Mexico with Dr. Jorge G. Castañeda, ex-Foreign Minister of Mexico and then President candidate.

Melinda has lived and studied in Europe, Latin America, and Africa. She holds a bachelor’s degree in modern languages from the University of Puerto Rico and a master’s degree in international affairs from Fordham University with a specialization in international finance.

Aimée Gauthier | Chief of Staff

Aimée has been working at ITDP since 2003, mainly on Sub-Saharan Africa transport projects in Ghana, Senegal, South Africa, and Tanzania. Over the past five years, she has worked on non-motorized transportation, developing private sector small bicycle businesses and examining the intersection between health care service delivery and transport. She also worked on promotion of bus rapid transit projects in Accra and Dakar, as well as BRT planning in Dar es Salaam and Johannesburg. Based in New York City, she also manages the communications and development functions.

Before joining ITDP, Aimée worked for five years at the Moriah Fund as the grants and office manager. Aimée holds a master’s degree in urban planning from the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor and has dual bachelor’s degrees in anthropology and political & social thought from the University of Virginia.

Michael Kodransky | Global Policy Research Associate

Michael conducts and coordinates research on best practices in parking management, BRT, freight, urban design and other ITDP global program areas. Before joining ITDP, he was involved in research initiatives at Project for Public Spaces and the NYC Department of Transportation.

The focus of Michael’s transportation related inquires always return to issues of equity, community health and ethics. His previous research activities have included an examination of neighborhood design and walking, road closure impact studies on local vehicular traffic and street use mapping. He has contributed writing to the American Planning Association, Reclaim Magazine, Journeys and the Mother Nature Network. Michael holds a master’s degree in urban planning from New York University and a bachelor’s degree from Cornell University.

Kathleen Letchford | Development & Outreach Officer

Kathleen manages the development and outreach functions for the New York office, focusing on individual and major gifts and event planning. Prior to joining ITDP in 2009, she was in charge of North American marketing and communications for FXB International. A lifelong environmentalist, Kathleen has also worked in the private sector and academia as a researcher and editor in areas ranging from factory farming to environmental litigation.

In her free time, Kathleen likes to read and hang out with her two dogs. She holds a bachelor’s degree in anthropology from New York University and is currently enrolled in the international nonprofit management master’s program at New York University.

Stacy Mayers | Administrative Assistant

Stacy joined ITDP in 2006 as ITDP’s administrative assistant. Her work includes helping with financial and administrative management, as well as communications and development. She graduated from Sacred Heart University with a bachelor’s degree in economics. At Sacred Heart, her interests involved holding officer positions for campus organization UMOJA and community service projects, such as volunteering for Habitat for Humanity and interning at the Connecticut Juvenile Justice Alliance. She loves to play billiards.

Jessica Morris | Director, Our Cities Ourselves

Jessica joined ITDP in June 2010 to head up the Our Cities Ourselves program. She is a communications consultant with more then twenty years of experience working with non-profits, corporations, government departments, and international bodies. Her experience includes working with Shelter, the UK’s leading housing non-profit; the Refugee Council; and the Department for International Development.

Jessica was born in the UK and studied history at Cambridge University. She moved to New York in 2006. Prior to joining ITDP she worked with Akatu, the Brazilian body that promotes conscious consumption, and the United Nations, on promoting more sustainable ways of consuming and producing. She was a consultant to ITDP for a year before joining the staff, and was instrumental in developing the Our Cities Ourselves concept.

Luc Nadal | Technical Director

Luc Nadal is an architect and urbanist. Prior to joining ITDP, he contributed to numerous urban planning and design projects, including the La Villette Park and the Charles de Gaulle Airport, in Paris. Luc wrote extensively about the role and functions of urban public space.

He received his doctorate’s degree in urban planning from Columbia University, and his diploma of architecture (DPLG) from Ecole d’Architecture de Paris-La Villette. Luc was a Mombusho Scholar at Kyoto University, and he has taught at Columbia University, the New School University, and the Parsons School of Design in New York.

Marisa Sandahl | Administrative Assistant

Marisa started at ITDP in 2009 as an administrative assistant. Previously, she was working in the staffing field in Manhattan. She is a native Michigander who moved to New York three years ago after graduating from Saint Mary’s College in Indiana with a bachelor’s degree in philosophy. She enjoys watching a good soccer game, walking around Brooklyn, and reading a new book.

Annie Weinstock | Program Manager

Annie joined ITDP in May 2009 to oversee ITDP’s work in Africa. Since then, Annie has been working with governments in Tanzania, Uganda, Kenya, and South Africa to implement bus rapid transit and pedestrian and bicycle initiatives. She has also recently helped to launch ITDP’s US BRT program to bring true, gold-standard BRT to American cities.

Since 2002, Annie has worked in public, private, and academic transportation settings in Boston, Seattle, Stockholm, New York City, and Africa. Before joining ITDP, she managed the planning and design of the dual bus lanes on Fifth and Madison Avenues in Manhattan, advocating for increased inclusion of BRT elements into the final design. Annie co-created and contributed to a PBS transportation blog and has published various articles in academic journals and magazines. She holds a master's degree in transportation from the University of Washington and a bachelor's from the University of Massachusetts.

Washington, D.C.

Michael Replogle | Global Policy Director and Founder

Michael Replogle has more than 30 years of experience in transportation and urban planning, policy, environmental assessment, and finance. Since 2009, he has headed ITDP’s Global Policy Program, which documents global best practices and enhances the capacity of international development organizations and governments to advance environmentally sustainable and equitable transport.

Serving from 1983-1992 as transportation coordinator for the Maryland-National Capital Parks and Planning Commission, he co-founded Bikes Not Bombs and ITDP in 1984-85. He served as ITDP’s President for all but a few years between 1985-2009, hiring Walter Hook as Executive Director in 1991. He co-founded and coordinated ITDP’s Bikes Not Bombs Campaign from 1984-89, recycling 10,000 bicycles to support health and education in Nicaragua.

Replogle is an advisor to the Environmental Defense Fund, where he was transportation director from 1992-2009. He is a member of the U.S. Advisory Committee on Transportation Statistics and an emeritus member of the Transportation Research Board Committee on Transportation in Developing Countries, which he helped found. He is author of the 1982 book, Bicycles and Public Transportation, a 1992 World Bank report, Non-Motorized Vehicles in Asian Cities: Issues and Strategies, and several hundred other articles and papers.

He holds an M.S.E. and undergraduate honors degrees in Civil and Urban Engineering and Sociology, all from the University of Pennsylvania.

Argentina

Andrés Fingeret | Country Director

Andrés joined ITDP in 2009 after working with the organization as the Buenos Aires City Director for the Clinton Foundation. He holds an Engineering Degree from the University of Buenos Aires and has extensive experience in Project Management in private and public initiatives. He is a board member of Responde, a non-profit organization, and a soccer fan.

Amalia Holub | Project Manager

Amalia joined ITDP in January 2010 as Project Manager for Argentina. Prior to that she worked at Corcoran Sunshine Marketing Group, a real estate marketing and sales firm in Manhattan. Her work with ITDP includes writing, editing, and compiling information for government proposals as well as transportation news items. She graduated magna cum laude from Barnard College, Columbia University, in 2006.

Outside of work she enjoys traveling and, of course, riding her bike.

Brazil

Helena Orenstein de Almeida | Country Director

Helena has extensive experience working for the transport departments of both the City and State of São Paulo governments. She has also been part of the technical team promoting biking in São Paulo. Helena has worked for the State of Rio de Janeiro in economic, social, and infrastructure planning for the metropolitan region. She is an economist with graduate studies in Urban and Regional Planning at COPPE, Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, and further studies in analytical planning at UC Berkeley. Before joining ITDP, Helena was a consultant for a private company.

Jonas Hagen | Deputy Country Director

Jonas Hagen has a bachelor's degree in International Relations and an master's degree in Urban Affairs from Hunter College in New York City. He has lived throughout Europe and Latin America, and since 2003, has worked on sustainable transport projects in Bogotá, Montevideo, São Paulo and New York City, collaborating with ITDP, GTZ, and the Brooklyn Greenway Initiative, among others.

Prior to joining the ITDP staff in 2007, Jonas was working for the United Nations. He enjoys learning new languages, water sports, biking, livable and culturally active human settlements, delicious food and an occasional dose of the great outdoors.

Celia Regina Alves de Souza | Financial and Administrative Director

Celia started at ITDP Brazil in July 2010 as the Financial and Administrative Director. She graduated from Federal University of Rio de Janeiro with a bachelor degree in Administration. She worked for many years at the Docas Company (former Docas de Santos Company), a holding company in Brazil, as secretary to the Board and as Chief of Administrative Services. She has been a managing partner of a coffee shop and an administrative/financial manager in a store of parts for jewelry assembling. Previous to joining ITDP, she worked as the Chief Secretary of the Brazilian Equestrian Society. She loves animals and has five dogs.

Jacqueline Torres | TOD and BRT Project Manager

Jacqueline joined ITDP in 2010 as a transit-oriented development (TOD) and bus rapid transit (BRT) Project Manager.  Stationed in Brazil, she is responsible for overseeing on-going projects relevant to both TOD and BRT throughout the country.  Jacqueline is no stranger to ITDP.  Her collaborations began via the Hewlett Foundation (Menlo Park, CA) where for nearly four years she worked in the Environment Program. While at the Hewlett Foundation she helped address domestic and international issues surrounding air quality, fuel efficiency, and sustainable transportation.

Jacqueline holds a Bachelor’s Degree from Santa Clara University in Political Science and Spanish with a minor in International Relations. Most recently, Jacqueline received her Master’s Degree from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) in Urban Planning with a concentration in Transportation.  Her thesis project involved planning a TOD site along a BRT corridor in Los Angeles.

China

Karl Fjellstrom | Vice Director

After graduating with honors in Urban Geography, Law and Asian Studies from Macquarie University and the University of Sydney in the mid 1990s, Karl Fjellstrom has worked on urban transport planning projects around Asia, focusing mainly on public transport and bus rapid transit (BRT) but also working on pedestrian and bicycle facility planning, and other areas of urban transport policy. Karl has worked full time with ITDP since 2003, and has been managing the ITDP-China office in Guangzhou since 2005.

Asian cities that he has worked in for more than two months include Guangzhou, Harbin, Changzhou, Lanzhou, Surabaya, Jakarta, Bangkok, Dhaka, and Ahmedabad. Most recently Karl was team leader for the BRT conceptual plan preparation in Guangzhou, and in addition to managing ITDP's China program he was team leader for the Asian Development Bank-funded sustainable transport study in Harbin and Changzhou, and a consultant to the ADB for the Lanzhou BRT preliminary design and for projects in Xi'an and Ulaanbaatar. Websites he has created and maintains include www.chinaBRT.org, www.itdp-china.org, www.chinawalk.org, www.gzbrt.org, www.transportnews.org, and others.

Jiao Feng | Parking and BRT Program Coordinator

Since graduating with a Masters in Traffic Planning and Management from Tongji University, Jiaofeng has worked on ITDP's BRT (especially bus-related surveys and analysis, operational planning, and institutional & regulatory aspects) and parking projects and studies in Guangzhou, Harbin, and Lanzhou. She has also worked on road design improvements in Harbin relating to both the BRT and bike & pedestrian facilities, and is currently assisting on the China-related section of an Asia-wide parking study funded by the ADB. Before ITDP, Jiaofeng worked for the China Academy of Urban Planning & Design (CAUPD) in Beijing. During her time with CAUPD she worked on Jinan public transport planning, including road design and bus route adjustments.

Quan-Le Huang | Research Coordinator (part-time)

Quanle is an architect and urban designer, having received her master’s degree in 2000 from the School of Architecture, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou. She now teaches architecture design in the School of Architecture and at the same time works in the Architecture Design & Research Institute in the same university.

She graduated with a PhD of architecture from University Paris-8 in France early in 2010, with her thesis focusing on the mutation of urban village under the fast urbanization in Guangzhou. Before that, in 2002, she has got the DEA diploma in the National School of Architecture of Paris-Belleville (Ecole Nationale Superieure d’Architecture de Paris-Belleville) in Paris.

Now she works for ITDP as part-time coordinator on urban research work for the “best practice in urban development” and the concerned case studies.

Bi Lei | Office Manager

Bi Lei joined ITDP-China after graduating from Tianjin University of Technology and Education, initially as an office assistant and currently as the office manager. She has worked previously as an office assistant and translator in the Guangzhou Construction Engineering Supervision Co., Ltd. and as an English teacher in the Guangdong Foreign Language University.

Hu Manying | Urban Design and Planning Program Manager (part-time)

After graduating with a BA in Architecture from Guangdong University of Technology in 2000s, Hu Manying worked on real estate projects in Shenzhen-GDADRI (Architectural and Design Research Institute of GuangDong Province) for three years. In 2006, she was hired by l’Atelier Parisien d’Urbanisme and was involved in the Paris Velib public bicycle project. In the same year Manying received a Masters, DPEA in Urban Design from Ecole Nationale Superieure d’Architecture de Paris-Belleville. After the study in France, she joined Guangzhou-GDADRI and works as Chief Architect on a regeneration project for urban villages. Since early 2009, she has worked part time with ITDP-China, managing the Urban Design Program in Guangzhou and Harbin.

Bradley Schroeder | Bikesharing Program Lead Technical Advisor

Bradley Schroeder received a BA in Environmental Chemistry from the University of North Carolina Wilmington. After university, he joined the Peace Corps and was stationed to Ghana, West Africa where he did community outreach in the field of water and sanitation. Finishing his two year obligation, Bradley was hired by ITDP to be the Program Manager for the newly established Ghana office. Two years later, he was promoted and relocated to Cape Town, South Africa, as the California Bike Senior Project Director. While in Cape Town, Bradley received his MBA in Global Management from the University of Phoenix. The funding for the California Bike Project came to a close but Bradley continues to run it on a private basis as an import and distribution chain of bicycles into Africa. Bradley currently works in various bicycle related projects worldwide including bicycle parking and sharing in Asia and South Africa, the establishment of training programs and the importation and distribution of bicycles and related accessories.

Li Shanshan | NMT Transport Program Coordinator

Since graduating with a Masters in Transportation Engineering from Kunming University of Science and Technology, Li Shanshan worked in Zhejiang Enjoyor Electronics Co., where she mainly focused intelligent transportation system design. She participated in many projects, including parking guidance projects in Jiangyin, Intelligent Transportation Systems of Zhengzhou BRT, traffic guidance in Beijing road in Kunming, and monitoring system design in Dongguan Changping. She also worked as an intern in Kunming Traffic Police Detachment for about half a year, researching traffic impact assessment, public transportation network evaluation and parking charging, and traffic organization of Kunming's west second ring road. Her work for ITDP focuses on bicycle sharing and bike parking, and aspects of the Guangzhou BRT.

Liu Shaokun | NMT and Urban Planning Program Coordinator

Since graduating in Traffic Engineering from Shanghai’s Tongji University, Liu Shaokun has worked in the Huizhou Urban Planning & Design Institute (HUPDI). During his time with HUPDI, he worked as transportation planner and an engineer of road construction design, and completed numerous urban planning & transportation planning & road construction designs in Huizhou, and served as project manager in four transportation planning projects. His work won numerous awards for excellence in urban and rural planning and design of Guangdong Province in 2007. He has worked for ITDP-China since mid 2009, focusing on the NMT & Urban Planning Program. Recently, he has worked on the pedestrian facility survey and report for the city center in Harbin.

Duan Xiaomei | BRT and NMT Program Manager (part-time)

Since graduating with a Masters from Shanghai’s Tongji University Xiaomei Duan has worked on numerous urban transportation projects in Guangzhou, and in other Chinese cities including Kunming, Harbin, Changzhou, and Taiyuan. She is currently Chief Engineer of the Guangzhou Municipal Engineering Design and Research Institute and Head of the transportation section of the Guangzhou Municipal Technical Development Corp. During the last two years, as well as working on the ADB urban transport study in Harbin and Changzhou, Xiaomei has focused on the Guangzhou BRT planning and design, as the Chief Engineer and Project-In-Charge. She also reviewed many of the BRT project studies and designs in other Chinese cities, and has worked on the Lanzhou and Harbin BRT designs (both currently in development). Xiaomei is now a nationally accredited Senior Engineer, and has worked closely with ITDP since late 2004.

Liang Yin | Communications Program Manager

In mid-2006 Liang Yin graduated with a degree in Landscaping majoring in Urban Planning, from Zhongkai University of Agriculture and Engineering. For the next 3 years she worked with Broadway Consultants Limited as a Director of planning. She was involved in Jinyuan International Apartments, Yuanquan Villa, Dabiao International Center and Donghu Kensington Apartments projects. During that period, she was mainly responsible for: (i) project proposal planning and composing, including the project image and functions, advertising methods, market analysis, and wholesaling strategies; (ii) Decision-making on promotional solutions, including liaison and working with various medias (eg. newspapers, magazines, websites, SMS, direct marketing, etc.) to maintain high efficiency communications in order to achieve desired sales targets; and (iii) aspects of the architectural design, interior design, property management as well as negotiation of works related to the projects.

Colombia

Andrés Jara-Moreno | Acting Country Director

Andrés Jara-Moreno holds a bachelor’s degree in Political Science and International Relations from Pontificia Universidad Javeriana in Bogota, Colombia. He started working with ITDP in early 2008 as International Delegations Coordinator. Andrés has managed more than fifty delegations of policy makers, government officials, NGO representatives, bicycle advocates, students, and journalist from six continents, who come to Colombia interested in understanding Bogotá’s sustainable transport initiatives. Andrés is currently the Acting Country Director for Colombia.

Prior to joining ITDP, he worked with PPQ Foundation as Foreign Affairs Coordinator. He has also been involved in the promotion and the support of “Ciclopaseos de los Miércoles,” and “Mesa de la Bicicleta de Bogotá” two urban cycling advocacy groups in Bogotá. In his spare time, he enjoys cycling, jogging, playing soccer, taking his pets out, listening to good music, and reading magazines, newspapers, and novels.

CarlosFelipe Pardo | Advisor

CarlosFelipe Pardo began working with ITDP as an intern during the summer of 2003, later served as Colombia Country Director during 2009, and is currently Advisor to ITDP in Colombia. He is a Colombian psychologist with an MSc degree in Contemporary Urbanism from the London School of Economics. He has worked in urban transport issues in Asia and Latin America since 2002, in work that involves organizational, advocacy, and policy-related activities. His work has also included the delivery of training courses on sustainable transport topics, editing, and writing various chapters and documents on these topics. He can ride a bicycle while using both hands to take photographs, and has not yet crashed despite various close calls.

Europe

Jürgen Perschon | Executive Director

Jürgen Perschon is the Executive Director of ITDP Europe and has been working on transport issues in developing and developed countries for almost 15 years. He had previously worked as the African Regional Officer for ITDP US in New York.

His focus has been on transport planning, road safety, analyzing the relationship between transport and CO2 emissions, poverty alleviation, environmental protection, low-cost public and non-motorized transport, gender-related transport issues in rural and urban Africa, and the UN millennium development goals.

Jürgen has carried out long and short-term field studies (household based socio-economic research, project impact monitoring studies) in Uganda, Rwanda, Kenya, Senegal, Ghana, Botswana and South Africa. He has given lectures and trainings to transport ministries, municipalities,transport NGOs and universities in Germany and China. He has also worked as an urban transport consultant for the German Agency for Technical Cooperation (GTZ).

Jürgen received his PhD from the Delft University of Technology (TU Delft) in The Netherlands.

Simon Field | Policy Analyst

Simon joined ITDP Europe as a transport program assistant in July 2009. He graduated with a graduate degree in transport planning and policy in 2007, having specialized in the environmental and social impacts of travel. His dissertation examined the use of personal carbon allowances to reduce CO2 emissions from transport. Simon also sits on the steering committee of the World Carfree Network and was an organizer of the 2010 Towards Carfree Cities conference in York, England.

Nicole Foletta | Program Coordinator

Nicole finished a Dual Masters Degree program in Transportation Engineering and City Planning at UC Berkeley in 2007. Her Master’s thesis focused on the relationship between non-emergency medical transportation and healthcare expenditures. She then worked as an associate for Nelson\Nygaard Consulting Associates in San Francisco, focusing on sustainable transportation projects. In 2008 Nicole received a Fulbright fellowship to do transportation research at the CENIT research center in Barcelona, Spain. Her research focused on efficient bus network design.

Since October 2009 Nicole has been working as a Program Assistant with ITDP Europe. Her focuses include the relationship between transportation and land use planning, CO2 emissions from transport, and BRT.

Gabrielle Hermann | Program Director

Gabrielle Hermann has a Master of Arts in Law and Diplomacy (M.A.L.D) from the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy and a Master of Arts (M.A) from Tufts University in Urban Planning and Environmental Policy. Her research focused on the advance of bus rapid transit (BRT) technology in South America and the results of her research were published in several journals. Since October 2005 she has been a Program Director at ITDP Europe. Her programmatic efforts have been focused on sustainable land-use in Eastern Europe and Bus Rapid Transit in East Africa. Currently Gabrielle is cooperating on a road design and finance guidance document to support the global "10% Campaign" and is working on a best practices parking study.

Gabrielle has served on the Executive Board of the Czech-based Institute for Sustainable Development of Settlements (IURS) and the Steering Committee of the World Carfree Network.

Christof Hertel | Program Director

Christof Hertel is a geographer and is finishing a PhD on the eco-social governance of international transport chains at the Hamburg University of Technology. At the same time, he has been a Project Coordinator at ITDP Europe since 2007. He is currently overseeing a research study that aims to identify and assess the CO2 reduction possibilities in freight transport in Europe.

Christof received both his undergraduate and postgraduate degrees from the Free University of Berlin in Transport Science, Political Economy and Environmental Management. He wrote his graduate thesis on the mobility problems resulting from the South African apartheid and how they could be overcome through bicycle use.

India

Shreya Gadepalli | Senior Program Director

Shreya started her career with ITDP in the late 1990s as a non-motorized vehicle designer on the Indian cycle rickshaw modernization project, which led to the introduction of over 300,000 modern cycle rickshaws to the streets of a dozen cities in India. She continued non-motorized vehicle design work as the lead design consultant on the Indonesian Becak Modernization Project in Yogyakarta.

She has since expanded her areas of professional interest to BRT and non-motorized transport planning. She holds a bachelor's degree in Engineering and a master's degree in Industrial Design from the Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi. Shreya is passionate about photography and is an ardent collector of handicrafts from across the world. She enjoys listening to various genres of classical music, including works of fusion between Eastern and Western forms.

Halak Bhatt | Technical Officer

Halak joined ITDP in June 2009 as an urban planner. She is managing the Surat non-motorized transport program, which includes developing standards for bicycle facility design, implementing a citywide bicycle network, coordinating safe routes to school programs, and organizing cycling events. She is also a co-author of ITDP’s Street Design Manual for Indian cities.

Previously, she worked on the Ahmadabad BRT project at CEPT University. Halak graduated as an architect from Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel Institute of Technology in Vasad. A deep interest in environmental research and studies led her to obtain a postgraduate degree from CEPT University with a specialization in environmental planning.

Halak enjoys traveling, jewelry design, reading, and painting.

Pratik Dave | Technical Officer

Pratik joined ITDP in March 2010 as Technical Officer. Prior to joining ITDP, he worked as Operations Manager with Ahmedabad Janmarg Limited, which operates and manages the Ahmedabad BRT system. Previously, he worked as a transportation engineer for the Ahmedabad BRT project at CEPT University where he was involved in planning, surveys, detailed design, and implementation.

Pratik obtained his Master’s degree in Transportation from L.D. College of Engineering, Ahmedabad, in 2008. His thesis focused on the geometric design of urban roads. Pratik enjoys learning new software and upgrading his technical skills. Love for animals, nature, and music are his passions.

Pranjali Deshpande | Technical Officer

Pranjali joined ITDP in June 2009. Currently she is assisting with operational planning for the Pune/Pimpri-Chinchwad BRT system. Prior to joining ITDP, she was associated with an architecture firm and worked on large-scale industrial projects.

Pranjali completed her undergraduate studies in architecture at Bharatiya Kala Prasarini Sabha's College of Architecture in Pune, and earned a master's degree in Urban and Regional Planning from CEPT University, with a thesis on transportation sector finance in Pune.

Pranjali enjoys painting, calligraphy, reading, and photography.

Chris Kost | Technical Director

Chris joined ITDP as a full-time staff member in 2008 after being involved as a consultant since 2004, focusing on transportation projects in Africa and India. In Cape Town and Accra, he performed greenhouse gas assessments of proposed BRT systems. In Johannesburg, he helped the city apply for certification of the Rea Vaya BRT system under the Clean Development Mechanism. Before joining ITDP, Chris worked for the Transportation and Land Use Coalition (now Transform) in Oakland; the Metropolitan Transportation Commission, also in Oakland; the City of Berkeley’s Planning Department; Meyer, Mohadddes Associates, Los Angeles; and Delin Consult in Accra.

Chris received his bachelor’s and master’s degrees in environmental policy from the Earth Systems Program at Stanford University. He currently resides in Ahmedabad where he helped develop a public transport demand model and operational plan for the city’s BRT system. His present work includes cycle and pedestrian projects in Chennai and Surat.

Pooja Sanghani | Technical Officer

Pooja joined ITDP in June 2009. She obtained her bachelor’s degree in Civil Engineering and master’s in Infrastructure Planning from CEPT University, Ahmedabad. Her master’s research dealt with institutional mapping for the state of Gujarat, focusing on improved infrastructure delivery.

At ITDP, Pooja has done research on travel demand management, including parking policy and intermediate public transport. She is also assisting with a review of the National Urban Transport Policy. She has been the chief coordinator in India for ITDP’s 25th anniversary program, Our Cities Ourselves. She is also responsible for coordinating ITDP’s joint activities with the Shakti Sustainable Energy Foundation.

When not working, Pooja enjoys violin playing and photography. Traveling is her means of knowledge-seeking and self-rejuvenation.

Rajendra Verma | Events Officer

While studying for his masters in Economics from Banaras Hindu University, Rajendra was inspired to contribute his part to preserving the environment, choosing to work with social groups that promote environmental issues.

Before joining ITDP in May 2010, Rajendra worked for nearly ten years on community development programs for cycle rickshaw drivers in several Indian cities in association with ITDP’s local partners in India. In addition, Rajendra was part of a non-motorized transport advocacy team that has pushed for policy changes in Delhi, India. He is an active member of the Delhi Cycling Club, helping to make Delhi a cyclist-friendly city and creating a buzz around cycling in India’s capital.

Rajendra gets satisfaction by helping underprivileged communities to make them more aware, educated, and empowered.

Nitin Warrier | Senior Technical Officer

Nitin joined ITDP in February 2009 to work on BRT, bicycle and pedestrian planning, and transit-oriented development projects. Currently, Nitin is coordinating efforts to improve public transportation through BRT in the Pune Metropolitan Region, in addition to developing proposals for pedestrianizing urban centers.

Prior to joining ITDP, he was a project coordinator on the Ahmedabad BRT project at CEPT University. Nitin completed his undergraduate studies in architecture at Maharaja Sayajirao University of Baroda in Vadodara and earned a graduate degree in urban planning with a concentration in transportation at Texas A&M University, College Station. Nitin enjoys traveling and combines it with his interests in photography and sketching.

Indonesia

John Ernst | Vice Director, South East Asia

As a vice director for ITDP, John Ernst directs the organization’s activities in Indonesia and manages ITDP’s growth into other Southeast Asian countries. John has been with ITDP since 1999, handling activities in Guangzhou, Ahmedabad, and Hyderabad before focusing on Indonesia.

Prior to ITDP, he was based in Bangkok and managed Sustainable Transport Programs in Asia for the International Institute for Energy Conservation, with projects in Manila, Xiamen, and Bangkok. Previously, John worked in Hong Kong on a World Bank study of transport sustainability in mid-sized cities. He is an ecologist by training, holding a bachelor’s degree and a master’s degree from Colorado State University.

In addition to 5 years of world travel and independent research, he brought to the transport field 12 years of experience as an environmental advocate, including serving as Director of Legislative Affairs for the National Wildlife Federation in Washington, DC, and Executive Director of the Wyoming Wildlife Federation.

Setia Nurul Milatia Moe’min | Country Director

Milatia, aka “Tia” completed her MBA in Strategic Management in California, USA in 1993. She also finished her study in Public Transport System and Management in Toronto, Canada and received her undergraduate degree in CiShe joined ITDP in March 2008. Prior to joining ITDP she was a member of the Jakarta Transport Council. She is presently the head of the Institutional Cooperation Chamber in the Indonesia Transport Society and was the Chairman of the Indonesian Transport Society for DKI Jakarta province, until 2003.

She dedicates her career to Strategic Management and the Transportation sector and spends her spare time painting, writing, and swimming.

Yoga Adiwinarto | Transportation Specialist

Yoga is a transport planner with about 3 years of experience. His main area is transport modeling and public transport schemes. Before joining ITDP in 2009, he has worked as a transport consultant in the UK, focusing on development of the Local Transport Plan, assisting local government for developing business cases for local transport projects, as well as advising on the public transport improvements.

Yoga holds a bachelor’s degree in Civil Engineering from Institute Technology Bandung, Indonesia and completed his master’s degree in Transport Planning from Leeds University, UK. He loves traveling and photography, as well as spending time in a non-professional band as a guitar player.

Mohammad Andika Alfarisi | Communications Assistant

Mohammad Andika Alfarisi (a.k.a Dika) graduated from the University of Indonesia, with a degree in Communications and Advertising. He joined ITDP in January 2010, to work on communications program. During his spare time he loves to watch movies and listen to music.

Dhany Utami Ningtyas | Junior Transport Specialist

Dhany Utami Ningtyas, also known as Dhany, received her bachelor’s degree from Parahyangan University, Bandung. She was born in Bandung. Dhany joined ITDP in February 2010 as Junior Transport Specialist. In her spare time she loves listening to music and reading books.

Rosyadah | Secretary / Office Manager

Rosy joined ITDP in April 2008 as the Secretary / Office Manager. Rosy received her bachelor’s degree in the Faculty of Economics from National University, Jakarta in 1992. Before joining ITDP, Rosy worked as a Secretary and a Finance Officer for private companies and consultant services. She loves sports, especially badminton and volleyball.

Muhammad Saifullah | Transportation Management Officer

Muhamad Saifullah was born in Medan. He joined ITDP in December 2009. He received his bachelor’s degree in Civil Engineering from Institute of Technology of Bandung. In his spare time, he enjoys playing chess and Shogi, reading books, and also listening to music.

Restiti Sekartini | Deputy Country Director / Environmental Specialist

Restiti Sekartini received her undergraduate degree in Environmental Engineering from the Institute of Technology, Bandung in 1987. Most of her work has concentrated on integrated urban development programs.

Restiti joined ITDP in 2007. Prior to joining ITDP, she worked for 7 years at the Clean Air Project Swisscontact, which focused on campaign activities for promoting the economic and ecological benefits of motorized vehicles emission reduction measures in Jakarta. Building off of her work for the campaign, Restiti completed a Masters in Communication Studies from The London School of Public Relations. In her spare time, she enjoys reading, traveling, and Koi fish.

Eva Witarsa | Financial and Administrative Assistant

Eva joined ITDP Indonesia in October 2007 as the Financial and Administrative Assistant. Before joining ITDP, she worked at a tax and finance consultant, Tommy Tan & Partners, in accounting for 3 years. Eva is in the final process of receiving her bachelor’s degree in Management Accounting at the Business and Informatics Institute of Indonesia (IBiI). She loves swimming, playing badminton, and singing.

Ratna Yunita | Communication Specialist

Prior to joining ITDP, Ratna worked in the private and non-governmental sectors. For the last 5 years, she mainly focused on campaigning and fundraising for NGOs that work on development issues. She holds a master's degree in International Communication Management from Den Haag, The Netherlands and a bachelor's degree in Economics from University of Indonesia.

During her spare time, Ratna enjoys reading fiction, listening to smooth jazz, and photography.

Mexico

Bernardo Baranda | Director of Latin America

In his more than 10 years of professional experience, Bernardo has been involved in urban sustainable mobility projects working in the private and non-governmental sectors. He is one of the founding members of Bicitekas an urban cycling advocacy group in Mexico City.

Bernardo holds master's degrees in Transport Engineering from IHE-TU in Delft, The Netherlands, and in Management and Implementation of Development Projects from UMIST in Manchester, United Kingdom. He also holds a bachelor's degree in Civil Engineering from the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM). In his spare time, he enjoys sports, reading novels and travelling.

Xavier Treviño | Sub-Director

Xavier joined ITDP in 2007. He holds a master’s degree in Urban Planning from El Colegio de México, and a bachelor’s degree in Physics from the National Autonomous University (UNAM). Always an ecologist and cyclist advocate, he worked previously in environmental and urban law enforcement at the Mexico City Envirnonmental Protection Agency. He is an active member of Bicitekas, and his interests are mostly in non motorized mobility, civil participation, law and regulation, and seeking to include strict environmental and social criteria in urban public policy.

Oscar Domínguez | Project Leader

Oscar joined ITDP Mexico in September 2009 after working in the governmental sector for 6 months. He is one of the founding members of Puebla Ciclista an urban cycling advocacy group in Puebla de Zaragoza.

He received a master’s degree in Land Use Planning from Benemérita Universidad Autónoma de Puebla (BUAP) in 2006, a bachelor’s degree in Architecture from the Universidad Autónoma de Chiapas (UNACH) in 2003, and he has taken the Diplomaed in shaping urban transport and transport companies in 2009. Since 2008 he has collaborated in designing bicycle infrastructure projects and has published various articles on urban mobility in a local newspaper.

Oscar's interests have always been in developing a sustainable transportation network internationally. In his spare time, he enjoys sports, especially biking, weight training, swimming, and skating on ice. He also likes to go out dancing and traveling.

Karla Juárez | Finance Coordinator

Karla received her degree in Industrial Engineering with a minor in Finance and has over 8 years of experience in the private sector. Having specialized in logistics finances, she led the distribution optimization for Kraft Foods Mexico and designed a system to quantify logistics productivity.

For the last two years she has been working on a project on her own, which focuses on urban landscaping. Karla joined ITDP in January 2009 believing in the necessity of improving the transportation problems Mexico City.

Karla enjoys traveling, triathlons, and nature.

Karina Licea | Project Coordinator

Karina joined ITDP Mexico in 2009, as an Urban Planner from Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (UNAM). She works in the Elaboration of the proposed modification of Public Bicycle Service (PBS) intersections project. Before working for ITDP Mexico, she worked in urban development projects with an architecture firm. In 2007 she participated and won, in the 25th session of the International Workshops of Planning and Urban Design, held in Cergy-Pontoise, France. The topic of the contest was “Airports North of Paris (Charles de Gaulle) – Developing an AEROPOLIS?”

In her free time she enjoys reading, loves to watch movies and of course, bicycling.

Ana Peñalosa | Communications Coordinator

Living in one of the biggest and most polluted cities of the world, Ana was fascinated by the fast growth and change of Mexico City, especially the transportation and traffic problems. She continued to explore these issues while working as a researcher for public space, sustainability and intercultural affairs issues at Universidad Iberoamericana and as a journalist for an economics magazine.

Ana joined ITDP Mexico in September 2008. Her day-to-day work includes the communications affairs in Mexico, the coordination of the local publications, public relations and event planning. Ana holds a Bachelor of Communications: Magna Cum Laude from Universidad Iberoamericana. She also participated in the Salzburg Seminar about Media Literacy and Climate Change, as well as the PNUMA’s program for environmental journalism. Ana enjoys traveling and learning about different cultures and worldviews. Her primary interests are the application of new media tools and the participatory work for achieving social change for more sustainable and more livable cities.

Roberto Remes | Mass Transit Director

For more than 10 years, Roberto has been working on public transportation and environmental policies in Mexico City. He was an advisor at the Ministry of Transportation of Mexico City Government (Setravi), and wrote the book Andar en el siglo XXI (Riding in 21st Century) and some articles on public transportation. He also worked for the Mexican Ministry of Environment (Semarnat) and for the Mexican Environmental Protection Agency (Profepa) as its commissioner in Mexico City.

Roberto is preparing his PhD. thesis on Economics at National Autonomous University of Mexico, UNAM, focusing on Mexico City transportation pricing. He holds two Masters degrees from Autonomous Technological Institute of Mexico (ITAM) in Business Administration and Public Policy and he also holds a degree in Political Science from Metropolitan Autonomous University (UAM) at Iztapalapa.

Jesús Sánchez | Technical Director

Jesús studied construction and architecture and has served in different positions in Mexico City government, mainly in the area of city services, infrastructure and economic development. He has also worked on projects related to housing development in the city. Since 2005 he has collaborated in designing projects of bicycle infrastructure and public space. Jesus joined ITDP in 2007.

Jesús likes to play outdoor sports and computer games of simulation and strategy. He also collects Playmobil toys.

Héctor M. Sanromán | ITDP Representative Guadalajara and Western Region

As a city planner who graduated from the University of Guadalajara, Hector has worked in the public and private sector, gaining experience in planning and urban design. His work and academic activities have taken him to live in three cities with very different characteristics: Mexico City, Guadalajara and Cancun. Currently lives in Guadalajara, where he is responsible for ITDP projects in the city and in western Mexico, while he finishes his Master's degree in Urban and Regional Development at the National University (UNAM).

A lover of city life, he enjoys walking in the city, to live it, feel it, and truly know it. He also shares ITDP's targets as his own, seeking the establishment of friendly cities where people are the owners of space and not the vehicles. His other passion is photography, an activity that is always linked with the way the cities look and are admired.

Board of Directors

Enrique Penalosa, President

Former Mayor, Bogotá, Colombia

Gerhard Menckhoff, Vice President

World Bank Group, retired

Karen Overton, Secretary

Partnership for Parks, NYC

Greg Guenther, Treasurer

Guenther Consulting

Patrick Cunnane

Fuji Bikes

Bob Hambrecht

Greenlife International

Walter Hook

Executive Director, ITDP

Matteo Martignoni

International Human Powered Vehicle Association

Shomik Raj Mehndiratta

World Bank Group

V. Setty Pendakur

Pacific Policy and Planning Associates

Joseph Ryan

The William and Flora Hewlett Foundation

Ariadne Delon Scott

Stanford University

Felipe Targa

Inter-American Development Bank

Heather Thompson

ClimateWorks Foundation

Paul White

Transportation Alternatives