Our Team
Our team is comprised of volunteers from around the world. Each member of the team brings their unique expertise and a piece of themselves to every project we undertake.
Moses Tai
Founder & CEO
Moses developed his innovative approach to sustainable change through ten years of research before registering ADC as a Social Enterprise in the UK in 2019.
He is passionate and driven to reduce poverty having witnessed its devastating consequences in his own community, especially on children, while growing up in Kenya.
He enjoys traveling, playing, and watching sports, as well as staying up-to-date with current news and events.
Marissa Bavosa
HR Operations Manager
Marissa is a certified Human Resources professional from the United States with over 8 years of experience in people management across the retail and non-profit sectors.
Throughout her career, she has excelled in driving employee engagement and retention through operational excellence and the implementation of comprehensive employee development programs.
In addition to the time Marissa dedicates to ADC, she also volunteers part-time as a bilingual crisis counsellor to provide free mental health support to individuals in emotional distress.
Fraser Norwood
Head of Finance
Fraser is an experienced banking professional who has held a wide variety of roles across Finance, Operations, Business Administration and more.
He has extensive experience of strategy development, organisational governance, innovation/digitisation and business transformation, with a strong focus on delivering continuous improvement. He joined ADC in May 2024 to help to build and develop a finance function that can support our ambitious goals. In his spare time, he enjoys travel, sport, reading and socialising with friends and family.
Kieran Phillips
Chief Operating Officer
Kieran is an experienced management consultant whose work focuses on strategic change with a positive social value. Over the last few years, Kieran has worked with a combination of central, local and arm’s length government bodies, and private sector supplies, to advise and help implement change within public services, ranging from transport and greater accessibility for disabled passengers to levelling up and local housing schemes. He began his career in finance working at a couple of investment banks before moving to consulting. Kieran’s degree in Economics and International Development sparked an interest in the multitude of factors responsible for the unique growth story attributed to any one country, an interest fostered by travel and an interest in politics.
Catherine Mikhail
Head of Fundraising
Catherine Mikhail is an Egyptian senior fundraising consultant based in Cairo with over thirteen years of experience in the fundraising industry. She worked for several regional and international not-for-profit organizations where she managed fundraising activities, donor relations, and grants in various areas, including peacebuilding, cultural development, and women’s empowerment. She supported different news organizations in developing projects aimed at promoting the role of media in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals
(SDGs).
Throughout her career, Catherine contributed to developing business development strategies and annual work plans aligned with the SDGs. She promoted the establishment of partnerships with the private sector and civil society and identified and expanded networks of prospective donors and sponsors. Moreover, she managed the organization of conferences and dissemination events in the Middle East.
Catherine holds a Master’s degree in Economics in International Development from the American University in
Cairo and a B.Sc. in Economics from Cairo University.
Patricija Gavele
Head of Partnerships & Business Development
Patricija is a marketing professional with over 10 years’ experience in strategic partnerships and business development, and a proven track record of developing and successfully implementing growth strategies.
During her career, she has worked for a variety of organisations across different industries, including membership, healthcare, financial services and fintech, where she has achieved YoY business growth. More recently she started volunteering for non-profits.
At ADC, Patricija oversees partnerships and new business development, to ensure a pipeline of potential partnerships and funders that support our wider ambitions on social impact.
Lydiah Adundo
Project Manager
Lydiah is a dedicated and result-driven Monitoring and Evaluation professional with over 15 years’ experience in designing, implementing and managing M&E systems for diverse projects across the public health and education sectors. She is also a seasoned project and grant management specialist who immensely contributes to proposal and grant writing, strategic planning, problem solving, team leadership, effective stakeholder management, community mobilization and capacity building.
In her current role in Kenya, she has always ensured the high-quality standard projects are delivered on time and within budget. Lydiah has special interests in public health, climate adaptation and resilience, WASH programs and volunteerism, she also enjoys working with and advocating for People Living with Disabilities in championing for inclusive health education to improve their health literacy.
Ian Job Onserio
Multimedia Consultant
Ian is a versatile multimedia professional with a passion for storytelling and social impact. He’s an accomplished filmmaker, having produced an award-winning documentary for Media Focus On Africa Organization that raised awareness about women’s leadership in Kenya.
His commitment to social causes is evident in his involvement with African Development Choices (ADC), where he travelled to Nyansakia II Primary School in Kenya, filmed the conditions of unsanitary toilets in the school and helped to put together a video about ADC’s project at the school. Ian’s diverse skill set, combined with his dedication to social causes, makes him a valuable asset to the ADC team.
Peter Kwabena Essien
Curriculum Development Specialist
Peter is an Education and Community Development specialist with over 8 years of extensive experience in Africa and globally. He has worked on international donor-funded projects with organizations like The World Bank Group, European Union, Belgian Development Cooperation, and Mastercard Foundation.
Peter excels in addressing multi-disciplinary development challenges, particularly for marginalized groups, using tools such as the Asset-Based Community Development Approach (ABCD), USAID’s Positive Youth Development Frameworks, Participatory Rural Appraisal Processes, and Collaborative Action Learning Approach.
He holds a Master of Public Administration and an MSc in Educational Innovations and Leadership Science from Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, Ghana. He also holds a certification as an Agriculture Finance Expert from the Frankfurt School of Finance & Management, Germany, and is currently pursuing a PhD in Education and ICT (e-learning) at the Universitat Oberta de Catalunya.
Francesco Carvelli
Chief Social Impact Officer
Francesco is a sociologist with over 20 years of experience as a creative director in arts management, charity governance and visual communication. As an experienced branding and marketing professional, he specialises in communication, human behaviour and impact, working with leading charities, social enterprises and hybrid organisations.
He is passionate about stakeholder participation, values and quality approach, thus promoting cultural change founded on diversity, inclusion, and equality. At ADC, Francesco leads the Social Impact team, which aims to examine, evaluate and monitor the organisation’s theory of change to help deliver and maintain sustainability on our projects.
He is currently curating campaigns for responsible impact leaders worldwide, providing consultancy for social and environmental causes.
Matt Standing
Head of IT
Matt is an experienced IT Operations professional with extensive experience in IT Operations Leadership, IT strategy, and technology transformation. He has worked with global luxury brands, technology start-ups, SMEs and large public sector institutions.
Matt has a strong technical background, with a comprehensive skill set in Microsoft products and platforms, infrastructure technologies and cybersecurity – with multiple certifications in these areas. He is passionate about optimisation and efficiency, security, and performance of IT systems and processes.
At ADC, Matt leads the IT department, championing the use of appropriate technologies and services, supporting business leaders and stakeholders, as well as identifying opportunities to streamline technology and business processes.
Samantha Neves
Head of Marketing & Communications
Sam brings over 15 years of Strategic Marketing, Brand and Communications experience from the Oil and Gas sector. She is a certified Member of the Chartered Institute of Marketing (CIM) and holds a Bachelor of Business Science (Hons) degree from the University of Cape Town.
As a systems thinker, she is focused on unlocking value at the intersect of business, social enterprise and politics. She is deploying her extensive marcomms leadership skills and love for the African continent to drive the mission and scale of ADC forward.
Yvonne Joseph
Web/Digital designer
Yvonne is a highly experienced Front-End Web and Digital Designer with over 15 years in the industry. She holds a First-Class Bachelor of Science (Hons) degree and brings a strong mix of creativity, technical expertise, and strategic thinking to every project.
Her portfolio spans a wide range of work across the corporate sector, SMEs, and digital marketing agencies. She specialises in designing and building websites and digital experiences using HTML, CSS, WordPress, and the Adobe Creative Suite.
Yvonne is passionate about helping businesses enhance their online presence, combining design precision with clean, effective code to create user-friendly, visually compelling websites that get results.