Board & Staff

Bernadette Agano, better known as Dety Darba, is a human rights activist, entrepreneur, and singer located in the DRC. Bernadette is committed to using her music and notoriety in the DRC to raise awareness about the issue of human trafficking and modern slavery. Bernadette will be serving Free the Slaves as the DRC County Coordinator.

Adrian Alexander is the Advocacy and Movement Building Country Manager for Free The Slaves based in Trinidad and Tobago. He has been privileged to serve as a volunteer with civil society organizations for the past 20 years. For 14 of those years, he has been involved in the fight against human trafficking. Through this work, Adrian is committed to helping shape a more compassionate, trauma-informed Caribbean.

Mohammad is an impassioned human rights advocate with extensive experience in the non-profit sector. Specializing in human rights advocacy, Mohammad has empowered individuals and organizations to fight for their rights and drive transformative change. He has delivered lectures and workshops from the United Nations to venues across Europe and the MENA region.

Mohammad has authored papers on human rights laws and strategies to uplift marginalized communities, enhancing their legal rights and living conditions. Before joining Free the Slaves, he served as a law consultant for the government and founded numerous organizations in Kuwait. Mohammad is dedicated to passing a world to our children that is safer, kinder, and more fair.

Sonia Adu-Gyamfi is the monitoring, learning and evaluation associate of FTS, based in Ghana. Prior to joining FTS, she worked as a Senior Research Assistant with the Center for Migration Studies, University of Ghana for the past six years.

She has been part of several policy-driven research projects to bring about the needed change in the area of migration in Ghana. Key areas of interest in research have been human trafficking, forced labor, migration & development, child migration and migration & gender. She has also worked as a communications officer for the research project “Migrating out of Poverty” for four years. She collaborated with the research team both locally and internationally to develop and implement communications strategies tailored to effectively engage diverse but relevant stakeholders in academia, government, CSOs, community members and key individuals. She has done consultancy work for the Women’s Health to Wealth NGO in Ghana in the areas of monitoring and evaluation.

Sonia is passionate to see young girls succeed and become strong pillars of hope in society, and she mentors young girls in her community to help them make right choices in life, assist and encourage them to excel academically.

She holds a bachelor’s degree in sociology and a master’s degree in migration studies, both from the University of Ghana, Legon.

Sonia is passionate about issues that promote the wellbeing of women and children, hence her desire to be part of a team that seeks to end modern slavery. 

As the regional director for Asia, Kuldeep’s mission is to change the conditions that allow modern slavery to exist. He represents Free the Slaves in the region; provides ongoing technical assistance to partner organizations in strategic design, implementation, measurement and reporting; and holds responsibility for the overall management of the regional program, strategy development, business development, and program oversight.

Kuldeep is passionate about human rights, social justice issues, community-initiated solutions, and improving access to opportunities for marginalized, economically-disadvantaged communities. He values the field perspective, builds trust and rapport with stakeholders, and believes in a problem-solving attitude. His pragmatic approach has been forged through years of designing and implementing development programs in several Asian countries.

Kuldeep has worked for over fifteen years managing donor-funded programs, training and capacity building on human rights, empowering farmers and workers and ethical standards in private sector supply chains, stakeholder relations, resource mobilization, and oversight of resources and operations. Prior to joining Free the Slaves, Kuldeep worked with Oxfam, Leonard Cheshire Disability, and Fairtrade in Asia Pacific in various operational and senior leadership roles.

Kuldeep holds a bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering and a double master’s in business management specializing in human resource management and marketing.

In his role as Free the Slaves finance officer, Munya not only ensures that day-to-day finances are in order but assists all departments in tracking income and expenditures against a range of different grants, aiding in the budgeting and planning processes for the organization. His work ensures that fund distributions are accurate to the decimal.

Munya Chitambo was born and raised in Harare, Zimbabwe. He joined Free the Slaves in 2015 first as an intern, then as bookkeeper, to his current role as finance officer. His role allows FTS departments to operate at maximum efficiency.

Tsering’s commitment to the betterment of society, as well as her respect for the Free the Slaves approach to ending all forms of modern slavery, motivated her to join FTS in 2018 as the India country program officer. She supports partner organizations technically and by building their capacity to implement anti-slavery programs successfully. She has also managed the FTS India program’s finance and monitoring, learning and evaluation efforts. She has documented success stories of successful interventions in Indian communities.

Tsering was born & raised in a beautiful place called Ladakh in northern India. She earned a master’s in social work from Banaras Hindu University, Uttar Pradesh, India. She started her career with GoodWeave India as an assistant inspection monitoring and certification supervisor.

She is motivated to improve the lives of people and committed to ending all forms of inequality, exploitation and discrimination. She is dedicated to build a world free from all forms of slavery.

Papa Fall is a statistician by training, holder of a Bachelor’s in Computer engineering, and is finishing a Master’s in Big Data and Artificial Intelligence.

Papa has conducted numerous evaluations of early childhood protection programs. Prior to joining Free the Slaves, Papa Worked as a research consultant/data analyst for many NGO projects and program evaluations in Senegal. For instance, Papa has evaluated the midline and impact of the Her Choice program for the Amsterdam Institute of Social Science Research.

As a Data enthusiast, Papa has a keen interest in handling data and measuring in real-time KPIs using dashboards… He aims to apply Big Data and Artificial Intelligence technologies to improve and accurately measure Humanitarian Interventions.

Aline Gaju is a dedicated human rights advocate. She is the Movement Building Coordinator at Free the Slaves where she plays a pivotal role in the planning and execution of the annual Freedom from Slavery Forums, both regionally and globally. In her current position, Aline collaborates closely with FTS’s internal team to ensure that all aspects of the forums are meticulously addressed. She also actively engages with stakeholders and allies in the anti-modern slavery movement, to fostering strong relationships. Before joining FTS, Aline Was a communications specialist at the “Legal Aid Forum” which provides legal aid to vulnerable individuals in Rwanda.

Mariam Kish is a Policy and Advocacy Associate at Free the Slaves. Based in Washington DC, she is the focal point for the North American policy and advocacy initiative. She is an ardent advocate for alleviating modern slavery and a graduate of Harvard College, where she obtained a bachelor’s degree in Integrative Biology. With a background in scientific research, she is passionate about finding innovative solutions to combat modern slavery

Bryon Lippincott is the Head of Communications and Digital Engagment for Free the Slaves.  He is passionate about helping people who are marginalized or vulnerable experience safe and abundant lives within healthy communities, as well as helping organizations represent the people who participate in their programs in ways that honor their dignity and respect their value as human beings.

Prior to working for Free the Slaves, Bryon ran a creative agency specializing in strategic communications and media production for NGOs in Asia. He has partnered with more than 100 organizations and individuals in 13 countries. In this role, he partnered with organizations working with child vulnerability, anti-trafficking, HIV/AIDS, refugees, agriculture, poverty alleviation/community development, and education.

Though Bryon was born and raised in Nebraska, USA, on a family farm, his love for culture and humanitarian causes brought him to Asia, where he has been living and working for more than ten years. He lived in China and Cambodia before moving to Chiang Mai, Thailand, where he lives now with his wife, two teenage children, and two cats.

Bryon holds an M.A. in Strategic Communication from California Baptist University.

Romcy Madronio brings a decade of experience to Free the Slaves from previous work in academics, government, nonprofits and businesses in the Philippines and Vietnam.

Before joining Free the Slaves, Romcy managed a community-based youth leadership program in the Philippines for the Ayala Foundation, which he expanded to several sites including Muslim Mindanao conflict areas. He became the Ayala Corporation’s Business Club coordinator, enabling efforts to foster business synergy and community outreach. As a project management officer, Romcy developed financial monitoring and report streamlining for various initiatives of Ayala’s corporate resources group.

Romcy holds a university degree in education from Xavier University in the Philippines and a diploma in global environmental issues from the East-West Center in Hawaii, which he attended as a U.S. State Department scholar. He is also an active mentor of the U.S. government’s YSEALI (Young Southeast Asian Leadership Initiatives) in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations region.

Jackline Mwende is a pan-African feminist, human rights researcher and an expert in human trafficking, labor migration and gender issues with more than 10 years of experience in Africa, Europe, and North America. She has consulted for the African Union and the Government of Germany on the Africa-Europe Action Plan to Combat Trafficking of Persons Especially Women and Children in Africa. She also was involved in a campaign against sexual exploitation of children in detention centers while at the Center for Children Law and Policy  in Washington D.C., and a project with WITNESS in New York City.

In Kenya, she supported an International Labor Organization project on elimination of child labor, and a U.K. Department for International Development project promoting education and sports as alternative pathways to child marriages and sex exploitation in coastal Kenya.

Mwende has also worked for Equality in Tourism U.K. and consulted for Women Deliver. She is a recipient of both academic and professional awards, and a graduate in human rights law and policy.

Lauren Rice, a Development Associate, and aspiring polyglot, is on a mission to make a difference in the world. Raised in Belgium, she’s fluent in French, Dutch, and English, and is currently studying for her associate’s degree in STEM with a focus on computer science and mathematics. Lauren’s love for languages and cultures has inspired her to learn Russian, Korean, and Japanese. She’s also a dedicated advocate for charity and is passionate about helping others. A lifelong learner, she’s always eager to meet new people and expand her horizons.

With a Bachelor’s degree in Applied Foreign Languages and a Master’s degree in Business Administration and Management, I also bring six years of experience in Administration at IntraHealth International, Senegal office. After proving myself through several internships, I was recommended in 2017 for a position in Administration. I was then responsible for operations and introduced to USAID procurement procedures to support projects focusing on maternal and child health.

In 2019, The Challenge Initiative, a regional project in French-speaking West Africa focusing on accelerating family planning, sought to integrate me into their team as an Administrative Assistant, primarily responsible for assisting them in administrative procedures, activity planning, acquisitions, and contract management. In 2021, I became a member of the Administration and Finance team as an Administrative Assistant, responsible for Procurement for all national and regional projects that the International Organization, Senegal office, had to execute. This has given me a better understanding of the organization’s mission, enabled me to contribute to the synergy of its teams, and consequently reaffirmed my commitment to social and humanitarian development.

Kevin Bales is professor of contemporary slavery and research director of the Rights Lab at the University of Nottingham, UK. He was a Co-Founder of Free the Slaves in Washington, D.C. and co-Author of the Global Slavery Index. 

Going undercover to meet slaves and slaveholders, Kevin Bales exposed how modern slavery penetrates the global economy in his Pulitzer-nominated book, Disposable People: New Slavery in the Global Economy. The film based on this book, Slavery: A Global Investigation, which he co-wrote for HBO and Channel 4, won a Peabody Award and two Emmys.

*Organizational affiliations are for ID purposes only.

Peggy Callahan’s sense of fairness  has driven her work as a human rights activist, documentary filmmaker, television reporter, director and television executive.

Peggy has spent 18 years fighting modern day slavery and decades reporting and producing films on poverty, the foster care system, the death penalty, farmworkers, racism, homelessness and slavery.

Peggy co-founded two international anti-slavery organizations that have helped free thousands of people from slavery. Peggy’s powerful, award-winning storytelling has
helped change laws and lives. She has worked on five continents and 15 countries.

*Organizational affiliations are for ID purposes only.