Board Members

Pablo Chavajay

President

is a Tz’utujil Maya of San Pedro La Laguna, Sololá, Guatemala. He obtained his licenciatura in psychology from the Universidad de San Carlos in Guatemala.

Pablo Chavajay

Is a Tz’utujil Maya of San Pedro La Laguna, Sololá, Guatemala. He obtained his licenciatura in psychology from the Universidad de San Carlos in Guatemala.

Later, he completed his masters and doctoral degrees at the University of California at Santa Cruz in California. Currently, Pablo works as an associate professor of psychology at the University of New Hampshire.

His research examines cultural and historical aspects of human development and learning. Studies he has conducted among Tz’utujil Maya families of Guatemala have focused on children’s engagements in problem solving with caregivers and other children as well as generational changes in mothers’ and grandmothers’ perceptions of childrearing practices. Pablo has served as a MEF board member since 2008.

Edward F. Fischer

Vice-President

is Professor of Anthropology and Director of the Center for Latin American Studies at Vanderbilt University.

Edward F. Fischer

is Professor of Anthropology and Director of the Center for Latin American Studies at Vanderbilt University. He has worked in Guatemala for over 25 years, conducting fieldwork in Tecpán and other Maya communities.

His books include Maya Cultural Activism in Guatemala (1996), Cultural Logics and Global Economies: Maya Identity in Thought and Practice (2001), Broccoli and Desire: Global Connections and Maya Struggles in Postwar Guatemala (2006, with Peter Benson), and most recently, The Good Life: Aspiration, Dignity, and the Anthropology of Wellbeing. He is also the founder and director of Maní+, a program that combats childhood malnutrition in Guatemala. More at www.tedfischer.org.

Karen Kaiser

Treasurer

Karen has BA in Economics degree at ITAM, summa cum laude and a Ph D in Economics from Princeton University.

Karen Kaiser

Karen has BA in Economics degree at ITAM, summa cum laude and a Ph D in Economics from Princeton University. She worked at the Central Bank of Mexico as a research economist in projects related to competitiveness, financial deepening, and the effect of financial regulations on consumer behavior in Mexico. Later on she joined Evercore where she was part of the Public Finance Advisory Group and led several transactions that involved refinancing State bonds and the public debt of various States and Municipalities in Mexico. She also provided advisory to diverse States and Municipalities on the condition of their public finances and design policy mechanisms to achieve financial viability of government entities. Currently she is Mexico’s Chief Economist at Evercore ISI Mexico.

Elisabeth Nicholson

Secretary to the Board

has a master’s degree in English and Spanish from Heidelberg University

Elisabeth Nicholson

Has a master’s degree in English and Spanish from Heidelberg University, Germany and has worked with MEF since its inception as staff and volunteer supporter of the organization.

She is MEF’s secretary and assists the board in all matters. She visits and maintains close ties with the projects and does MEF development work. After the closing of MEF's main office in Vermont in 2010, she accepted the Executive Director's position and manages MEF's operations and programs.

Mitchell Denburg

Studied photography at The School of The Boston Museum of Fine Arts.

Mitchell Denburg

Studied photography at The School of The Boston Museum of Fine Arts. His works are housed in many private collections and photographic archives including Tulane University, and the Centro de Investigaciones Regionales de Mesoamérica (CIRMA) Photographic Archive, of which Mitchell was the founder. His work has been used to illustrate many articles and journals on development and anthropology, including the book Getting Ahead Collectively by Albert O.

Hirschman. His forthcoming book The Portraits of Mitchell Denburg is currently in production. In 1998 together with his wife Elizabeth Habie, Mitchell founded the New Roots Foundation, dedicated to the rescue of young girls at risk and unique and endangered ecosystems in Guatemala.

Serita Frey

Serita Frey is Professor of Environmental Sciences at the University of New Hampshire where her research focuses on ecosystem responses to global change.

Serita Frey

Serita Frey is Professor of Environmental Sciences at the University of New Hampshire where her research focuses on ecosystem responses to global change. She has a long-standing interest and connection to Central America, particularly Guatemala. She is an adoptive parent whose daughter was born in Guatemala, and the family travels there regularly to visit and volunteer.

She has worked with teachers in the Lake Atitlan area to develop an environmental science curriculum around water quality.

Randhi Wilson

Randhi Wilson has had a varied career spanning corporate international business at Intel Corporation, working with micro businesses.

Randhi Wilson

Randhi Wilson has had a varied career spanning corporate international business at Intel Corporation, working with micro businesses at the non profit Mercy Corps International, to a long stint as a Business Prof at Portland State University. She holds an undergraduate degree in Linguistics and ESL, as well as graduate degrees in International Business.

She currently manages the English Language Program (ELP) in Guatemala, and teaches ESL online to assist adult immigrants in Oregon as well as Guatemalan students for Beaverton Literary Council.

Kedron Thomas

Kedron Thomas is Associate Professor of Anthropology at the University of Delaware.

Kedron Thomas

Kedron Thomas is Associate Professor of Anthropology at the University of Delaware. She earned her PhD from Harvard University in 2012. Her books include Regulating Style: Intellectual Property and the Business of Fashion in Guatemala (University of California Press, 2016) and Securing the City: Neoliberalism, Space, and Insecurity in Postwar Guatemala (Duke University Press, 2011).

Board Members

Pablo Chavajay

President

Edward F. Fischer

Vice-President

Karen Kaiser

Treasurer

Elisabeth Nicholson

Secretary to the Board

Mitchell Denburg

Serita Frey

Randhi Wilson

Kedron Thomas

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Board Members

Pablo Chavajay

President

Pablo Chavajay​

Edward F. Fischer

Vice-President

Edward F. Fischer

Karen Kaiser

Treasurer

Karen Kaiser

Elisabeth Nicholson

Secretary to the Board

Elisabeth Nicholson​

Mitchell Denburg

Mitchell Denburg

Serita Frey

Serita Frey

Randhi Wilson

Randhi Wilson

Kedron Thomas

Kedron Thomas

INFORMATION

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GREATNONPROFITS

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Pablo Chavajay

Elisabeth Nicholson