Staff & Contact

Founded in 2009, the Safe Water Program is an entrepreneurial, start-up group within IPA working to reduce the 1.9 million childhood deaths each year from diarrhea, a leading cause of child mortality globally.  We are doing this by deploying Chlorine Dispensers—a simple, low-cost innovation proven to dramatically increase rates of household water treatment, which significantly reduces diarrhea and other waterborne disease.  The program has a strong presence in Kenya—where operations are expected to triple in size by mid-year—in addition to a pilot presence in five other countries, three of which are poised to begin scaling operations.

 The Safe Water Program currently has over 30 staff members committed/expected grant awards of $10 million to date, with exponential growth in budget, operations, and geographic scope expected in future years.  Chlorine dispenser programs have received strong interest from senior policymakers in developing countries, major implementing partners and several significant global funders.

Staff

Jeremy Hand, Managing Director, US

Jeremy leads the Safe Water Program’s management team and supervises the Program’s global activities. He received his MA in International Relations from Johns Hopkins University in 2005 and holds a B.B.A. in Management from the University of New Mexico.

Daniele Lantagne, Global Scale-up and Engineering Director, US

Daniele sits at the Kennedy School of Government's Sustainability Science Fellowship, and is the Global Scale-up and Engineering Director for DSS.   Daniele received her bachelor's and master's in Environmental Engineering from MIT, and is completing her PhD at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine.

Owais Siddiqui, Program Manager, US

Owais is responsible for providing oversight of Safe Water Program activities in the U.S.. He leads the execution of core program functions such as strategic planning, budget management, business development, human resources, and marketing and communications.  Owais has a B.A. with high honors in government from Harvard University.

Alexandra Fielden, Policy Coordinator, US

Alexandra leads the Safe Water Program's policy outreach and coordination activities. She holds a Master's in Public Policy from Harvard's Kennedy School and a First Class degree in Mathematics from University College London.

Katherine Hoffman, Policy Associate, US

Katherine provides support for the policy, monitoring and evaluation, and operations activities of the Kenya team. Katherine has a B.A. in International Relations with a secondary major in Economics and an M.A. in International Policy Studies from Stanford University.

Eric Kouskalis, Program Director, Kenya

Eric leads Safe Water Program implementation and policy activities in Kenya.  He has helped oversee the program's work in Kenya from its pilot stages to the point of serving hundreds of thousands of people with safe water.  Eric has a B.A. with highest honors in sociology and economics from Harvard University and four years of development program experience in Africa.

John Ikoluot, Area Coordinator, Kenya

John Ikoluot leads the implementation of chlorine dispenser programs.  John also manages the SWP Busia office operations and field staff. He has a Diploma in Mechanical Engineering from Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology in Kenya, and he is pursuing a Diploma in Public Administration at Moi University.

Jessica Vernon, Research and Evaluations Manager, Kenya

Jessica is responsible for the implementation of information systems and technology, and is involved in developing operations systems for chlorine dispensers.  Jessica has a B.A. in Economics and Political Science from Stanford University.  She received a Fulbright Scholarship to South Africa, and has completed a post-baccalaureate premedical program.

Martin Obwoba, Evaluations Officer, Kenya

Martin Obwoba provides broad support for the program, including managing chlorine dispenser manufacturing and leading field activities and program expansion in new regions of Kenya.  He also provides insights and assists with strategy for operations and program growth. Martin has a Diploma in Accounting from Makere University Business School.

Lilian Lehman, Global Programs Manager, Kenya

Lilian is responsible for field activities of global pilot projects, working with partners to launch, monitor and scale-up pilot programs. Lilian has a B.A. in Comparative Literature from Haverford College, and a double M.A., in International Affairs from the University of St. Gallen, Switzerland, and the in Law and Diplomacy from The Fletcher School at Tufts University.

Aleem Ahmed, Program Development Manager, Kenya

Aleem works with SWP's government partners in Kenya to design and launch new Chlorine Dispenser programs.  He has led an expansion of the program to provide tens of thousands of people with access to safe water.  Prior to joining IPA, Aleem worked as a management consultant for L.E.K. Consulting, focusing on growth strategy across several industries.  He also worked with BRAC, one of the most established micro-finance institutions in Bangladesh.  Aleem holds a B.A. in Political Science from Haverford College.

Herbert Kisara, Administrative Officer, Kenya

Herbert Kisara coordinates accounts, human resources, logistics, and procurement for the program and assists with regional expansion efforts.  Herbert has a B.A in Social Sciences from Catholic University of Eastern Africa in Kenya where he majored in Economics and Sociology. Herbert was a founding member of TEDx Kibera.

Martin Ochieng, Senior Field Associate, Kenya

Martin Ochieng coordinates monitoring and evaluation for the chlorine dispenser programs in Kenya, including administering surveys across a range of pilots and programs. Martin is a graduate of biotechnology from The Kenya Polytechnic University College and is currently pursuing a Masters degree in Community Health and Development at Great Lakes University of Kisumu.

Dorcas Masatia, Research and Development Officer, Kenya

Dorcas Masatia coordinates research and development for the chlorine dispenser programs in Kenya, including developing systems and field trials to refine and optimize operations.Dorcas holds a B.Sc in Biology from the University of Nairobi, and she is currently pursuing a Masters of Public Health and Community Development from Maseno University. Dorcas was also awarded a HADCO Scholarship to study public health and health promotion in Finland.

Contact

For more information, please email safewater@poverty-action.org or contact IPA headquarters at (203) 772-2216 Ext 219