United States

Staff

Kristen Kosinski | Founder, Executive Director, Board Member

Committed to cross-cultural awareness and understanding, Kristen is a passionate advocate for women and children. She conceived The Samburu Project while traveling through remote parts of Kenya and working with women’s groups from the Samburu Tribe. Over the past three years, she has raised over $400,000 and drilled 22 wells, bringing clean water to thousands of Kenyans. Beyond water, she is helping to spearhead agricultural initiatives to help women nourish themselves and generate income. She launched the Falkenberg Education Program benefiting thousands of children and continues to forge partnerships with other NGOs to maximize impact in Samburu communities. As Executive Director, she oversees all aspects of The Samburu Project’s operations in the US and Kenya, including administration, program management, board development, and fundraising. She secured The Samburu Project’s NGO status in Kenya and recruited, trained and mentored a Samburu community leader to serve as program manager. Previously, Kristen was an Executive at Paramount Network Television. She also taught elementary school in Houston and Los Angeles through Teach for America. She is a founding member of Coalition for Sustainable Africa, serving on their Steering Committee from 2006-2008. She is a 2008 graduate of Women Unlimited’s Lead Program, a leadership program for women in business. Kristen received a B.A. in Speech Communication from Pennsylvania State University.

Stephanie Ng | Project Coordinator & Executive Assistant

Stephanie joined The Samburu Project as the administrative intern in June 2010. A UCLA graduate with a BA in both International Development Studies and Political Science, Stephanie was immediately drawn not only to the mission of the organization but also to Kristen’s inspiring story and goals. In April 2011 she was brought on as the Project Coordinator and Executive Assistant and is in charge of everything from donor database management and bookkeeping to overseeing all the projects and programs being implemented by all the hard-working and passionate volunteers and interns. Stephanie finds herself saying “Never a dull day in the office!” but she loves this ever-busy and exciting atmosphere. A local South Californian, Stephanie tries to sneak away to the beach when she gets a chance and is a coffee fanatic which is serendipitous seeing that the office is steps away from several coffee shops and the beach!

Interns and Volunteers

Vivian Geffen | Walk for Water Chair

Marie Javdani | Program Director

Tricia Vannatter | Grant Coordinator

Maria Nikolayeva | Grant Assistant

Heidi Sheppard | PWX Coordinator & Administrative Assistant

Kalin Werner | Video Editor

Lisa Kim | Social Media & Website Assistant

Erica Liu | Graphic Design Assistant

Lauren Van Soye | Special Events Assistant

Board Members

Brad Arnold | Chief Board Member

Brad’s professional background has focused on the areas of Finance and Strategic Management, both in the non-profit and commercial sectors. He is a skilled leader, adept at bringing out the best in his colleagues and encouraging team-building and cooperative approaches to meeting the challenges all organizations face. Having served as a turnaround CFO for several organizations, he has broad experience in identifying problem areas in such firms and developing collaborative approaches to improving operations.

Brad has developed curriculums in such areas as Leadership, Management by Objective, Financial Accountability, Board Development and Ethics, and has taught and lectured nationally on these subjects. He takes great satisfaction in working with people who wish to move their organizations into new and challenging areas, and achieve everything of which they are capable. He has served on the Boards of several organizations and has founded two successful non-profits. He holds a BS in Mathematics and a MS in Economics from UCLA.

Brian Silverman | Treasurer

Mr. Silverman’s background includes work in government and non-government organizations, education and the performing arts. He is currently a special education teacher with The Help Group at Summit View Schools in Los Angeles. He also works as an actor, writer and director in Hollywood and with Vox Humana Productions. Mr. Silverman served for three years in the United States Peace Corps, first in Haiti and then Guatemala. While there, he focused on sustainable community development with rural farm families through agroforesty. He also taught sustainable agriculture at the University of San Carlos in Huehuetenango. Mr. Silverman graduated magna cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa from Clark University with double majors in Government and Education. He also earned a Masters in Public Policy from Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government where he was the managing editor of The Citizen.

Mara Brock Akil | Board Member

Ms. Akil serves as creator and executive producer of the CBS Paramount Network Television comedy series The Game. Previously, she was the creator and executive producer of the hit series Girlfriends. For her writing talents, Ms. Akil has received two SHINE (Sexual Health in Entertainment) Awards presented by The Media Project. Girlfriends has been honored with a Black Filmmakers Hall of Fame Award. Ms. Akil was named one of Vibe Magazine‘s Top 100 Hottest People in 2002 and one of the 25 Hottest Women in urban entertainment by Honey Magazine. She enjoys mentoring young people, especially aspiring writers. Ms. Akil serves on the board of directors of the Center Theater Group (Mark Taper Forum and Ahmanson Theatre). She received a B.A. in journalism from Northwestern University.

Dr. Susan Baker | Board Member

Dr. Baker is a rheumatologist and attending physician who practices and teaches at Cedars-Sinai Hospital in Los Angeles. She is President of Doctors Who Care, a non-profit organization aimed at doctors working in collaboration on charity projects. She also serves on the board of directors of Mesesso Foundation, a non-profit organization focused on educating children and micro lending for their families. Dr. Baker is spearheading The Samburu Project’s upcoming medical mission to Samburu with the intention of training tribal people on basic first aid and strategies for healthful living. Dr. Baker received her M.D. from The Chicago Medical School.

Robert Falkenberg III | Board Member

Mr. Falkenberg recently retired from Babcock & Brown after a 29-year career in investment banking. For 15 years he has served on the board of Aim High, a San Francisco Bay Area summer enrichment program for economically disadvantaged youth and plans to continue serving the needs of the underprivileged in his future endeavors. In July 2008, Mr. Falkenberg spent three weeks in Wamba, Samburu with his family. He worked in local schools supported by The Samburu Project as well as in the field, assisting in the oversight of the Project’s third well drill. Mr. Falkenberg received a B.S. in Business Administration (Finance and Marketing) from University of Colorado and earned an MBA from Harvard Business School.

Dr. Brian Perri | Board Member

Brian Perri, DO is Associate Director of Orthopedic Surgery at the Cedar-Sinai Institute for Spinal Disorders. His clinical specialty is cervical deformity and spinal tumor reconstructive surgery. Beyond his practice, Dr. Perri is interested in the state of health and well being for the people of communities in developing countries. He plans to lead a medical mission to Samburu with the intention of training tribal people on basic first aid and strategies for healthful living. Prior to practicing medicine, Dr. Perri worked for the American Red Cross. Dr. Perri received his B.A. from Allegheny College and his M.D. from Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine. He received his Masters in Neuroscience at the University of Hartford and University of Pennsylvania.

Michael Rossi | Board Member

Mr. Rossi works in residential and investment real estate and is an entrepreneur in the areas of restaurant, international hostel and real estate development. Mr. Rossi served several terms as President of the Manhattan Beach Sister City Committee and has been an active volunteer for many charitable causes, including the International Community Foundation, 9/11 Fallen Heroes Children Fund, Race to Erase MS, West Coast Sports Medicine Foundation’s Team to Win Program, and Family to Family Holiday Program among others. Previously, Mr. Rossi lived overseas working for an international trade company. His work and charitable pursuits continue to lead him on extensive travels around the world. Mr. Rossi received a B.A. in Business Administration from the University of San Diego. In November 2007, Mr. Rossi spent a week in Samburu working alongside our Program Manager to assess the community’s needs.

Linda Hooper | Board Member

Linda Hooper is the Director at the Manny Silverman Gallery which specializes in American Art of the Post-War Period with a strong emphasis on Abstract Expressionism. She joined the gallery in 1991 after having spent several years in the New York art scene of the mid 1980s and then as part of the curatorial staff at the Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles, CA. Ms. Hooper first heard about the organization a few years prior and since then has become very involved with the organization, from helping at the Walk for Water to spearheading a couple of fundraisers, including The Face of Water: An Exhibition of Photography.