Paola Barbarino, Chief Executive Officer
Paola is CEO of ADI. Prior to this, she was CEO of LIFE and occupied senior positions with Cass Business School, Tate, British Library and IIED. Previously she was a Non-Executive Director of the Non-Communicable Disease Alliance (NCDA), a Trustee of Shelter, the housing/homelessness charity, and of MLA London. She holds a degree cum laude in Classics from Federico II Napoli University, an MA in Field and Analytical Techniques in Archaeology and an MA in Library and Information Science both from University College London.
Paola leads on all aspects of ADI’s work. Together with the Board, Paola ensures our strategy is implemented and resourced. Paola is ADI’s main spokesperson and represents the organisation internationally.
Chris Lynch, Deputy CEO and Policy, Communications and Publications Director
Chris is responsible for ADI’s policy, communications and publications strategies alongside his position as Deputy CEO. Chris represents ADI at meetings and conferences, including at the WHO and UN.
Chris has over 25 years experience in communications, marketing, business development, policy, publications and events, working in the private, public and not for profit sectors. On the director team at Alzheimer Scotland, Chris had responsibility for Communications, External Affairs, Marketing, Membership, Events, International liaison and Digital strategy, plus key fundraising activity.
With a passion for digital communication and transformation, he became a Scottish Government Digital Champion in 2016. Chris has run his own marketing and business development consultancy, Future Marketing, as well as a successful hospitality business. His pro-bono work includes start up and third sector business advice.
Michael Lefevre, General Manager
Michael is in charge of ADI’s IT systems, projects, personnel and governance.
Before joining ADI part time in 1998, Michael gained a degree in Maths and Computer Science from the University of Sussex and worked in roles in IT support, data analysis and financial administration. Michael has worked across a number of areas as ADI’s team has grown and changed over the years.
Jane Cziborra, Head of Events
Jane is responsible for the organisation of all conferences and events throughout the year, including the ADI International Conference, regional conferences and the Alzheimer University programmes around the world.
Since starting at ADI in 2006, Jane has worked on an increasing number of ADI events, including the development of regional conferences alongside its biennial international conference. She is passionate about supporting the organisational development of ADI’s members through the organisation of ADI’s capacity building programmes and global knowledge exchange in all ADI events.
Previously working in the corporate sector, volunteering in Peru inspired Jane to change her direction and work in the not for profit sector. Whilst volunteering she learnt Spanish, which complements her BA in French and European Studies from Nottingham Trent University.
Megan Anderson, Senior Events Officer
Megan is the Senior Events Officer at ADI, responsible for running our Alzheimer University and supporting our events calendar throughout the year.
Megan graduated from the University of Birmingham in 2020 with a degree in Business Management, before beginning her events career in the charity sector in 2021. She is passionate about challenging stigma in healthcare, and loves being on the ground with professionals, carers and people with dementia to expand her knowledge and expertise.
Wendy Weidner, Head of Research and Publications
As Research and Policy Project Lead, Wendy leads on ADI’s participation in the STRiDE (Strengthening responses to dementia in developing countries) project in partnership with the London School of Economics and Political Sciences (LSE) Care Policy and Evaluation Centre (CPEC), international university partners, and Alzheimer associations in seven countries in Asia, Africa, and the Americas. Her role also includes being the focal point for ADI’s research connections as well as working alongside ADI’s Medical and Scientific Advisory Panel.
Before joining ADI, Wendy was the Business Development Manager for Dementia UK, where she led nationally on developing Admiral Nurse services, working closely with commissioners and other care providers to design new services that provided holistic and family-centred dementia care, while also providing social return on investment. Wendy also headed up a Dementia Pilot Project that looked at the impact of reminiscing with people living with dementia. Wendy studied development economics and previously worked in project and service development and evaluation throughout Africa with the non-profit sector.
Nikki Bayliss, Head of Development
Nikki is responsible for leading ADI’s fundraising, including managing relationships with key donors and partners. Nikki works closely with the rest of the team to support organisational development and achieve the objectives of ADI.
Nikki has 20 years’ experience of working in the voluntary sector, focusing on strategy development, fundraising, and capacity building. She has worked with a number of UK charities in the fields of international development, mental health, disability, welfare and heritage, including Sightsavers, Street Child, Prisoners Abroad, Scope and Samaritans. She holds a BA in English and Related Literature from the University of York and an MA in Cultural Theory from the University of Sussex.
Rosie Houghton, Corporate Partnerships Account Manager
Rosie manages and builds relationships with corporate partners, as well as working across all aspects of ADI’s fundraising.
Rosie has over eight years’ experience as a corporate and events fundraiser, including previous roles at Breast Cancer Haven and The Myton Hospices. Rosie holds a BSc from Harper Adams University College.
Nick House, Corporate Partnerships Development Manager
Nick is responsible for engaging and cultivating new corporate relationships whilst securing funding and driving the new business strategy for ADI. He has over 15 years of experience in business development and marketing in the legal publishing, arts and non-profit sectors. Organisations include Informa, the Royal College of Radiology, National Theatre (UK) and Centrepoint.
Nick holds a BA from Howard University in Washington, DC , an LLB and an LLM in Commercial Law from the City Law School, University of London.
Laura Aubert, Head of Membership
Laura is the Membership Manager and Membership Development Programme Lead at Alzheimer’s Disease International (ADI). She is responsible for the support and development of ADI’s existing and new members, including leading ADI’s Alzheimer University programme and encouraging the development of new national Alzheimer’s and dementia organisations.
She has lived in France, Spain, Australia and the UK, and has worked for various international membership organisations over the past 10 years – the European Financial Marketing & Management Association and the International Association for Lawyers in Paris, as well as the Institution of Civil Engineers and the International Project Finance Association (focusing on Africa & Middle East in particular) in London.
Gloria Mantineo, Membership Manager
Gloria has joined ADI as Membership Manager to work with Laura on the support and development of ADI’s members. Prior to joining ADI, Gloria worked as Membership Officer at the Royal Sothern Yacht Club and the Association of Independent Multiple Pharmacies managing all aspects of the relationship with the members.
Gloria’s background is in humanities and she holds a bachelor’s degree in European Languages. After graduating she worked as teacher of Italian as second language for adults.
Helen Cockcroft, Executive Assistant and Office Coordinator
Helen provides administrative and business support to the CEO and is responsible for the day-to-day running of the office. Prior to working at ADI, she worked in business support across a variety of industries, from engineering to the creative arts, and looked for opportunity to apply her previous experience in the non-profit sector. Helen has a degree in classical music performance, having studied in both the UK and Switzerland, and still performs regularly in and around London.
Lewis Arthurton, Communications and Policy Manager
Lewis is the Communications and Policy Manager at ADI. In this role, Lewis manages ADI’s policy engagement, including with the World Health Organisation. In addition to this he leads on the World Alzheimer’s Month awareness raising campaign and works to deliver ADI’s communications portfolio.
Prior to joining ADI, Lewis was employed as an analyst, working within a global consultancy company specializing in market access, reimbursement and pricing for novel pharmaceuticals. Independently of this post, he participated in campaigns highlighting the link between antivaxxer conspiracy theories and antisemitism during the Covid-19 pandemic.
Lewis holds a DPhil. in Molecular Cell Biology in Health and Disease from the University in Oxford and has experience of front-line care, having worked as a Health Care Assistant within the NHS and as an Ebola Lab Technician in Sierra Leone.
Kusumadewi (DY) Suharya, Regional Director, Asia Pacific Regional Office
DY works from Indonesia, as the Regional Director of the Asia Pacific regional office, to foster collaboration among members, strengthening their capabilities and reaching out to non-member countries. She is also Founder of Alzheimer Indonesia, an NGO that works toward greater Dementia Alzheimer awareness and risk reduction in Indonesia.
DY holds a Master of Public Health (MPH) from Curtin University Perth, Australia, a Bachelor of Arts in Communication from Ohio State University, USA and a Diploma in English Literature from the University of Indonesia.
DY has more than 20 years of experience in public health, public private partnerships and communication, in the past, DY has worked as a Health Communication Consultant with the World Bank, WHO and UNICEF. DY’s mother was diagnosed with Vascular Dementia in 2009 and has been her source of inspiration in improving the quality life of people with dementia, caregivers and inter-generations since 2013. Her mother passed away in April 2017 but her legacy continues.
Diego Aguilar, Regional Director, Americas
Diego works from Argentina as Regional Director for the Americas. He also serves on the board of the Alzheimer and Dementia Network of Argentina (RADA) and the International Cooperation Network of Argentina (RACI). He is a member of Fundación León, one of the main CSO of Northwest Argentina, where he championed one of the first subnational Dementia Plan in South America.
Diego holds a Masters in Gender, Society and Policy from FLACSO Argentina, a post-graduate specialization in Community and Institutional Gerontology from Mar del Plata National University and a Bachelor’s Degree in Psychology from the University of Tucumán, Argentina, as well as non-profit management diplomas from the Catholic University of Argentina and Harvard University.
Diego has over 15 years of experience in non-profit management, international cooperation and fundraising.
Amalia Fonk-Utomo, Head of Accreditation
Amalia works from The Netherlands as the Head of Accreditation.
Amalia has a background in creative marketing. After working for the global agencies Lowe, DDB and Ogilvy, she started her own agency, Juara, which lead her to do pro-bono project with Alzheimer’s Indonesia (ALZI) by creating the campaign ‘Jangan Maklum Dengan Pikun’ (Do not under estimate memory loss). She also created a ’10 signs’ handy accordion brochure which has been translated into over 15 languages.
Since moving to Groningen, The Netherlands, she is active as Chair for Alzheimer Indonesia Nederland Foundation and as Honorary Board for Alzheimer’s Indonesia With her 26 years expertise in creative marketing, she manages to deliver simple message on behaviour change in dementia awareness.
Chloé Benoist, Publications Manager
Chloé is ADI’s Publications Manager and is responsible for overseeing the preparation of ADI’s key reports throughout the year, including the World Alzheimer Report and From Plan to Impact.
She holds a bachelor’s degree in journalism from Northwestern University and a master’s in political studies from the American University of Beirut. Chloé has over a decade of experience in communications and journalism, with a particular focus on the Middle East and France. She lived for significant periods of time in the United States, Lebanon and the West Bank.
Nigel Jenner, Finance Director
Nigel is responsible for ADI’s finances including financial reporting and planning.
Nigel is a CIMA qualified accountant with extensive experience at all levels of finance. He has worked overseas in Azerbaijan, Zambia and Saudi Arabia. His experience includes working for blue chip multi-nationals to start up companies.
Prior to ADI he has worked for YMCA Bournemouth and the Diocese of Salisbury.
Irma Rachmatiah, Finance Officer, Asia Pacific Regional Office
Irma works part time from Indonesia, assisting with the financial administration of the Asia Pacific regional office.
Robbie Appleton-Sas, Digital Lead
As our Digital Lead, Robbie is responsible for ADI’s digital content and platform development. Leveraging our research and network expertise, he ensures valuable insights reach diverse audiences.
Specialising in digital inclusion and communications, he is impassioned to foster healthcare initiatives, economic growth and gender equality through impactful digital strategies. His background includes videography, editing, social media consulting, and capacity building.
Notably, he delivered multiple digital communication training programmes for female entrepreneurs in Africa and Western Asia, through the SheTrades initiative (ITC & GIZ).
Fascinated by human-digital interactions across cultures, Robbie is currently pursuing a MSc in Digital Anthropology at University College London.