Our Team

 

GCHA’s work is led by its Board of Directors, global team, and members across the world. Find out more about us below and see current vacancies.

GCHA Campaign Lead Shweta Narayan onstage at the Health Day Opening Session during the UN Climate Change Conference COP28 (COP28 / Mahmoud Khaled, 2023)

Board of Directors

Executive Board

The GCHA Board has a Chair, a Vice Chair, and a Treasurer, to lead the Board itself, serve as representatives of GCHA, and work closely with the Executive Director to ensure the fulfilment of the Alliance’s mission.

Sue Atkinson, MD

Chair

Courtney Howard, MD

Vice Chair

Renee Dekenah

Treasurer

Organizational Members of the Board

GCHA is led by a Board of Directors composed of ten organisations that are leading voices on the climate crisis and health. Three organisational board members are elected by GCHA members and the remaining seven are appointed by the Board. All organisational board members serve three-year terms and are represented by 1-2 individuals from each organisation.

Brian O'Connell, MD

Brian O'Connell, MD

Board Member

Michelle Isles

Michelle Isles

CEO

Sehjal Bhargava, CCFP, MD

Sehjal Bhargava, CCFP, MD

Board Member

Joe Vipond, MD

Joe Vipond, MD

Board Past President

Yuri Carvajal, MD

Yuri Carvajal, MD

Chair of the Environment Department

Mauricio Ilabaca, MD

Mauricio Ilabaca, MD

James Hospedales, MSc Public Health

James Hospedales, MSc Public Health

Founder

Anne Stauffer

Anne Stauffer

Director for Strategy and Campaigns

Genon Jensen

Genon Jensen

Executive Director

Josh Karliner

Josh Karliner

International Director of Program & Strategy

Lucía Pérez Gómez

Lucía Pérez Gómez

VP for External Affairs

Laura Jung, MD

Laura Jung, MD

Board Member

Sophie Gepp

Sophie Gepp

Edward Maibach, MPH, PhD

Edward Maibach, MPH, PhD

Board of Advisors Liaison

Harsha Somaroo, MD

Harsha Somaroo, MD

President

Sanjay Zodpey, MD

Sanjay Zodpey, MD

President

Raj Shakar Ghosh, MD

Raj Shakar Ghosh, MD

Senior Advisor, Environmental Health

Elaine Mulcahy

Elaine Mulcahy

Director

Our team

Jeni Miller, PhD
Jeni Miller, PhD

Executive Director

Close

Dr. Jeni Miller is Executive Director of the Global Climate and Health Alliance, where she coordinates the joint efforts of national, regional and international health organizations addressing climate change. The Alliance works to minimize the health impacts of climate change and to maximize the health benefits of climate solutions, through leadership, advocacy, policy, research, and engagement. On behalf of the Alliance, Dr. Miller co-chairs the WHO-Civil Society Working Group on Climate and Health. She has two decades’ experience working on policy- and systems-change strategies to improve community environments for health, in leading initiatives addressing childhood asthma, childhood obesity, climate change, health equity, and healthy community redevelopment. Miller received her doctorate from the University of California – Berkeley.

Vivian Abade
Vivian Abade

Administrative Associate

Close

Vivian provides virtual administrative assistance to the GCHA Executive Director. Outside of her professional work she hosts a podcast ‘Delightful Discourse’ where she dives into meaningful conversations that empower listeners.

Michele Baker
Michele Baker

Policy Coordinator

Close

With over eight years of experience in public health, Michele is dedicated to advancing climate action that protects public health. She leads grantmaking and programmatic efforts for the Caribbean Feminist Climate Justice Movement and has collaborated on health policy and research with the Healthy Caribbean Coalition and Lake Health and Wellbeing in her birthplace of St. Kitts and Nevis. Michele has also managed initiatives for the Opioid Response Network and Addiction Technology Transfer Center. She holds a Bachelor’s degree in Health Sciences with minors in Public Health and Chemistry from the University of Missouri-Kansas City, is a Certified Health Education Specialist (CHES), and earned her certificate in Caribbean Climate and Health Response from Columbia University and EarthMedic.

Jess Beagley
Jess Beagley

Policy Lead

Close

Jess leads GCHA’s policy work, with a focus on UNFCCC processes and national climate plans. She works to raise the profile of health as a driver of ambitious climate action at COPs and other UN climate processes, and to support the engagement of the health community in meetings and written submissions in alignment with the priorities of climate partners. To assess the inclusion of health and clean air considerations in national climate plans, Jess conceptualised and developed the methodology for GCHA’s NDC scorecards. She also contributes research and analysis to inform GCHA’s priorities, and has a particular interest in lessons from tobacco control and how these can be drawn on to reduce the influence and health harms of the fossil fuel industry. Jess has over a decade of experience in evidence-based policy and programmes for public health and environmental determinants, having previously worked with the Lancet Countdown on Health and Climate Change, the Noncommunicable Disease Alliance, and the International Diabetes Federation. Jess completed an undergraduate degree in Physiological Sciences at the University of Oxford, and an MSc in Health in Urban Development at University College London.

Anjuli Borgonha
Anjuli Borgonha

Communications Advisor

Close

Anjuli joined in 2024 to lead on developing and coordinating GCHA’s communications strategy and output. Anjuli has a background in managing global communications campaigns and strategies on complex health threats including drug resistance and climate change. Most recently she led the communications of the Global Leaders Group on Antimicrobial Resistance, a political advocacy group chaired by the Prime Minister of Barbados and based at the World Health Organization. Prior to this she worked at the Food and Agriculture Organization and the Lancet Countdown on Health and Climate Change. She has an MA degree in Communication for Development and lives in Barbados.

Sharmila Dhungana
Sharmila Dhungana

Member and Youth Coordinator

Close

Sharmila joined GCHA in 2024 to coordinate member relations and support both organizational and youth networks. In her role, she facilitates connections among GCHA’s diverse stakeholders, encouraging collaboration and engagement within the climate and health movement. She also oversees member applications and onboarding, manages stakeholder records, and helps organize the periodic member meetings strengthen the GCHA’s global network of over 200 organizations. Prior to GCHA, she helped coordinate regional knowledge networks in the Hindu Kush Himalaya (HKH) region, promoting research and knowledge exchange on water resources, climate hazards, vulnerability, and adaptation. She brings over five years of experience in science communications, knowledge management, and stakeholder engagement. Sharmila holds an undergraduate degree in Public Health.

Jen Kuhl
Jen Kuhl

Networks & Engagement Lead

Close

Jen is delighted to bring her passion for climate action, her campaign organizing experience, and public health training to her role as GCHA’s Network and Engagement Lead. In the past decade, she has been a campaigner and organizer with various health and/or climate organizations. Prior joining GCHA in 2019, Jen worked as a research data analyst at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. Jen values empathy and evidence-based decision making and strives to foster collaboration, connection and mutual learning in her work. Jen lives and works on the unceded territories of the Squamish, Tsleil-Waututh, and Musqueam people.

Shweta Narayan
Shweta Narayan

Campaign Lead

Close

Shweta Narayan spearheads campaigns focused on fossil fuels, air pollution, climate justice, and health equity. Her efforts aim to ignite a global conversation among leading health professional networks, academic institutions, think tanks, public health experts, environment and climate movements to amplify advocacy on climate change and health. Based in India, Shweta brings over two decades of experience in advocacy and community organizing on environmental justice issues. She provides legal, media, and scientific research support to residents of pollution impacted communities and workers exposed to toxic chemicals. Additionally, she collaborates with state and local governments in India to incorporate health professional input in developing climate and environmental health policies. Shweta holds an undergraduate degree in business, and a master’s degree in social work with a specialization in Criminology and Correctional Administration from the Tata Institute of Social Sciences in Mumbai.

Nathalie Parès
Nathalie Parès

Communications Advisor

Close

Nathalie joined GCHA in 2020 to lead our social media presence. With 15 years experience in designing campaign and global communication strategies to further social and environmental justice, Nathalie has worked for NGOs and political institutions, and has a love for creatively engaging people on science, health and the environment.

Milena Sergeeva
Milena Sergeeva

Liaison Officer for Latin America

Close

Milena joined GCHA in 2019 as Global Climate and Health Summit event coordinator for GCHA on the ground in Chile, outreaching to health organizations and stakeholders in the region, and connecting their work into the global conversation, and vice versa. Since then she has been working as GCHA’s liaison officer, to continue to advance work on Climate & Health in Chile, as well as to give GCHA an increasing voice in Latin America and the Caribbean.

Dave Walsh
Dave Walsh

Communications Advisor

Close

Dave helps develop strategy and communications for the Global Climate and Health Alliance, ensuring that our message not only makes headlines, but in doing so has the potential to change systemic or policy changes. With close to two decades communicating on climate and environmental issues, Dave has worked with campaigns and organisations such as the Clean Arctic Alliance, the Antarctic Ocean Alliance, Our Fish, Greenpeace International, and the International Polar Foundation.

Vacancies

No vacancies at this time