Meet the Team

Michael Poffenberger, Co-founder & Executive Director
michael(at)resolveuganda.org
Michael co-founded the former Uganda Conflict Action Network after studying and conducting research in Uganda in the spring of 2004. Prior to launching Resolve Uganda, Michael also served as the Associate Director of the Africa Faith and Justice Network, a Catholic advocacy NGO and the host organization of Uganda-CAN. He is a graduate of the University of Notre Dame, where he studied anthropology and international peace studies.

Alison Jones, Co-founder & Director of Advocacy
alison(at)resolveuganda.org
Alison is a graduate of the University of Notre Dame, where she studied political science. She became involved with Uganda-CAN in the summer of 2005 and spent the following year in New York, where she worked at the Africa Desk of Franciscans International, a Catholic NGO, doing advocacy at the United Nations.

Paul Ronan, Co-founder & Senior Policy Analyst
paul(at)resolveuganda.org
Paul, from Rushford, NY, recently graduated from Syracuse University with a degree in geography and international relations with an interest in political ecology. In the spring of 2005, he spent six weeks in northern Uganda studying the tenuous land security of people displaced by the war from their rural farms into crowded camps. Seeing firsthand the intense suffering of northern Ugandans led to his involvement with Uganda Conflict Action Network. Paul is currently based in New York, where he has been involved in advocacy efforts at the United Nations.

Kenny Ferenchak, Researcher
kenny(at)resolveuganda.org
Kenny graduated from Ohio State University with honors degrees in political science and international studies. He completed a senior thesis on post-conflict reintegration and peacebuilding that came as a result of two months of field work in Uganda. Kenny was formerly a student coordinator for Resolve Uganda's predecessor organization.

Stephen Okello, Researcher
stephen(at)resolveuganda.org
Stephen is an Acholi from northern Uganda and studied International Relations and Diplomacy at Nkumba University. He is collaborating with the Justice and Peace Center in Kampala being established by five Catholic Religious orders, and has been closely working with the Kampala-based Center for Conflict Resolution as a Program Officer. Stephen is currently attending the Kroc Institute for International Peace Studies at the University of Notre Dame.