Staff

Suzanne Benally (Navajo and Santa Clara Tewa), Executive Director. Suzanne comes to Cultural Survival from Naropa University in Boulder, Colorado, where she served as the associate provost for institutional planning and assessment and associate vice president for academic affairs. She was also a core faculty member in environmental studies and a member of the president’s cabinet. Before starting at Naropa in 1999, she was deputy director and director of education programs at the American Indian Science and Engineering Society and director of the Institute on Ethnic Diversity at the Western Interstate Commission for Higher Education.  She has been a teacher at the university level and has served as a consultant to philanthropic foundations, nonprofit organizations, and many higher education institutions. Additionally, she has worked extensively with American Indian communities. Her interests, teaching, and passions are focused on the relationship between land, spirituality, and people as reflected in stories, and in environmental issues and Indigenous rights. Contact Suzanne at sbenally[at]cs.org.

Mark Camp, Deputy Executive Director. From 1993 to 1998, Mark ran Joint Effort, a small fair trade company that imported crafts from Maya cooperatives in Guatemala. He came to Cultural Survival in 1998 and served as Membership Coordinator and Editor of Cultural Survival Voices before assuming his current duties in 2004.  Contact Mark at mcamp[at]cs.org

Danielle DeLuca, Program Associate for the Guatemala Radio Project as well as the Global Response Program, and coordinates social media web presence for Cultural Survival. Danielle is  based in Antigua, Guatemala,  where she began as a volunteer with the Radio Project in 2009. She speaks fluent Spanish and holds a B.A. in Cultural Studies and Psychology from McGill University, Canada. Contact Danielle at danielle[at]cs.org.

Kristen Dorsey (Chickasaw), Endangered Language Consultant, coordinates and implements donor outreach and fundraising activities.  Kristen holds a BA in American studies with a concentration in Native American studies, and a BFA in studio art with a concentration in small and large metals.  Both her academic work and artwork focus on issues in cultural preservation and techniques in revitalizing Chickasaw visual languages. Her award-winning work is exhibited nationally and is inspired by Chickasaw culture and history.  She has helped coordinate exhibit materials for the Chickasaw Cultural Center in Sulfur OK, and her work is now featured in the Center’s permanent collection. Kristen has past experience coordinating fundraising events for the Friends of Ballona Wetlands and Hope Net.  Kristen also owns and operates her own jewelry business.

David Michael Favreau, Bazaar Program Manager. He is the Cultural Survival Bazaar manager, works on media partnerships, sponsorships and fundraising, as well as advertising and circulation for the Cultural Survival Quarterly. In 2002, he graduated from Framingham State College with a BA in Sociology, concentrating on Cultural Anthropology, and a minor in Creative Writing & Communications.  He joined Cultural Survival in 2004.  Contact Dave at dave[at]cs.org

Sofia Flynn, Accounting & Office Manager. Sofia is originally from Cali, Colombia, and worked in international banking in Venezuela for 10 years before moving to the United States. Fluent in Spanish, Portuguese, and English, she has worked at Cultural Survival since 1989.  Contact Sofia at sflynn[at]cs.org

 Jamie Malcolm-Brown, Communications & Information Technology Manager. Jamie graduated from the University of Massachusetts-Amherst with a degree in anthropology. Before coming to Cultural Survival, he helped establish a computer lab at The Charles J. Andrew Youth Treatment Centre in Sheshatshiu Labrador, Canada. He has since conducted similar work in Kenya with the Maasai Education Discovery.  Contact Jamie at jamie[at]cs.org

Cesar Gomez (Pocomam), Content Production and Training Coordinator for the Community Radio Project. Cesar is from Palin, Esquintla, Guatemala. Palin is a Pocomam Maya town that is located only 25 miles from Guatemala City. Pocomam was once a widely spoken language but, in Cesar’s words, “the colonial Spanish language media in Guatemala City have eroded our language and culture over time.” The Pocomam of Palin are an exception; they have maintained their language and many cultural practices. In 1999, Cesar started as a volunteer at the Palin community radio station where he worked for five years. In 2005 he was selected as a regional representative to the Association of Guatemalan Community Radio Stations. In 2007, he was hired as the office administrator of the National Congress of Community Radios. In 2008, he joined Cultural Survival. He holds a degree in communication from the University of San Carlos (Guatemala). Contact Cesar at cgomez[at]cs.org

Paula Palmer, Global Response Program Director, has directed Global Response campaigns since 1996. She is a sociologist and writer with 30 years' experience working in collaboration with Indigenous populations in Central America and the United States. In Costa Rica, she published five books of oral history in collaboration with Afro-Caribbean and Bribri Indigenous people, through a community empowerment process known as Participatory Action Research. From 1995 to 2001, Paula served as editor for health and environment of Winds of Change magazine, a publication of the American Indian Science and Engineering Society (AISES). She holds an M.A. degree in sociology from Michigan State University and is adjunct faculty in the Environmental Studies Department of the Naropa University. She is recipient of the Elise Boulding Peacemaker of the Year Award (given by the Rocky Mountain Peace and Justice Center) and the Jack Gore Memorial Peace Award (given by the American Friends Service Committee).  Contact Paula at paula[at]cs.org

Agnes Portalewska, Communications Manager, works on the Guatemala Radio Project, Global Response initiatives, and manages communications for program and advocacy initiatives. From 2004 to 2008, Agnes ran the Cultural Survival Bazaars program. Agnes is from Warsaw, Poland. She studied anthropology, Latin American studies, photography, and media production at the University of Massachusetts-Boston and holds a Master's degree in Sustainable International Development from Brandeis University. She has traveled extensively in Latin America and the Caribbean, researched Indigenous media, and taught photography workshops to children.  Contact Agnes at agnes[at]cs.org

Rosendo Pablo (Mam) , Program Associate for the Community Radio Project. He grew up in the mountain village of Todos Santos Cuchumatan, Huehuetenango, Guatemala, but attended high school in Florida, USA. From 1996 to 1998 he worked with Joint Effort, a fair trade company, as production coordinator. From 1998 to 2000, he managed a Spanish school and internet café in Quetzaltenango, Guatemala. In 2000, he returned to Todos Santos where he started an internet café and founded the community radio station Xob il yol. In addition to his duties with Cultural Survival, he owns a small store in Todos Santos and is an amateur film maker. He continues to volunteer as the morning show host at Radio Xob il yol.

Alberto ‘Tino’ Recinos (Mam), Citizen Participation Coordinator for the Community Radio Project. He was born in San Pedro Necta, Huehuetenago, but was raised in the Ixcan region of Guatemala. ‘Tino’ joined the guerilla as a young man during the civil war. He served for 13 years as part of the clandestine radio station operated by the guerrilla on the Tajumulco volcano. When the war ended, ‘Tino’ helped found the Doble Via community radio station in Quetzaltenango. In addition to his duties with Cultural Survival, he is the President of Muj abl yol, a federation of 24 community radio stations.

Miranda Vitello, Development Assistant, processes all donations and manages the membership database. Before joining the Cultural Survival staff in 2011, Miranda assisted with the creation of the Wampanoag teaching kit at the Boston Children’s Museum, conducted research on contemporary Native American artists for the Museum of Fine Arts, and organized cultural awareness presentations in elementary schools during an internship at United Planet. She holds a BA in Art History from the University of Massachusetts-Amherst and a MLA in Museum Studies from Harvard University. Contact Miranda at mvitello[at]cs.org

Jennifer Weston (Hunkpapa Lakota), Endangered Languages Program Manager, coordinates the internship program, and assists with production of the Quarterly magazine and web content. Jennifer is from the Standing Rock Sioux Reservation in the Dakotas, and has served her tribal government as environmental outreach coordinator, grant writer, and executive assistant to the tribal chairman. As a student and employee at Brown University's Ethnic Studies program, Jennifer developed American Indian studies curricula and community programs to support Native student retention. Prior to joining Cultural Survival in 2008, she worked as a correspondent for the Lakota Nation Journal, an associate producer for the PBS Native history documentary series, "We Shall Remain," and as a researcher for Makepeace Productions.  Contact Jennifer at jweston[at]cs.org

Ancelmo Xunic (Kachikel), Guatemala Community Radio Program Manager for the Community Radio Project. In 1999, he helped found Radio Ixchel, the community radio station in Sumpango, Sacetepuequez. In addition to his duties with Cultural Survival, he continues to serve as the volunteer coordinator at Radio Ixchel. He also serves as the treasurer of the village cooperative.

Community Radio Project Content production team

Vicky Rosmery Garcia Peneleu (Tzutujil) has worked at Radio Sembrador in San Pedro La Laguna Solola for 5 years, where she is a program coordinator.  A native Tzutujil speaker, she is a member of the Cultural Survival’s Content Production team. 

Angelica Cubur Sul (Kaqchiquel) lives in Sumpango, Sacatepequez and has worked at Radio Ixchel for 4 years. She manages radio programs on the environment, health, and women’s rights.  In February of this year, she participated as a panelist in a conference alongside the famous activist Dr. Rigoberta Menchu.

Willy Egberto Velasquez Bautista has been at Radio Dimension, in San Pedro Sacatepequez, San Marcos for 5 years, where he produces and hosts programs, as well as providing technical support to other volunteers. He studies systems engineering at his local university.

Fransisco Xico (Kaqchiquel), of Patzicia, Chimaltenango, and has been involved at Radio Restoración Cultural for 9 years.   Presented in his native Kaqchiquel, his programs speak of Mayan culture, spirituality, and caring for the environment.  He also acts as a representative of Jum Lajej’aq’abal, and organization of 80 Mayan spiritual guides.

Irma Lucas Mendoza (Mam) recently joined the team at Radio Qman Txun in Todos Santos, Huehuetenango.  She is speaks Mam and participates in the Content Production Team.  Recently, she traveled to San Marcos to report on the activities of the Marlin Gold mine.