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Our People

Fair Start Movement was formed by a group of individuals and families who care deeply about children, democracy, the natural world, and our future. Like many others, we realize that the short-sighted way we plan our families is deeply flawed, and the fundamental driver of most of our ecological and social crises.  We are now working to find and implement solutions, through laws, policy, culturally, and a variety of institutions.

Having published some of the first and most comprehensive analyses of truly human rights-based family planning, Fair Start Movement is dedicated to promoting the Fair Start family planning model as the solution to many of the world’s problems. Real change starts at the source, and begins with speaking truth to power at the most fundamental level.

Non-discrimination policy

Gabby Mora

Gabby Mora

Co-Executive Director

Gabby has served in diverse fundraising and development roles in a number of political, animal protection, and conservation organizations. Her experiences in fundraising include managing donor relations for the largest farmed animal sanctuary in North America, writing grants for a food sovereignty organization, and managing legacy gifts for a global rights-based organization. She has also served in other administrative and communications roles for nonprofits working to lift people out of poverty, end human trafficking, improve working conditions for farm workers, and protect human personhood in the United States Constitution. Gabby is originally from Venezuela, and she came to the US to complete her dual bachelor’s degrees in business administration and mass media from Tusculum College in Tennessee. In addition, Gabby holds an MS in advertising from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville; an MEd in educational leadership from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign; and an MS in Community Development and Public Policy from Rutgers University.

Esther Afolaranmi

Esther Afolaranmi

Co-Executive Director

Esther is a law graduate, humanitarian, an avid researcher and writer. She is also the founder of Golden Love and Hands of Hope Foundation, a registered NGO in Nigeria targeted at meeting the needs of the vulnerable and underprivileged section of the society. Esther is passionate about social changes in Africa. She enjoys being the voice of the voiceless.
Ashley Berke

Ashley Berke

Co-Executive Director

Ashley has spent over 15 years launching community oriented startups and grassroots organizations. As an activist, she is passionate about ending the oppression of all beings, and ending policies that maintain white supremacy and patriarchal norms that fuel inequality for women and kids. At FSM, she also aims to bolster empowerment for LGBTQ+ families. Before making the move to the nonprofit sector, she worked in partnership with numerous causes in support of kids. Driven to affect change on a larger scale, she obtained her MBA from the University of Central Florida in order to better advise mission-driven organizations for success. She has previously worked with Educated Choices Program and Animal Recovery Mission, and is currently advising communications and development for OneProtest as a board member. She also spends her time on her rescue, Space Coast Bunnies, advocating for animal legislation locally, and serving as a mentor to teens. Her ultimate goal is to reduce inequity and suffering of all of our planet’s inhabitants by inspiring others to take action.

Ashok Singh

Ashok Singh

Executive Director, FSM India

Ashok Singh is an organizer in India with a background in overseeing some of the biggest clean ups in the country. Ashok attended the Indian Institute of Management in Lucknow, and is presently working as CEO with Unify Building Technologies Pvt. Ltd. in New Delhi, India. He has been part of Alcatel Lucent, India and Siemens Limited for more than 10 years.

Ashok has been part of the Let’s Do it World as a volunteer since 2018 and later served as a Country Leader and has also volunteered with the Earth Day Network since 2015. The biggest campaign, led by Let’s Do It World with its 164 member countries, is the annual biggest global one-day green action: World Cleanup Day (www.worldcleanupday.org).World Cleanup Day, which is the largest one-day peacetime civic action against waste, brought together global, regional, and local organizations to create lasting change in societies and catalyze cross-sectoral cooperation toward a circular economy.

Sarah Bexell, PhD

Sarah Bexell, PhD

Associate, Community Connections

Sarah M. Bexell has worked in wildlife conservation, humane education and sustainable development for over 25 years. She holds a B.A. in biology and environmental studies from Augustana College, M.A. in biological anthropology from Northern Illinois University, M.Ed. in secondary science education from Georgia State University and a PhD in early childhood education with a cognate in science education from Georgia State University. Currently she is Clinical Associate Professor with the University of Denver’s Graduate School of Social Work as well as Director of Humane Education for the University of Denver’s Institute for Human-Animal Connection. She is also the Director of Conservation Education at China’s Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding. At the University of Denver she teaches courses and internships in Sustainable Development and Global Practice, Humane Education and Animal Studies.
Matt Hamity

Matt Hamity

Director of Research

In addition to his work at Fair Start Movement, Matt is an animal rights attorney. His chief client is the Animal Legal Defense Fund. Matt obtained his J.D. from the UC Berkeley School of Law. He also received his Master in Fine Arts from Columbia University and has published fiction in Conjunctions: 50 Contemporary Writers, Carolina Quarterly, and Prism International. Most recently, his article, “Cosmetic and convenience surgeries on companion animals: the case for laws with bite to protect a dog’s bark,” appeared in Contemporary Justice Review.
Timothy David Ray

Timothy David Ray

Partnerships Advisor

Timothy was born and raised in New Orleans into a family of musicians, teachers, and community activists. In college, he began volunteering to help elect candidates to various elected offices. Finding a passion for public policy and government, he climbed the ranks of political and policy campaigns, serving as Communications Director for several campaigns and eventually as Senior Strategist and Campaign Manager to numerous campaigns.

Timothy David earned his Juris Doctorate degree with an advanced certification in International Law from Loyola University, College of Law. Since 2014, he has served as an Adjunct Professor of Political Science at the University of New Orleans. He also serves on the faculty of the Institut für Anwaltsrecht at Humboldt University in Berlin, Germany, where he teaches courses in Negotiation and Mediation. In 2018, Timothy David made history when he was appointed Clerk of First City Court of New Orleans – becoming the first African-American man to serve in that position.

Timothy David Ray is a proud and active board member of the Alliance for Affordable Energy, the American Federation of Musicians Local #174-496, and the Greater New Orleans AFL-CIO, Central Labor Council. He is the immediate Past-President and current board member of the New Orleans Coalition, and serves as Legal Counsel for the Kyler Cares Foundation.

Carter Dillard

Carter Dillard

Policy Director and Board of Directors

Carter, author of Justice as a Fair Start in Life, began his career as an Honors Program appointee to the U.S. Department of Justice. He later served as a legal adviser to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, in the national security law division. He wrote his thesis reformulating the right to have children under Jeremy Waldron, his extensive academic work on family planning has been published by Yale, Duke, and Northwestern Universities, as well as in peer-reviewed pieces, and he has served on the Steering Committee of the Population Ethics and Policy Research Project and was a Visiting Scholar at the Uehiro Center, both at the University of Oxford. He has taught at several law schools in the U.S., served as a peer reviewer for the journal Bioethics, and most recently managed an animal protection strategic impact litigation program, with annual resources in excess of five million dollars. 

Nour Belokda

Nour Belokda

D.C. Campaigns Advisor

Nour is the co-founder of a marketing and business development company and currently works as a lobbyist. From the University of Central Florida, she earned a Bachelor’s degree in Political Science with a Minor in International Relations and Comparative Politics. She also has a Micro Master’s degree in International Law from Louvain University Online. Nour also completed coursework in subjects ranging from Asylum and Refugee Law, International Investment Law, International Humanitarian Law, and International Human Rights.

As a trilingual in English, French, and Arabic, with conversational skills in Spanish and Swedish, Nour is passionate about using her talent to foster positive outcomes by serving as a liaison and assisting others in navigating political, cultural, and social situations.

Nour is also a licensed pilot and is a Harvard-Certified Humanitarian Response to Conflict and Disaster professional. In addition, she can often be found leaning into her love for helping others by volunteering her time at Be My Eyes, assisting people who are blind or with low vision. When not working, Nour is consistently researching laws and policies to drive her lifelong goal of elevating the quality of life experienced by others.

Catharina Hughey

Catharina Hughey

Advisor

Catharina has spent over ten years working with children, from educational settings to child welfare. After six years of clinical work with a non-profit, she pursued her MSW from the University of Denver Graduate School of Social Work to address the inequities of the foster care system from a macro perspective. Since then, she has utilized evidence-based practices to create and evaluate curriculums and interventions that positively affect children’s emotional, academic, and biophysical health. Kat is currently working as a research associate at the Burnes Center on Poverty and Homelessness. Creating equity and compassion for the human experience is the highlight of her research. Kat is passionate about social justice, diversity, and ensuring that innovative design is central to the narrative for positive change.

Terra Walters

Terra Walters

Advisor

Terra Walters is a writer, editor, and activist passionate about equality, equity and universal human rights. Her background in journalism has led to a colorful career, from her position as editor at a conservative geopolitical think tank to a volunteer writing copy for the American Association for the Advancement of Science. Today, she is active in supporting many causes,  including Planned Parenthood and the Beto O’Rourke campaign for governor. She works from home in North Texas with careful oversight from her dog, Bear. 

Mwesigye Robert

Mwesigye Robert

Seeds for the Future, colleague

Mwesigye holds a diploma in public health and one in psycho-Social Counseling. He has worked in a Refugee settlement and is a climate activist. He initiated virtual nonviolent communication training of 70 people from Africa.

Cassie King

Cassie King

Communications Lead and Social Media

Cassie King is the Communications Director for the international animal rights network Direct Action Everywhere (DxE), based in Berkeley, California. After graduating from UC Berkeley, she became a full-time activist. She lives in Berkeley with two bunnies who were rescued from slaughter.

Maureen Cohen Harrington

Maureen Cohen Harrington

Special Projects Manager

Maureen Cohen Harrington is Vice President of the Congressional Vegetarian Staff Association, a member of the Committee of 100 on the Federal City, and on the boards of Washington Area Lawyers for the Arts and Washington Area Roadskaters. As Special Projects Manager at Fair Start Movement, she is organizing a forum at George Washington University, “Tackling the Population Taboo: Creating a Sustainable Future for Children” (April 9, 2019). In her day job, she is Senior Counsel at the Library of Congress Office of the General Counsel. She shares a home with two feline Louisiana flood refugees.

 

Seeta Begui

Seeta Begui

Secretary of the Board of Directors

Seeta Begui is a Licensed Practical Nurse, and author. living with her husband in Melbourne, Florida. She is the proud mother of four grown children. Active in politics, she promotes social justice, prevention of domestic abuse, and the empowerment of women. Seeta is an experienced CEO with a demonstrated history of working in the publishing industry, with nonprofit organizations, operations management, coaching, activism, and editing. She attended attended Pleasantville Senior comprehensive high school in Trinidad and Tobago. 

 

Dr. Betty Martin-Finneran

Dr. Betty Martin-Finneran

Research Associate and Board of Directors

 Dr. Betty Martin-Finneran completed her Ph.D. in Interdisciplinary Studies at The Union Institute & University Graduate College in Cincinnati, Ohio. Her area of concentration was Transformative Learning with a strong Jungian transpersonal psychology emphasis—sacred psychology. She completed her Master of Science Degree in Information Management Technology at Grantham University in Kansas City, Missouri. Currently, Dr. Martin-Finneran works as an Instructional Associate at Berryessa Union School District in San Jose, California. In addition, she is an online and face-to-face ESL instructor at Techworld Language Solutions of Troy, Michigan.

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