Meet our passionate team and volunteers from across the world!
Our Founder
Meet Ken
KEN WONG is the Founder and Executive Director of The Face-to-Face Project, which he started in 2004. He previously worked as a documentary photographer and production manager of art books at Little, Brown & Company, Princeton University Press, and Yale University Press. Originally from Oberlin, Ohio, he is a graduate of Colby College in Waterville, Maine.
About Face-to-Face
OUR HISTORY
The Face-to-Face Project (F2F) began as The Face-to-Face AIDS Project in 2003 as part of a Harvard Medical School initiative to document the AIDS pandemic in South Africa. We photographed, filmed, and interviewed scores of people, many now deceased, and presented their life stories in the U.S. to raise awareness of the AIDS pandemic through exhibiting our AIDS Photo Mosaics and presenting at numerous universities, museums and international conferences.
Still, we wanted to do more to help the people who’d entrusted us with their stories.
And that is when F2F decided to evolve into a charity that uses its documentary experiences to reveal local economic, cultural, and societal realities, and then build on-the-ground programs that local communities can take ownership of. In 2006, we pivoted our focus to Malawi, and then Cambodia in 2007. We believe that working in these similar, yet very different nations, informs our programming in ways that can be unique and forward thinking. We bring together the best of our experiences in both countries to come up with programs that often challenge established methods of charity.
ANNUAL REPORTS
2023 ANNUAL REPORT
2022 ANNUAL REPORT
2021 ANNUAL REPORT
2019 ANNUAL REPORT
2018 ANNUAL REPORT
Our Global Community
Hover over each geography to learn more about the communities we serve.
New York, HQ
Cambodia
Population: Over 16 million with 3 million living in poverty
The vast majority of Cambodia’s rural poor still depend on rice cultivation, in spite of its expenses, climate-related challenges, and dominant competition from countries whose large-scale agriculture yields cheaper rice. Because they have no money, Cambodian farmers take on hard day labor, leave the family to work in factories, and force their children to drop out of school. Most subsistence farmers have plots that are too small to take advantage of machinery and other cost-cutting methods.
Malawi
Population: 18 million with 53% of the population living below the poverty line, 8.8% of the population is HIV+ and 74% of children do not complete primary school.
The Malawian government depends heavily on outside aid to meet development needs, although this need (and the aid offered) has decreased since 2000.
New York City Staff
ALICIA PIERRO
SAMANTHA HACKER
Malawi Staff
The Face-to-Face Project Malawi is its own registered NGO receiving its Certificate of Incorporation from MP Henry Phoya of the Malawi Minister of Justice’s office on August 11, 2008.
MIKE CHIKAKUDA
LAMECK MANDEVU
MADALITSO ZULU
ANDREW ZULU
JACQUELINE MWALWENI
MUSAOPE MWASE
STANLEY LUKA NAMAKHWA
HAPPY SELEBENDE
ODETTA KABWERA
BROTHERHILL BM PHIRI
Cambodia Staff
We’re pleased to announce that as of April 2022 our victory garden program in Cambodia is now recognized as a Cambodian-registered NGO/charity.
IN SAKARA
KOV SOK
KEO SOVANNARY
KHET EYLANG
MOM CHANSOTHEA
Board of Directors
LAURA NEISH | Chairman: An attorney who represents individuals, and nonprofits in litigation, investigations and regulatory matters.
IAN KEARNEY | Vice Chairman: Originally from New Zealand and currently Vice President of People and Organization at North American Partners in Anesthesia.
PAT BOWERS | Treasurer: Previously served as Vice President of Purchasing and Sales at East West Copolymer.
MARNI FECHTER | Officer: Auction Manager at RFK Human Rights
CHRIGU IMHOF | Officer: Engineer at Haldemann Planer AG in Switzerland; founder of BeastMode Baern Gym.
DAVID LOWN | Secretary: Associate, Investment Banking within the M&A group at Bank of America.
LOUISE MASTERSON | Officer: A resident of Zurich, Switzerland where she provides family office services to selected clients.
SARAH SUNG | Officer: Sarah is a Director of Account Management at OpenInvest in NY.
SOKHANDHI UNG | Officer: A graduate of Cornell University, Sokhandhi is a SVP, Tech M&A at TD Securities in New York.
FLETCHER WRIGHT | Officer: Managing Director at Planet Partnerships, LLC, leading the daily technical, business development, and project management operations for the company.
STEVE HILTON | Advisor: Former Executive Vice President at DXC Technology and Managing Director at Credit Suisse.
