Staff

The Fair Labor Association has two offices, a headquarters in Washington, DC, and a European office in Geneva, Switzerland. All staff members can be contacted via the association’s main phone number in Washington.

Auret van Heerden
President and CEO
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(202) 898-1000, ext. 3010

Auret van Heerden brings more than 30 years experience in international human and labor rights to the FLA. He began campaigning for workers’ rights as a young student in apartheid South Africa and co-authored a book in 1976 that called for trade union rights for black workers. He served two terms as president of the National Union of South African Students. After graduating in industrial sociology from the University of the Witwatersrand in Johannesburg, he founded an institute that provided research and training services to trade unions and civil society groups. He was forced into exile in May 1987 after long periods of solitary confinement and torture.

In 1988, Auret joined the International Labor Organization (ILO) and worked on its Program of Action against Apartheid in Geneva until 1994 when the new democratic South African government appointed him Labor Attaché in the South African Permanent Mission to the UN in Geneva. He returned to the ILO in 1996, where he worked on labor relations issues in 25 zone-operating countries and established a Swiss-funded project to improve labor relations in Special Economic Zones in China.

Jorge Perez-Lopez
Executive Director
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(202) 898-1000, ext. 2080

Jorge Perez-Lopez joined the FLA in June 2005. Prior to this, he spent 31 years in the U.S. government, where he developed extensive expertise in international economics and trade relations.

For nearly two decades, Jorge directed the Office of International Economic Affairs at the Bureau of International Labor Affairs, a division of the Department of Labor’s. There, he was involved in the development, implementation and negotiation of U.S. trade policies — and directed a supporting research program in international economics. Most notably, he participated in the negotiation of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), serving as the lead U.S. negotiator for the Safeguards Chapter on emergency action and coordinated the Department of Labor's overall involvement in the negotiations. More recently, he was part of the U.S. team that negotiated the labor chapter of U.S. free trade agreements with Chile, Singapore, Morocco, Australia, Central America and the Dominican Republic; he was also the U.S. lead negotiator of the labor chapter of the agreement with the Andean countries.

Jorge has authored several books and numerous articles on international economics and trade relations. He holds a Master's and Ph.D. degree in economics from the State University of New York at Albany.

Mike Ahlberg
Finance Assistant
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(202) 898-1000, ext. 2070

Sabrina Bosson
Assistant to the President
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(202) 898-1000, ext. 3040

Sabrina Bosson is the personal assistant to the FLA President and CEO. She studied dance at the Conservatoire de Musique de Geneve before completing a Master’s in political science at the University of Geneva. Before joining the FLA, she worked as the commercial representative in Switzerland for L’Occitane en Provence. In the course of her studies, Sabrina interned with NGOs in the Philippines, where she worked children who were in prison; Madagascar, where she worked with the homeless; and Vancouver, where she was the event coordinator for an environmental group.

Heewon Brindle-Khym
NGO and Trade Union Coordinator
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(202) 898-1000, ext. 2090

Heewon Brindle-Khym has substantial expertise in the areas of international and domestic labor rights. Her dedication to the cause began when she organized immigrant workers to New York City. Since then, she has worked for the Worker Rights Consortium and UNITE HERE coordinating and supporting international workers’ rights campaigns.

Heewon currently serves on the board of directors of Educators for Social Responsibility and was a previous board member of Sweat Free Communities. She holds a B.A. in geology from Boston College and a Master of public policy and administration from Columbia University.

Christine Briscoe
Program Manager, Category C Licensees
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(202) 898-1000, ext. 2030

Christine Briscoe is the FLA's Licensee Program Manager. She came to the FLA from the Canadian Embassy in Washington, DC, where she helped Canadian companies in multiple sectors do business in the Mid-Atlantic States. She holds an MBA from the University of Maryland with a focus on International Business, Entrepreneurship and Business Ethics. At Maryland, Christine served as a liaison to the university’s Net Impact (Leaders for Better Business) chapter on behalf of more than 500 part-time students. She is a longtime member of Women in International Trade and won the Member of the Year Award in 2002 for the professional development programs she developed; in 2005, she was nominated to the organization’s board of directors. She also serves on the board of the DC Sustainable Business Network. Christine grew up in Canada and Germany, and holds a B.A. from the University of Ottawa and a postgraduate teaching certificate from the University of Glasgow, Scotland.

Franklin Chavarria
Western Hemisphere Manager
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(202) 898-1000, ext. 4020

Franklin Chavarria has extensive experience in the implementation of monitoring programs. Prior to joining the FLA in April 2007, he worked for more than five years with the former Reebok Human Rights Programs as a field manager for the Americas. Since 2006, he participated in the integration process between adidas and Reebok in the Social and Environmental Affairs section of the adidas group. Franklin’s expertise and strength areas include: factory assessments; remediation; capacity building; education and training; and extensive consultation and collaboration with senior government officials, worker advocate and NGOs in the Americas. Experienced in quality assurance programs, Franklin has worked with more than 800 apparel suppliers with responsibility for maintaining required quality standards for several factories in El Salvador. Franklin received an associate’s degree in science with a concentration in clothing merchandising from Florida Community College in Jacksonville. He is currently based in El Salvador.

Jennifer Clarke
Program Manager, Category B Licensees
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(202) 898-1000, ext. 2110

Jennifer Clarke joined the FLA in August 2008 as the Category B Licensee Program Manager. Before joining the FLA, Jennifer spent 5 years working for Nordstrom, Inc in their International Finance office and later their Social Responsibility department. As an SR Specialist in their private label division, Jennifer held various responsibilities including the management of remediation in apparel, footwear and hard goods facilities; collaborating with cross-functional teams on FLA requirements and traveling overseas to work with factories in China and India. While working on her Master's degree, Jennifer worked for Amazon.com as a Vendor Compliance Fraud Investigator, promoting adherence to 3rd party vendor policy and performance requirements. Jennifer grew up in Honolulu, Hawaii and holds a B.A. from McGill University in Quebec, Canada and an M.A. in Policy Studies from the University of Washington Bothell. 

Heeral Coleman
University Liaison and Program Manager
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(202) 898-1000, ext. 2220

Heeral Coleman joined the FLA in March 2007. She has worked extensively in the communications field in her native India, including nearly four years with Ogilvy PR Worldwide, an international communications firm. During that time, she was named team leader for the Technology and Corporate & Finance practices for the Mumbai office. In this role, she worked closely with the heads of Mumbai and South Asia operations to implement strategic communications plans and training workshops for Ogilvy PR’s Mumbai clients in her practice areas. Heeral earned her Master’s in public communication from American University, where she was awarded a Hall of Nations merit scholarship. With graduate studies focused on nonprofit communication and social entrepreneurship, she brings a deep commitment to positive social change.

Ines Kaempfer
Director of Assessment, Capacity Builidng and Training
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(202) 898-1000, ext. 3020

Ines Kaempfer is the FLA’s Survey and Assessments Coordinator. In this role, she is responsible for developing the new web-based Assessment Portal and survey tools. Before joining the FLA, Ines taught at the University of Fribourg in Switzerland, where she received a Ph.D. for her thesis examining the relationship between traditional Chinese values and human rights. Fluent in Mandarin, she has traveled, studied and worked in China, and she’s authored number of scholarly articles on attitudes towards human rights in China.

Aykut Kazanci
Eastern Hemisphere Manager
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(202) 898-1000, ext. 4010

Aykut Kazanci has extensive experience as a quality, safety and social compliance auditor. Prior to joining the FLA, Aykut was Lead Assessor for Bureau Veritas Quality Int. based in Istanbul; Lead Auditor and Regional Coordinator for Verité; Lead Consultant and Trainer for an International Labor Organization-European Union textile sector program; Lead Assessor for British Standards Institution; Lead Auditor with ITS-Intertek Labtest in Istanbul; Safety Trainer for Cement Manufacturers Employer Union; CSR Consultant for GTZ; and Lead Assessor for the JO-IN project. Earlier in his career, he worked with the Lawyers Committee for Human Rights in a project in Turkey. Aykut has received training on ISO 9000, OHSAS 18000 and SA 8000. He holds a B.S. in mechanical engineering.

Patrick Kigongo
Administrative Assistant, Monitoring Program
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(202) 898-1000, ext.2060

Patrick Kigongo joined the FLA as a monitoring program assistant in February 2009. He holds a BA from the University of Maryland where he double majored in Government and Politics, and French Language and Literature. After completing his undergraduate degree, he spent a year teaching English to underprivileged children in the suburbs of Paris, France. He returned to Washington, D.C. to attend the George Washington University, where he completed an MA in international affairs.

Sherri Ligon
Director, Finance and Management
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(202) 898-1000, ext. 2040

Sherri Ligon has an extensive background in finance and business. She began her career with the IRS’ Memphis Service Center in the early 1970s, spending many years in the Collection Division. After relocating to the Washington metropolitan area, she was assigned to the Problem Resolution Office and field offices in Washington, D.C. As a Revenue Officer, Sheri was responsible for civil investigations and enforcement actions. She has been enrolled to practice before the IRS since 2000. Previously, Sherri was a partner with Successful Outsourcing Solutions, an outsourced accounting firm in Bethesda, Md. Her clients included high-net worth individuals, real estate entities, medical practices, government contractors and non-profits. Prior to that, she spent several years with a regional accounting firm and a tax law firm. Sherri holds a B.A. degree from the University of Maryland.

Allison T.C. Milne
Independent External Monitoring Coordinator
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(202) 898-1000, ext. 2190

Before joining the FLA, Allison Milne served as a research analyst with Accordia Global Compliance, a social compliance monitoring firm. Allison received her J.D. from the State University of New York (SUNY) at Buffalo Law School, where she was honored with the Professor Virginia Leary Award for outstanding academic performance in international law and the Linda S. Reynolds Award for exceptional commitment to equal justice for the poor. At SUNY, Allison was the 2005-2006 Editor-in-Chief of the Buffalo Human Rights Law Review. She has interned with the Living Wage Commission in Buffalo, N.Y., Urgent Action Fund-Africa in Nairobi, and Ebenezer Counseling Ministry in Kigali, Rwanda. She has a B.A. in international relations from Wheaton College in Illinois.

Richa Mittal
Regional Manager: South Asia
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(202) 898-1000, ext.4030

Born and raised in India, Richa Mittal joined the FLA in June 2003, after completing an MA in public health at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor. For two years, she was actively involved in managing a health program for garment workers in Bangladesh through Michigan International Development and has written about the existing labor health issues. She relocated to India in 2004 as the FLA Regional Manager for South Asia and managed FLA activities in India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka for four years. In the field, she developed the agriculture monitoring program for the FLA. Recently, she undertook the responsibility of managing FLA projects globally and is based in the FLA Geneva office. Richa also has a Master's in human ecology from the University of Delhi.

Roopa Nair
Director of Code Implementation and Monitoring
This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it (202) 898-1000, ext. 2100

Roopa Nair has an extensive background in international development, with particular expertise in globalization and changing labor economies. She has worked in non-profit, corporate and academic sectors in Asia, Europe and North America with a particular interest in gender and development. Before joining the FLA, she worked on these issues with a variety of worker communities, including informal sector labor, migrant labor, garment workers and high-tech labor.Most recently, Roopa was the Corporate Responsibility Compliance Manager for South Asia at Nike Inc., where she developed a regional team to work on social compliance systems in India, Sri Lanka and Pakistan. She holds a Ph.D. from the University of Cambridge, England, with research focusing on globalization and new industries in India. She has both a Bachelor of Arts and Master’s degree from McGill University in Quebec, Canada.

Wenxun Pan
Assessment Portal Administrator
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+86-159-6262-6991

Wenxun joined the FLA in December 2007 and is currently the Administrator of the FLA Assessment Portal. Before joining the FLA, she worked in logistics for GE Plastics in Guanggzhou, acquiring knowledge on database management and gaining insight into a worldwide Chinese supplier. Wenxun holds a degree in English from the HuaiYin University of Technology in Jiangsu Province, China.

Xiaolei Qian
Assessment and Survey Program Manager
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Xiaolei Qian joined the FLA Shanghai office in September 2008. She is responsible for supporting development of FLA assessment tools and data analysis. Xiaolei received her Ph. D. in Economics from Monash University (Melbourne, Australia), where she also worked with academics and professionals from the private sector in a range of projects in economics, finance, business, law and social studies, with a focus on China, Southeast Asia and Australia. She has worked extensively on China’s migrant and social insurance reform issues and published several articles in academic journals including Applied Economics, Ecological Economics and Journal of Post-Communist Economies.