Our Team
FEBA governance is lead by the General Assembly and the Board of Directors. The daily activity is run by the Secretariat.
The General Assembly is composed of delegates from FEBA Full Members. It approves the activity report, the financial accounts and the budget, decides the annual membership fees, and establishes internal rules and regulations. The General Assembly elects the Board of Directors.
The Board of Directors is currently composed of 11 Directors, all of whom are coming from FEBA Full Members, with a mandate of 4 years. The Board may be completed by independent Directors proposed by the Board and elected by the General Assembly. The Board of Directors elects the President, Vice-President, Treasurer and Secretary of the Board. The Board of Directors nominates the Secretary General who leads the organisation and manages the team.
Jacques Vandenschrik
President
When reaching the end of his professional career and recovering from surgery, a sudden abundance of leisure time turned Jacques towards volunteering at the Banque Alimentaire du Hainaut Occidental et de Mons-Borinage. Initially, he joined the FEBA Board of Directors due to his knowledge and expertise but was also inspired to work with the staff and fellow Board members. In his role as President, his current goal is to make the #AllTogether4Ukraine campaign a real success as well as preparing his position for a future successor. Jacques has enjoyed different foods and dishes all over the world, so he does not have a specific favourite. However, he dislikes duck tongue.
Jacques Vandenschrik
President
Lindsay Boswell
Vice President
Lindsay first started out at FareShare 12 years ago and has contributed to fighting hunger and tackling food waste ever since. He currently works as CEO at FareShare (UK). He joined the FEBA Board of Directors because he values the knowledge sharing among the network and wants to support this solidarity, so it grows and prospers also as regards raising awareness of the work of Food Banks at national and EU level. Lindsay's favourite food is always his next meal, but he loves all types of seafoods if they are sustainable.
Lindsay Boswell
Vice President
Tom Hillemans
Treasurer
Tom was motivated to support society and dedicated half his working time towards that goal. He helped setting up the Voedselbank Arnhem and shortly after became involved in Voedselbanken Nederland where he holds the position of Vice President. He joined the FEBA Board of Directors to foster the mutual understanding and collaboration between the network, as well as to contribute with his expertise but also to prevent food waste and help people in need. Tom does not have a specific favourite food, but he used to enjoy a good foie gras.
Tom Hillemans
Treasurer
Pedro Castaños Ruiz
Secretary
Pedro started to volunteer at the local Banco de Alimentos de Madrid after ending his professional career to help solving the real problems that exist in society. He acts as Deputy Director at Federación Española de Bancos de Alimentos (Spain). He joined the FEBA Board of Directors to contribute with his knowledge and experience with international projects but also to improve the solidarity within the FEBA network. His favourite food is fried eggs with “chorizo”.
Pedro Castaños Ruiz
Secretary
Paula Victoria Capodistrias
Board Member
Paula first got involved into Food Banking after writing her Master’s thesis on redistribution of surplus food for social purposes in 2015. She has more than 10 years of experience working with sustainable food systems, including 5 years working as Project Manager at Matsentralen Norge, where she led the development of Norway's National network of Food Banks. She joined the FEBA Board of Directors to contribute to strengthen the development of European Food Banks, prevent food waste, and reduce food insecurity in Europe through her enthusiasm, engagement, and experience. She is inspired by the ambition of a sustainable and healthy food system, with enough and appropriate food available for everyone, produced and consumed in a responsible way, and the Food Banks' contribution to that. Currently she works as Senior Urban Food Systems Officer at EAT, where she contributes to the organisation's efforts to transform urban environments to provide healthier and more sustainable diets for all. Her favourite dish is pizza.
Paula Victoria Capodistrias
Board Member
Marco Lucchini
Board Member
Marco first got involved in the work of Food Banks through a friend. He currently works as Secretary General at Fondazione Banco Alimentare ONLUS (Italy). He joined the FEBA Board of Directors to learn from his fellow members, share experiences and knowledge gained at national level with the network, and contribute to the FEBA mission. Empowering FEBA as an organisation is also of importance to him. His favourite foods are among others: rice, pasta, cheese, veggies, and fruits.
Marco Lucchini
Board Member
Bernard Valluis
Board Member
Motivated to tackle existing societal problems like food insecurity, Bernard got involved in food banking through the relationship between the Fédération Française des Banques Alimentaires and the think tank AgriDées. He is engaged as a volunteer at the Fédération Française des Banques Alimentaires. He joined the FEBA Board of Directors based on his previous experience with EU institutions and background in the agri-food sector hoping to help FEBA to grow and develop further. His favourite food is couscous, be it a tasty “couscous royale” or veggie couscous with peas or fava beans.
Bernard Valluis
Board Member
Iseult Ward
Board Member
Iseult is the co-founder and CEO of FoodCloud, Ireland's national food bank. She and her team started FoodCloud in 2013 as there was no national organisation redistributing surplus food in Ireland at the time and they were passionate about tackling the problems of food waste and food insecurity. Iseult hopes to share her experience with FoodCloud in Ireland, contribute to the Board through expertise she developed, and work with the FEBA Board of Directors and network to ensure the FEBA network continues to secure the support it needs so that we can collectively address the challenges of food insecurity and food waste across Europe. Iseult loves food and tends to have a new favourite food every month.
Iseult Ward
Board Member
The Secretariat is made of employees as well as volunteers and trainees who contribute to the daily activities of the organisation.
Esteban Arriaga
Chief Executive Officer
Esteban lives in Brussels after an extensive career working mainly in the field of humanitarian relief with the EU, Doctors without Borders, War Child and others in partnership with international organisations and as an advisor to the European Commission. He has worked in difficult front-line situations in the Middle East, Africa and the Caribbean. He has several degrees from Netherlands and the USA.
Esteban Arriaga
Chief Executive Officer
Balázs Cseh
Senior Network Development Advisor
Balázs was inspired by the work of Banques Alimentaires in France and started food banking activities in Hungary in 2005 to fill the existing gap. He is the President of Magyar Élelmiszerbank Egyesület (Hungary). He joined the FEBA Board of Directors to foster the sharing of expertise and knowledge but also contribute to the growth of the FEBA network and the scaling up of its activities. His favourite food is Wiener Schnitzel.
Balázs Cseh
Senior Network Development Advisor
Valentina D’Arrigo
Senior Partnerships & Capacity Building Manager
After obtaining a Ph.D. in Law, Valentina gained professional experience in the legal field first and then in food banking, collaborating with the Italian Banco Alimentare at local and national level. In 2019 she joined FEBA as a Partnerships and Capacity Building Manager, handling the relationships with FEBA Members, assessing their needs, as well as establishing and strengthening partnerships with international stakeholders. Valentina loves reading, discovering the world, walking in the nature and she is an authentic ice cream enthusiast!
Valentina D’Arrigo
Senior Partnerships & Capacity Building Manager
Anna Dekker
Fundraising & Partnerships Manager
Anna holds a Master of Arts degree specialising in European Union studies from the Netherlands after completing undergraduate programmes in her native New Zealand and Germany. She has worked across a variety of sectors in New Zealand including the not-for-profit sector and more recently for the New Zealand government supporting the international education sector, with a particular focus on outbound mobility. She is committed to a wide variety of causes that uplift those in need and help make the world a better place, from reducing food insecurity to global citizenship and sustainability. In her spare time Anna loves getting outdoors into nature, meditation, travelling and cooking, with a speciality in desserts, especially pavlova!
Anna Dekker
Fundraising & Partnerships Manager
Anna Friederitz
Network Development Coordinator
After volunteering for different social purpose organisations and gaining academic expertise in the area of Sustainable Management and International & European Relations, the mission and activities of FEBA are a perfect fit with Anna’s professional and personal interests. Joining FEBA as an EU Policy Trainee in 2021, she now works as Assistant to the Secretary General, supporting with the daily running of the organisation and engaging with FEBA Members as well as external stakeholders. Moreover, she is involved in FEBA’s Data collection & digital transformation project. Anna’s favourite food is Tarte Flambée with veggies but she also loves Franzbrötchen (similar to Swedish cinnamon rolls, but better).
Anna Friederitz
Network Development Coordinator
Caterina Marchetti
Executive Assistant
Caterina is a Master’s graduate in Development and International Relations, with a focus on Global Refugee Studies and a Bachelor’s graduate in International Studies. After moving between Italy, Germany, and Denmark, she has been living in Brussels for the past two years, where she gained experience in policy and advocacy, communications, events organisation, and project management at different organisations. She is a big advocate for marginalised people and has previously volunteered at a refugee shelter and at a social club she helped founding. This will come off as a cliché... her favourite food is of course pizza.
Caterina Marchetti
Executive Assistant
Lilli Renner
Policy & Advocacy Officer
Lilli holds an LL.M. in International and European Law and has extensive academic expertise in the fields of International Relations and European Studies. She previously gained experience at the German Embassy and the Representation of Baden – Württemberg to the EU. She joined FEBA in 2022. Lilli is passionate about European Integration and Foreign Policy. She is hoping to contribute to the growth of the organisation and supporting FEBA and its members where needed. Her favourite food is Spaghetti Carbonara, but she does miss a good German bread from time to time, while living abroad.
Lilli Renner
Policy & Advocacy Officer
Sofiia Vara
Project Manager
Sofiia is super dedicated to the ideas of Sustainability, Justice, and Transparency. She gained a huge experience in working with green-minded people across Europe while being the project manager of Green Youth of Ukraine and an Executive Committee member of Cooperation and Development Network Eastern Europe. Also, she has a good academic background: Bachelor's degree in the International Economy and Master's degree in Political Philosophy. Sofiia is focused on the aim and concentered on the details project manager, which is trying to make as many practical outcomes as possible, currently working for the campaign #AllTogether4Ukraine. She is a big fan of Ukrainian cuisine and seafood.
Sofiia Vara
Project Manager
Anne Vergeynst
Finance & Administration Manager
After more than 15 years experience in Accounting in the private sector, working for international companies, Anne joined FEBA as Accounting Officer. In her spare time, she enjoys family quality time, long walks in the nature or at the seaside. Her favorite food is any colorful combination of tasty vegetables and seafood.
