Meet the team

Staff

Sonja Derkum, Head of the IRM

Sonja Derkum is the Head of the GCF's Independent Redress Mechanism. She was previously Head of the Complaints Mechanism (CM) for the European Investment Bank Group (EIB Group) for six years where she successfully managed the EIB’s independent public accountability function. She was with the EIB in Luxembourg in different control and accountability functions since 2003. In 2011, she spent a year supporting the Office of Internal Audit (OIA) at the International Monetary Fund (IMF). Sonja is passionate about topics around good governance and accountability and is a strong advocate for independent grievance mechanisms as a necessity to give a voice to affected communities.

Paco Gimenez-Salinas, Compliance and Dispute Resolution Specialist

Paco Gimenez-Salinas is the Compliance and Dispute Resolution Specialist of the Independent Redress Mechanism (IRM). Paco Gimenez-Salinas, a Spanish and French national, is a lawyer by profession specialised in alternative dispute resolution with a focus in mediation. He has participated in cases handled by the Compliance Advisory Ombudsman (IFC) as an external facilitator, as well as in cases managed by the Independent Consultation and Investigation Mechanism (IADB) in the role of its consultation phase coordinator. In México, he spent several years working in the field of community mediation. Amongst other experiences, he has participated in the design and facilitation of several major multi-party dialogues around issues such as air pollution reduction strategies, the impacts of dams and windmill fields, the strengthening of conflict resolution systems of land tenure related conflicts, etc. Mr. Gimenez-Salinas has undertaken post-graduate studies in the fields of conflict resolution at the University of Barcelona, political analysis at the Mexican University CIDE and community-company mediation at the University of Cape Town.

Preksha Krishna Kumar, Registrar and Case Officer

Preksha Krishna Kumar is a researcher, with wide-ranging experience relating to accountability and redress mechanisms. She previously worked for an international human rights advocacy organization based in New York, supporting dozens of frontline communities in their efforts to access information and redress. Over the course of her career, Preksha has been immersed in the policies, practices and impacts of development finance institutions – working with diverse stakeholders in countries such as India, Colombia, Malawi and Kenya. Preksha holds a B.A. from Sarah Lawrence College, New York, with a focus on Development Economics and Spanish Literature.

Peter Carlson, Communications Officer

Peter is the IRM’s Communication Officer with significant communications experience in education and international development. Prior to joining the IRM, Peter was part of the communications team at the Global Partnership for Education (GPE), focusing on digital campaigns and media. Before GPE, he worked at the OECD, managing communications for the Partnership in Statistics for Development in the 21st Century (PARIS21) and the Environment Directorate. He has also worked at HEC Paris business school, UNESCO and African Artists for Development. Peter holds Bachelor’s degrees in Marketing and French from Ohio State University and a Master’s degree in International Affairs from Sciences Po Paris.

Sue Kyung Hwang, Dispute Resolution Case Associate

After studying International Affairs and Environmental Studies at the George Washington University, Sue Kyung Hwang pursued her master’s degree in Water Cooperation and Diplomacy, a joint programme held at the University for Peace (Costa Rica), IHE Delft Institute for Water Education (Netherlands), and Oregon State University (U.S.), to learn how different stakeholders in riparian countries co-manage their shared water resources. Her past work experiences involve preparing a database of livestock carbon emissions and using it to educate the public for climate action in a local community in Costa Rica. Sue Kyung served as the IRM’s intern in 2020 and the IRM’s Team Assistant from April 2021 to October 2023. She was appointed as the Dispute Resolution Case Associate in October 2023.

Vaishnavi Pallapothu, Intern

Vaishnavi Pallapothu recently graduated from SOAS, University of London with an MA in International Studies and Diplomacy. She is passionate about foreign policy dynamics in the Indian and South Asian context, as it is often an underrepresented geography in global affairs. She is also very interested in the potential for feminist foreign policy to transform the field of international relations. Vaishnavi has experience in online community building and engagement through her work with World Pulse. She has worked on several gender-based international relations research projects. Her previous experience includes working with think-tanks and NGOs in India and the UK, including SCRAP Weapons, the Gender Security Project, the Chennai Centre for China Studies and the Red Elephant Foundation. The confluence of her previous experiences and her education led her to develop an interest in learning how policies translate and affect people on the ground, leading her to intern at the IRM. She is looking forward to learning about and acquiring skills relevant to bottom-up policy perspectives, grievance redress mechanisms and accountability of international organisations during her internship.

Nicholas Kemble, Intern

Nicholas, a native of the United States, holds degrees from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and the London School of Economics (LSE). With a keen interest in diplomacy and international politics, he gained valuable experience interning in the US Congress, focusing on the House Foreign Affairs Committee. Subsequently, Nicholas moved to Amman, Jordan, where he completed an internship at the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestinian Refugees (UNRWA). During his time there, he actively contributed to the agency's operations, supporting both policy and supply chain divisions. Now, at the IRM, Nicholas is committed to deepening his knowledge of redress and mediation strategies to address complaints raised by adversely-affected communities. Drawing from his diverse experiences in international and humanitarian work, he aspires to continue to promote impactful and ethical projects around the world in his future career.