New ICRC Directorate appointed

Under the leadership of Director-General Yves Daccord, whose mandate was renewed in September 2013, the new Directorate will formally take up its functions on 1 July 2014 for a period of four years.

Helen Alderson, director of financial resources and logistics, and Charlotte Lindsey-Curtet, director of communication and information management, have had their mandates renewed for another four years.

They will be joined by three new directors:

Helen Durham, director for international law and policy

Ms Durham, born 1968, is director of international law, strategy, planning and research at the Australian Red Cross. She has a PhD in the fields of international humanitarian law and international criminal law, and is a senior fellow at Melbourne Law School. She has worked as ICRC head of office in Sydney and as legal adviser to the ICRC regional delegation in the Pacific. She has also completed a number of missions with the ICRC in Myanmar, Aceh and the Philippines.

Gherardo Pontrandolfi, director of human resources

Mr Pontrandolfi, born 1966, is head of the ICRC delegation in Afghanistan. He has worked for the ICRC for 14 years and has held various senior field and headquarters positions. He has served as head of mission in Kosovo, head of delegation in Eritrea and South Africa, and head of sub-delegation in Darfur. He has experience of working across Latin America, Africa, the Middle East and Asia. Prior to joining the ICRC, he served as assistant to the secretary-general of the German Red Cross and as a manager at Procter & Gamble.

Dominik Stillhart, director of operations

Mr Stillhart, born 1964, is head of the ICRC People Management Programme (a set of projects aiming at enhancing the organization’s capacity to attract, develop and retain the best possible workforce). He has spent 23 years with the ICRC and has senior-level experience in the field and at headquarters. He previously served as deputy director of operations and as head of delegation in Israel and Sudan. He has wide experience of various operational contexts and roles, and in handling crisis and emergency operations.

Ms Alderson and Ms Lindsey-Curtet have the following backgrounds:

Helen Alderson, director of financial resources and logistics  

Helen Alderson, born in 1960, has a degree in political sciences and international relations as well as an MBA. She began her career at UNICEF in the field before joining the ICRC in 1985. At the ICRC, she held a number of posts at headquarters and in the field including delegate, deputy head of delegation, head of project and head of unit. She left the ICRC in 2000 to join the Ethos Foundation and then, in 2002, joined the World Heart Federation where she held the posts of director of development, chief operating officer and then CEO. She returned to t he ICRC to take up her current position in 2010.

Charlotte Lindsey-Curtet, director of communication and information management  

Charlotte Lindsey-Curtet, born in 1967, has a degree in business studies and a master's degree in communication. She began her career at the British Red Cross as information and marketing officer and subsequently as head of project before joining the ICRC in 1993. She worked in the field for five years as delegate, coordinator and head of sub-delegation. She has since held a number of posts at headquarters including head of the " women and war " project, deputy head of division and deputy director of communication.