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Tam Nguyen
Vice President
Nguyen provides advocacy support and guidance to the Hāmākua Institute. He is the Global Head of Sustainability for Bechtel Corporation, based in northern Virginia. He has worked on the development and implementation of corporate sustainability, human rights and other corporate social responsibility policies and strategies for more than 10 years. Prior to that, Nguyen worked with international finance institutions and aid organizations as both a staff member and consultant.
Educated in the United States, Europe, and Asia, Nguyen is a graduate of George Washington University, and holds a doctorate in business administration and two master's degrees in international business and international development.
Daniel McCall
Secretary
McCall has more than 20 years of experience managing conservation and development projects and programs. As am employee of the World Wildlife Fund and CARE, he has worked on initiatives in the countries of Papua New Guinea, Uganda, Somalia, Sudan, Suriname and Guyana. He is skilled in organizational management, program development, partnership development, human resources, donor relations, evaluation, finance and accounting and working in challenging environments.
McCall holds an MSc in Forestry from the Wageningan University, The Netherlands.
Nancy Gilbert
Treasurer
Following a successful legal career, Nancy has worked with the Water and Sanitation Rotarian Action Group of Rotary International and has established and managed the Appropriate Technology Enabled Development (ATED) Project in the Niger Delta of Nigeria for Engineers Without Borders (EWB) and the Foundation for Partnership Initiatives in the Niger Delta.
Gilbert holds a LL.B from Osgoode Hall Law School, Toronto, Canada.
Meet The Team
Dennis Flemming
Founder & Executive Director
Flemming has been a resident of the Hāmākua Coast in Hawaiʻi since 1998, using the town of Nīnole as his home base while commuting as project manager for a number of international development initiatives in the South Pacific and around the world. He recognizes that the Hāmākua coast’s transition from its long history of sugar production provides invaluable insights for other rural communities grappling with similar challenges.
Before establishing the Hāmākua Institute, Flemming spent three decades designing and implementing community programs in developing countries, acting as a consultant, trainer and program manager within both the private and public sectors. He has served as a facilitator and architect of numerous multi-stakeholder development partnerships including: Community Development Initiatives (CDI) Foundation (a set of rural development programs in Papua New Guinea); the Angola Partnership Initiative (pairing private and public sector support for the reconstruction and development of Angola after 27 years of civil war); and the Niger Delta Partnership Initiative, a corporate social enterprise created by Chevron to bring peace and development to the Niger Delta of Nigeria.
Flemming holds an MSc in Sustainable Development from the University of London.
Andrea Kuch
Development Director
With over a decade of experience in corporate social investment and community development, Andrea has spent much of her career on project implementation, communication, and evluation of social impact intiatives. After more than seven years in the private sector, primarily supporting economic development and peace building work in Nigeria’s Niger Delta region, she now serves as Development Director for the Hāmākua Institute. Her passion is in developing and scaling new ideas, technologies, and platforms for community development and social progress. Andrea holds a Bachelor of Arts in International Relations and Communications from the University of San Diego and a master’s certificate in Social Innovation from Stanford’s Graduate School of Business.
Katrina Zavalney
Facilitation Coordinator
Katrina Zavalney is an experienced strategic planning and organization development consultant with a Master's degree in Organization Development. She has 25 years of experience in community development, sustainability, event management, and nonprofit work. Katrina is dedicated to creating sustainable livelihoods globally and has been a leader in the sustainability movement. She has worked with Disney, where she wrote key environmental policies. She has also brought sustainability management to hundreds of events, including the ESPN ESPY Awards, festivals, and conferences, diverting tons of reusable resources from landfills and inspiring more conscious programming. Katrina is a self-starter and founded an international nonprofit to support self-sustaining communities in underserved areas. She has partnered with Rotary International to multiply funds and increase her impact, serving 40,000 people directly and thousands more indirectly in Nepal and Uganda. Additionally, as a professional facilitator, she has the ability to work through seemingly impossible interpersonal challenges to achieve win/win lasting results. She also trains youth and schools on conflict resolution and mediation skills with the West Hawai’i Mediation Center.