Cadasta Foundation, a nonprofit founded in 2015 to expedite the documentation of land rights through innovative technological solutions, is pleased to announce the appointment of three new board members: Christopher Vincent, Tim Hanstad, and Jagdeesh Rao Puppala.
Christopher, Tim, and Jagdeesh come to the Cadasta board with substantial experience working in land issues around the world. Together they will help guide the foundation as it works to develop and promote the use of simple digital tools and technology to help partners efficiently document, analyze, store, and share critical land and resource rights information.
Christopher Vincent brings significant government relations and advocacy experience to the Cadasta board. He currently serves as the Vice President of Government Relations and Advocacy at Habitat for Humanity International (HFHI) where he directs the global advocacy strategy to increase access to adequate and affordable housing. He also oversees the efforts directed at influencing U.S. state, local, and federal housing policy and manages the global the daily operations of HFHI’s office in Washington, DC.
As Co-Founder and Senior Advisor at Landesa, Tim Hanstad comes to the board with deep leadership experience in the land rights field. He serves as a member of Landesa’s Executive Leadership Team and contributes to its programs by building the capacity of staff in field offices. He previously served as Landesa’s CEO and President for more than a decade, and during that time elevated both the organization and the issue of land rights globally. Hanstad is a Skoll Foundation Social Entrepreneur Awardee, a World Economic Forum Social Entrepreneur, and a member of the Clinton Global Initiative, World Economic Forum Global Agenda Council on Food Security, and Global Washington Board of Directors. He has authored numerous publications, including One Billion Rising: Land, Law and the Alleviation of Global Poverty (with Roy Prosterman and Robert Mitchell). Hanstad is affiliate associate professor at the University of Washington School of Law.
Jagdeesh Rao Puppala has worked extensively on community and customary land rights in India. Since 2001, Puppala has served as the Chief Executive of the Foundation for Ecological Security (FES) where he works with communities across India, as well as national and international organizations to conserve and better govern community lands. Under his tenure, FES has embraced institutional diversity, capitalized on the changes in the external environment, reinforced the mission, and evolved a wide range of strategies to improve scale, scope and influence. In 2015, Puppala was conferred the prestigious ‘Skoll Award for Social Entrepreneurship’.
Christopher, Tim, and Jagdeesh join six other board members. Together they oversee Cadasta’s vision, finances, and strategic planning to put land and resource rights on the map.
“We are thrilled to announce these new board members who are innovators and visionaries in the land rights community,” said Liz Blake, Cadasta Board Chair, “Their experiences and insights will be invaluable to Cadasta as it works to support the securing of land and resource rights to build stronger, more sustainable communities.”
