Governance

Biography

• Fondazione Sviluppo e Crescita CRT and CSI Piemonte.
• Corporate Communication Advisor at Xerjoff.
• Currently my portfolio of leadership roles includes:
• Member Of the Board of Directors, Fondazione Sviluppo e CrescitaCRT (Turin, Italy).
• Member Of the Board of Directors, CSI-Piemonte (Turin, Italy).
• Policy Advisor & Project Consultant, European Parliament (Bruxelles, Belgium). Corporate Communication Advisor at Xerjoff (Turin, Italy).

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Biography

Biography

Biography

Daria Rybalchenko is a Ukrainian philanthropy infrastructure leader with over seven years of experience in community philanthropy, governance development, and international collaboration. Since 2021, she has served as Chief Executive Officer of the National Network of Local Philanthropy Development, the Ukrainian network of community foundations. Under her leadership, the network has strengthened governance standards, expanded local grantmaking mechanisms, and mobilised both domestic and international resources to support communities during wartime and recovery. Daria bridges local philanthropy practice with global dialogues on localisation, emergency giving, and humanitarian aid development. Her specific focus is on strengthening local philanthropy during emergencies and on mostly emotional giving in society.

She is a Senior International Fellow at the Center on Philanthropy and Civil Society at The Graduate Center, CUNY, and has participated in multiple international exchanges focused on civil society resilience and cross-border cooperation.

Daria combines systems thinking with practical governance experience and is committed to strengthening inclusive, representative, and forward-looking philanthropy infrastructure across Europe.

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Director of the National Foundation for Civil Society Development (NFCSD) since 2003, the NFCSD is a public foundation (with independent management structure) with the main purpose of supporting development of organised civil society in Croatia. In the NFCSD there are 102 employees working in the Foundation’s Headquarter in Zagreb and in regional offices in Osijek, Rijeka i Split as well as in IMPACT – European Center for Cross-Sector partnerships for Sustainable Development in Zadar.

Prior to start working in the NFCSD Cvjetana was first Head of the Government Office for Cooperation with NGO from 1983 till 2003. Before that Cvjetana was a civil servant as Head of Department for Humanitarian Assistance in the Government Office for Victims of War and from 1984-1993, was Community Organizer in one local community in Zagreb with 5.000 inhabitants (organising programmes for children and youth, women, elderly, environment protection etc). As a student Cvjetana established and worked in few youth and cultural civil society organisations.

Biography

Alina sees herself as a strategist and a builder of architecture for change, on the basis of 25 years as a leader, researcher and consultant in the non-profit and philanthropy development sectors.

Since 2018, she has been the Executive President of APT and director of the INSPIRE program. INSPIRE offers knowledge and facilitation of communities of practice internationally, including through the Thinkfrastructure annual conference. The aim is to enable the leaders of new community foundations support systems in Africa, Europe and Latin America to discover opportunities and assets and maximize the impact and performance in an increasingly dynamic and demanding context.

Between 2005-2017, Alina served as the development director of ARC, a leading national philanthropy support organization in Romania. Alina was responsible for its strategic and impact design, and later led two innovative programs that helped shape philanthropy infrastructure in Romania & CEE.

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Biography

For more than twenty years, I’ve worked at the frontlines of social innovation — building organisations, reshaping ecosystems, and leading large, diverse teams through deep transformation. As a Member of Ashoka’s Global Leadership Group and Europe Leader, I steer strategy, P&L, and culture across 25+ countries and lead a 150-person team grounded in shared leadership, entrepreneurial spirit, and a deep commitment to a world where everyone can contribute. I founded Ashoka Austria and revitalised the Central and Eastern Europe region, and with my wonderful teams have been nurturing one of Europe’s most vibrant networks of 800+ leading social entrepreneurs, hundreds of young changemakers, policymakers, and thousands of corporate, philanthropic, and public-sector partners.

My leadership centres on building high-level partnerships, strengthening Europe’s philanthropic ecosystem, and designing new methodologies—from digital community platforms to network-analysis tools for identifying innovation. I have led complex organisational transformations, building integrated, agile “teams of teams” across borders, cultures and sectors. Beyond Ashoka, I bring substantial board experience in public institutions, foundations, and Europe’s largest public broadcaster. My earlier work as an elected politician enables me to navigate the intersection of democracy, technology, and social impact and to activate extensive networks across Europe for the common good. A frequent speaker and writer, I am known for connecting cross-sector trends and translating complexity into actionable ideas. I hold an MBA from the University of St. Gallen and degrees from the University of Vienna and ESADE.

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Biography

Claudia Strasser is a Board Member of the ChildInvest Foundation, a growing hub for philanthropists committed to creating lasting opportunities for disadvantaged children and young people. In this role, she leads the foundation’s strategic realignment, including a renewed governance structure, strengthened public positioning, and the digital transformation of services for its 50 trust foundations. She also serves as Director of Foundations and Corporate Partners at SOS Children’s Villages Worldwide, one of the largest international NGOs supporting vulnerable children and families in more than 130 countries. Her work focuses on strategic philanthropy and international cooperation, where she develops impactful funding strategies, builds international partnerships, and explores new collaboration models for long-term social change.

Claudia co-chairs the Working Group on International Affairs at the Association of German Foundations and is a steering committee member of Philea’s Children and Youth Network. Previously, she worked for the BMW Foundation Herbert Quandt and the Robert Bosch Stiftung, shaping transatlantic programs and international partnerships. She holds degrees in International Cultural and Business Studies from the University of Passau and the University of Salvador in Buenos Aires.

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