Appointment of Helen McElhinney as Executive Director of CDAC Network

It is with great pleasure that we announce the appointment of Helen McElhinney as Executive Director of CDAC Network, starting 2 October 2023. 

Helen is currently the Head of Policy with ICRC UK and Ireland where she has shaped the strategic direction and management of the delegation. From 2012 to 2020, Helen served in various senior advisory roles with the UK Government in London and at British Embassies in Sanaa and Riyadh. Prior to that, she worked with Oxfam in South Sudan and Pakistan and later with International Organization for Migration and the International Rescue Committee in Darfur. Helen has a Master’s degree in International Relations from University of Cambridge and an LL.M in Human Rights Law from University of Glasgow.

‘On behalf of the CDAC Governing Board, I am delighted to welcome Helen as our next Executive Director’, says Geoff Loane, Chair of the CDAC Network Board. ‘Helen brings a wealth of knowledge to this CDAC leadership role with her international experience in policy, diplomacy and programming. She is highly skilled in the interface of conflict analysis, humanitarian action, and policymaking and has the essential leadership skills that are needed to steer CDAC Network in its next phase of development.  Her expertise and energy will advance CDAC’s vision that communities have the information and resources they need to determine their own solutions and be central stakeholders in humanitarian and development decision-making.’ says Geoff. 

‘I am looking forward to joining the CDAC Network, to help us navigate rapidly shifting technological and operational environments to achieve a clear impact’ says Helen. ‘I am very excited to work with people directly affected by crises, CDAC Members, partners and team, to reverse the focus of humanitarian and development decision-making – moving from global to local.’