Team
Director and founder of Antenna Technologies A doctor in law from the University of Fribourg, and graduate of INSEAD, the international business school based in Fontainebleau, Denis von der Weid left Switzerland for Colombia to focus on the issues of North-South and hunger. Upon his return to Fribourg, he taught development economics and set up a organisation in the same field, and was called upon to teach in Fontainebleau. Several years ensued in the management of Sandoz, before returning to the field, in India. In 1984, he set up Antenna, as an association, as a network of lawyers – and as a supplier of clandestine radio transmitters to assist human rights activists in a number of countries. By 1989, the organisation had metamorphosed into Antenna Technologies to build up the role of scientific research in the struggle against extreme poverty.
Denis von der Weid
Safe water project manager Armed with a degree in Business Studies from the University of Sheffield, Carole typically put her commercial training to use first in events organisation, and then in the private sector in trading and pharmaceuticals before joining the world of development. In 2008, she joined us to manage the supply chain of WATA devices and to develop the WATASOL approach. Carole now focuses on its projects in Africa, Cambodia and Haiti.
Carole de Bazignan
Communications manager Building upon her degree in international relations from the IUED, Fanny went on to obtain a diploma in written communication at the University of Geneva. Five years followed in the private sector, working on communication issues and in management, before she made the move to a communications post in a foundation working in the field of development. Fanny came to us in 2010 as communications manager.
Fanny Chavaz de Kalbermatten
Coordinator of safe water projects Patrick is a agricultural engineer, who has initialy worked as an emergency administrator and water and sanitation engineer in Central Africa and Southeast Asia. Armed with a MBA from the University of Lausanne (HEC), he continued his career as a project coordinator and WASH consultant in the Middle East, southern Africa, South and Southeast Asia, primarily with the Red Cross. Patrick joined Antenna in 2012 as coordinator of water projects in Asia.
Patrick d’Aoust
Technical advisor and projects coordinator His career initially took Pierre-Gilles to work for 10 years in research laboratories for organic chemistry, before he stepped into almost two decades of marketing and sales in pharmaceuticals. During this period, he became active in a Geneva-based study group on North-South issues, an involvement which ultimately saw him run a women’s training centre in south-western Cameroon for some three years. On his return to Europe in 2010, he joined our team as project coordinator.
Pierre-Gilles Duvernay
Coordinator of spirulina projects in India
Recently graduated from the University of St.Gallen (HSG) where she obtained her master’s degree in International Affairs and Governance, Selina gained her first experience with Antenna and Spirulina with her master thesis « Spirulina Candies: A Business Approach to Combat Malnutrition – Marketing Lessons from the Base of the Pyramid » for which she lived four months in Madurai, India. She works now for Antenna and coordinates the Spirulina project in India to combat child malnutrition and diffuse spirulina candies.
Selina Haeny
Off-grid Energy project manager and scientific communication After completing a biomedical research-oriented master at the University of Lausanne and a MBA at the University of Geneva, Christophe gained a solid marketing and scientific communication experience in healthcare as products marketing manager and as medical information manager in international pharmaceutical companies (7 years). Christophe then joined the Antenna Foundation in 2011.
Christophe Hug
Administrative and logistics coordinator Her papers from the graduate business school (ESC) in Geneva lead the way to her first career step in import-export work with TNT Swisspost. Three years follow, as administrative assistant in the department for intellectual property at Merck Serono International. Finally, her wish to pursue her career in the world of development saw Adriana come to Antenna in 2008, where she provides a suite of services as administrative and logistical coordinator.
Adriana Ramos Verdes
Accountant
Abel has a commercial background, having started his working life in a bank in Porto. His training grew organically, piece by piece, leading him to spend some 23 years in Radio-Suisse SA, a private company long renowned for work in telecommunications and air safety. In 2010, Abel came to become the management accountant of our foundation.
Abel Silva
Consultants
Consultant, Doctor Bertrand is a General Practitioner, specialised in public and international health. His earlier career took him to work with a variety of NGOs in Asia and Africa, and for the federal health office of Switzerland. Today, alongside his general practice, he undertakes research on malaria in Mali, on behalf of Antenna and SDC – the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation in collaboration with the Universities of Basle, Oxford and Bamako. Elsewhere, within the cluster of the University and ‘Hautes Écoles’ of Lausanne, Bernard coordinates several research and teaching projects on public health issues, namely traditional and complementary medicine in Switzerland and Mali, and assessment issues in the reception of psychiatric emergency cases.
Bertrand Graz
Consultant, Economist. Director of msd consulting A doctor in economics from the University of St Gallen, Urs worked from 1987 onwards for SDC as country coordinator in Bangladesh and, later, in India. In 2003, he entered the world of consulting in marketing for development. Today he is director of msd consulting (markets, sustainability and development), as well as course director on development cooperation (master of international affairs, MIA) at the University of St Gallen. Within Antenna, Urs is in charge of our technology distribution and marketing strategies.
www.msdconsult.ch
Urs Heierli