- Our Aims
- Our Achievements
- Why choose us?
- What we provide
- Safety and backup
- Directorate
- Our administration team
- Recruitment team
- Staff in our destinations
- Money matters
- Jobs at T&PA
Staff in our destinations
When you volunteer with Teaching & Projects Abroad you feel safe in the knowledge that you are fully supported by our staff. We offer unparalleled overseas back-up for our volunteers worldwide. We employ more than 150 staff who are there to help you settle in and support you throughout your whole placement.
"I just wanted to thank you for looking after my son, Andrew, recently, when he arrived in Guadalajara with tonsilitis. He says your staff were very good to him and now he's fine. The true test of an organisation is when things go wrong, and I'm grateful that your people on the ground were so competent."
In each of our destinations we have a Country Director and a staffed office.The staff in our destinations have a wealth of local knowledge and all our Country Directors have worked in Britain or the US and understand the needs of our volunteers. They are available by day at the local office, or 24 hours a day by phone.
Our Country Directors
AustraliaJoanna Walton - Desk Officer
Jo worked for Projects Abroad as assistant manager in Sri Lanka for a year from summer 2005, before moving on to work in Cambodia, and finally helping to set up our new projects in Ethiopia at the start of 2007. Now she is also Desk Officer for Australia. Jo has a degree in biology and was a volunteer during her gap year in South America. She enjoys surfing and kayaking (badly!), camping, hiking and travelling the world as slowly as possible.
ArgentinaSusana La Rosa
Susana joined Teaching & Projects Abroad in 2006. She lives in Unquillo town where our main Argentina office is based. She has Masters in Institutional Analysis and has worked for the Ministry of Education where she managed educational policies.
Meet the rest of our Argentinean staff
BoliviaDaniela Viljoen
Daniela has been working with Teaching & Projects Abroad since August 2002. Born in Cochabamba, but having lived mostly in the United States, Daniela returned to Bolivia in 1996 to be with her family. Completing her studies in Linguistics at UMSS and graduating in 2001 with honors, she is now also a founding member of the School of Linguists and Modern Languages. Although Daniela misses teaching, she enjoys working and getting to know volunteers on a day to day basis. Crafts and travelling are her favorite hobbies!
Meet the rest of our Bolivian staff
BrazilRichard Clowes - Desk Officer
Richard coordinates the overseas team and maintains a close contact with our overseas offices. He has to ensure that each of our overseas offices is suitably staffed.
CambodiaSimon Petro
Petro started working for Teaching & Projects Abroad in 2005 when our first volunteers arrived in Cambodia. Before joining us he worked as an interpreter for an American journalist, an English teacher and even an in-house detective at a casino. Petro has also been involved in projects with local NGOs, improving the prospects of Cambodia's orphans. In his free time he enjoys reading and both watching and playing sports.
Meet the rest of our Cambodian staff
ChileJennifer Tulenko - Desk Officer
Jennifer is your Desk Officer for Chile. She works in our office in Punta Arenas, Chile, and is available to answer any questions you may have regarding your preparations for your trip.
ChinaXu Kay
Kay studied at the University of London before joining our Teaching & Projects Abroad team in Shanghai. She is originally from North West China. In her spare time she enjoys badminton and going to the gym.
Meet the rest of our China staff
Costa RicaLuis Arguedas
Luis joined Teaching & Projects Abroad in July 2006 and has both Canadian and Costa Rican citizenship. Luis speaks English, French and Spanish and before joining the Costa Rica team he worked at the National University of Costa Rica teaching tourism and business administration. In his free time Luis enjoys going to the beach, cycling, watching movies and playing the saxophone.
Meet the rest of our Costa Rica staff
EthiopiaSamson Workneh
Sami, as he's known, joined Projects Abroad in January 2007. He worked as a teacher since 2001 and was the vice director of his last school, Oumer Semeter Primary School. Previously he completed a degree in geography and was most recently the co-ordinator of a vocational training centre. In his spare time, Sami enjoys running and showing off his infamous traditional dancing skills!
Meet the rest of our Ethiopian staff
GhanaTom Davis
Tom took over as our Ghana Director in October 2006 and is based in Accra. Originally from a village near Cape Coast, Tom and his wife Julie lived in London for ten years where Tom worked on the London Underground, before returning to Ghana to set up home in Accra. He has worked for Teaching & Projects Abroad since 1998, and knows all of our placements very well. Tom's fruit punch at the monthly volunteer parties is legendary.
Meet the rest of our Ghanaian staff
IndiaChinnasamy Rajendran
Rajendran met Peter Slowe whilst a young teacher in Kashmir. Twenty years later as the Deputy Head of a big school in Tamil Nadu he took responsibility for some Teaching & Projects Abroad volunteers. Now our India office is one of the biggest in the world. Rajendran enjoys his trips to the UK but prefers the return trip to his wife's famous curries and the warmer climate.
Meet the rest of our Indian staff
JamaicaGreg Thomson - Desk Officer
Greg Thomson has taken over as Desk Officer in Jamaica.
MexicoMarco Antonio Muñoz
Marco has been working for Teaching & Projects Abroad since 2000 when he started as general assistant. After spending a few months living and working in the UK Office in the summer of 2005, Marco returned to Mexico to assume the position of director. He loves music and cinema.
Meet the rest of our Mexican staff
MoldovaIgor Fonari
Igor is an academic specialised in psychology and anthropology. He is passionate about exploring new ways for developing education in Moldova, which is one of the reasons he enjoys working for Teaching & Projects Abroad, as he is helping to bring Westerners into contact with Moldovans. Igor is a dedicated husband and a father of two teenage boys.
Meet the rest of our Moldovan staff
MongoliaOtgonbayar Togtuuny
Oko has spent time working in Korea and the UK. He now enjoys living back in Ulaanbaatar with his wife and two children. Having studied for his MBA in Korea, he returned home to Mongolia with his Korean wife, Sang Em. He enjoys singing and is famed for his karaoke skills. He is also the current holder of the Teaching & Projects Abroad poker championship.
Meet the rest of our Mongolian staff
MoroccoSaad Rbiai - Country Director & Desk Officer
Saad was born in Fes and grew up in Rabat. He has previously worked as a psychologist for the American Peace Corps in Morocco and was also an Exchange Coordinator for the U.S. State Department where he organised cultural exchanges between American and Moroccan youth. Saad has taught Arabic and English at various International Schools and Embassies in Morocco.
NepalSajani Amatya
Sajani has made volunteering her life. Before joining Teaching & Projects Abroad she volunteered first and then ended up working for "Educate the Children", an American charity. She still spends much of her spare time volunteering for various different social charities. Her main hope is to improve the education level of poor Nepali children. Sajani has travelled widely in the UK, USA and Thailand.
Meet the rest of our Nepal staff
PeruDirector (Sacred Valley projects): Tim DeWinter
Tim was born in Belgium and has been involved with education since graduating from University. He worked for UNICEF when he first arrived in Peru. He has now lived in the Sacred Valley for over 10 years and is kept busy looking after his young family and, with the help of his large team, well over 40 volunteers a month!
Meet the rest of our Peru staff
PeruRainforest: Stuart Timson
Stuart is from Cheltenham, England, but has been living and working in Peru since 1998. He studied Biology at Oxford University before getting involved with conservation in the field. After spending several years guiding for eco-lodges in both Peru and Bolivia he set up the Taricaya Lodge on the Madre de Dios river from scratch in 2001. In his spare time Stuart can turn his hand to most sports.
Meet the rest of our Peru Conservation staff
RomaniaMircea Samoila
Since he started working for Teaching & Projects Abroad five years ago, Mircea has gained experience in England, Sri Lanka, Ghana, Ethiopia, Romania, Moldova and, not in the least, in his favourite country, India. A man of eclectic tastes, Mircea loves comparative literature and religion, riding motorcycles and playing tennis, but most of all, he is fascinated by the way travelling forces him to constantly re-invent his world.
Meet the rest of our Romanian staff
SenegalAmadou Moctar Ba
Moctar first joined the team in Senegal as a French/English translator, but he soon fell in love with Teaching & Projects Abroad and took over as Country Director in April 2007. Moctar used to work as a local English teacher and he remains a key link between the local community and schools of St. Louis and the volunteers.
Meet the rest of our Senegal staff
South AfricaDana Myers
Dana joined the Teaching & Projects Abroad team in 2005 after first spending time with us as a volunteer in South Africa. He took over as Country Director in April 2007. Dana is from the USA and in his free time enjoys surfing, rock climbing and hiking.
Meet the rest of our South Africa staff
Sri LankaShyamalee Wijesinghe
Having been recommended by one of the schools we worked with, Shyamalee has been in charge of the Sri Lanka project for the last couple of years. Outside work, Shymalee and her husband are well known for their dancing skills and have won a whole host of trophies!
Meet the rest of our Sri Lanka staff
ThailandSuwat Hannarong
Suwat has run Ao Nang Scuba Centre since 1990 and joined Projects Abroad in May 2005 when our conservation project relocated to Ao Nang. Suwat enjoys spending time with his wife Sao who also works for Ao Nang Scuba and his young son, Chain. Suwat was the first person in Thailand to gain a qualification as a trainer of Dive Instructors and in his free time he likes to play golf and go paragliding.
To find out more about Suwat click here.
Meet the rest of our Thailand staff
TogoKwame Wayo Adzakpa – Country Director
Mr Kwame Wayo Adzakpa joined Projects Abroad in March 2008 as Director for Togo. Before this he worked as a full time English teacher. Kwame studied English language teaching in the UK and has experience working with volunteers. He likes writing short stories and English Grammar brochures.
