Relationships built on trust are key to successful impact
This blog post was written by Joe Sanders, Chief of Party, USAID-Nepal Flood Recovery Program.
Nutrition is an important component of economic development and food security. Evidence shows that malnutrition in the first two years of life permanently reduces cognitive function and physical capacity, making individuals more vulnerable to disease. This, in turn, reduces productivity, slows economic growth, and perpetuates poverty.





Assistant Administrator Nancy Lindborg brings a wealth of development and humanitarian aid insight to the Bureau for Democracy, Conflict and Humanitarian Assistance (DCHA). Nancy has spent the last 14 years as president of Mercy Corps, a non-governmental organization (NGO) that helps people in the world’s toughest places turn the crises of natural disaster, poverty, and conflict into opportunities for progress. Under her guidance and strategic vision, Mercy Corps has grown into a respected international relief and development organization and is known for addressing challenges with responsive, innovative programming. Nancy also served as co-president on the Board of Directors for the U.S. Global Leadership Campaign. She was co-chair of the National Committee on North Korea where she led efforts to advance, promote, and facilitate engagement between citizens of the United States and the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea. She is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations and was a member of the USAID Advisory Committee on Voluntary Foreign Aid.
Gregory C. Gottlieb was named Senior Deputy Assistant Administrator for the USAID Bureau for Food Security in November 2010, where he oversees development activities associated with Feed the Future, the U.S. Government’s global hunger and food security initiative. He most recently served as the Mission Director in Namibia since August 2008. Prior to his assignment to Namibia, he served as Senior Deputy Assistant Administrator of USAID's Bureau for Democracy, Conflict and Humanitarian Assistance. He has more than 25 years of experience with the U.S. government, NGOs, and the UN, primarily in the field of humanitarian relief. He began his USAID career in 1988 as the Disaster Response Coordinator in Malawi, subsequently serving in Sudan, Ethiopia and Kenya. In 1999 he established the first regional USAID Office of U.S. Foreign Disaster Assistance in Africa while serving as the Senior Regional Advisor in Kenya. Much of his work has focused on improving disaster assistance as well as humanitarian and transition programs in order to ensure economic recovery. He has also served as a protection officer for UNHCR and as Chief of Party of the USAID-funded Famine Early Warning System. He obtained his Bachelors' Degree from Humboldt State University in California, a Juris Doctor from Loyola Law School, and a Master's Degree from Harvard University's Kennedy School of Government. He is married and has two children.
Jeff Hill has many years of experience in African agricultural development and currently serves in USAID's recently created Bureau for Food Security (BFS). He started his career as a Peace Corps volunteer in Sierra Leone and later served as Associate Peace Corps Director in that country. Prior to USAID, he worked for the World Bank for 10 years in Tanzania and Nigeria. At USAID he has been a team leader for a number of agriculture and food security initiatives for the Africa Bureau and now for BFS. He presently works on Feed the Future initiatives, and prior to that worked on many programs that promoted agricultural growth and built on African-led partnerships to cut hunger and poverty. He has designed, led, and managed a variety of teams on research, private sector development, trade, capacity building and policy. He currently chairs the Donor Development Partners CAADP group and process -- a group of 32 donors worldwide dedicated to African agricultural development. He holds a BS from Weber State University in Utah in public administration and an MS from UC Davis in agricultural economics and agronomy.
Thomas Beck is Senior Advisor in the Policy Office of the Policy, Planning and Learning Bureau (
