Board of Governors

The Humble Smile Foundation is governed by an independent Board of Directors, which is responsible for ensuring that the Foundation manages its finances, operations, and grant-making programs to advance its mission and goals.

Currently there are 10 Humble Smile Board members in 6 countries.

Dr. Darren Weiss

President, Executive committee

After 22 years as a clinician in private dentistry in Australia and Israel, and a few more years as a corporate oral health promotion consultant, Darren now directs all his efforts towards maximal impact on global oral disease.

Dr. Noel Abdayem

Fundraising, Executive committee

With a unique combination of entrepreneurial spirit, dental degree and outreach experience, Noel manages the business relations that sustain the foundation.

Lois K. Cohen, PhD

Global health research, Advisory committee

Lois is a sociologist with an extensive career in research and health science administration. She serves as a consultant & Paul G. Rogers Ambassador for Global Health Research and provides consultation for the WHO and National Institutes of Health,the Canadian Institutes for Health Research, various universities and professional associations including the ADA, FDI and ADEA. Having authored more than 150 articles in peer-reviewed journals, Lois serves on several journal and organisational boards.

Leoni Groot

Secretary, Executive committee

With an academic background in Conflict Studies & Human Rights in the Netherlands, Leoni has worked in non-profit organisations in the Middle East, most recently as Operations & Development Officer for Humble Smile.

Dr. Barbora Ďurčanová

Professional and academic relations, Advisory committee

After volunteering in Africa, which she describes as “a humbling experience”, Boa conducts preventive projects as president of the Slovak Association of Dental Students, while continuing her oral & maxillofacial surgery studies at Comenius University in Bratislava.

Prof. Birgitta Kohler

Prevention and cariology, Advisory committee

Birgitta is Professor emeriti in Cariology at the Institute of Cariology, University of Gothenburg, Sweden, which means she has researched, educated and prevented tooth decay for most of her career -but not just from an ivory tower, as she currently directs a project in Burkina Faso in West Africa.

Dr. Evelyn Mamber

Paediatric dentistry, Advisory committee

Evelyn is a paedodontistin private practice and Clinical Instructor and Lecturer in the Department of Paediatric Dentistry, Hadassah Medical Centre in Jerusalem. Evelyn brings her expertise in pre-natal and primary-primary prevention, as well as outreach experience as a volunteer with Pacific Partnership onboard the USNS Mercy ship.

Dr. Christian Coachman

Partnership development, Advisory committee

In addition to private dental practice in Sao Paulo, Christian founded Digital Smile Design, and spends most of his time sharing his innovative concepts in smile design, aesthetic dentistry, and oral rehabilitation, with dentists all around the world.

Dr. Aachal V. Devi

Senior research advisor, Advisory committee

Aachal is a Dental Public Health resident at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) with a Master in Public Health from Johns Hopkins School of Public Health. She has worked in rural parts of India and with Alaska Native Health Consortium. Her research interests include integration of oral health services into existing health programs and behaviour change research.

Samsom Kebedom

Treasurer, Executive committee

With a background in Management Consulting, Auditing and a Master’s degree in business administration, Samsom oversees the management of the financial affairs of the foundation.

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