Roddy was born in Jamaica and later moved to the UK before spending time in Lebanon, Ethiopia, and India, working with Initiatives of Change. On returning to Jamaica, he co-founded Walkerswood Caribbean Foods alongside other community leaders in his village, creating a successful enterprise to process local produce. He chaired the company for several years, contributing to its growth and impact.

Roddy has taken on key responsibilities within the Oxford Group over the years and played an active role in outreach programmes. He remains committed to community development and fostering ethical leadership, drawing from his diverse international experiences.

Paul is an Honorary Fellow at the Edward Cadbury Centre, University of Birmingham, a Senior Fellow at the Next Century Foundation. He is the founder of Track2talks and Thinkwhys facilitating conversations, analysis and interventions in communities. Paul is a former National Director of Initiatives of Change UK.  His focus is on building trust between individuals by discerning the subtleties of human behaviour and situational analysis. With two decades of experience, he has been deeply involved in negotiations within the realms of diplomacy, business, and religious settings around the world.

Joi, who lives in Kentucky, USA, is a person of outstanding ability and character, with expertise in democratic politics. Formally Executive Director at the Louisville Metro Government, she is now pursing a PhD while teaching as a graduate instructor at the University of Louisville. She also brings a deep understanding of the moral and cultural issues surrounding race relations.

Michael, who lives in France, already serves as a board member of the Conseil d’Administration of our French partners, Initiatives et Changements. He has worked professionally for over four decades with an international Catholic charity, Fondacio (https://fondacio.org/en/), in the service of marginalised communities. Michael brings us deep knowledge of charity governance and financial management, as well as an astute understanding of the challenges we face in the UK. His appointment reinforces the link with France and our wider European network forged by Nathalie Chavanne during her tenure as a Trustee.

For 33 years, Denis worked for the BBC, before coming to join IofC UK in March 2024. As a Senior Producer in BBC Religion and Ethics, Denis made award-winning programmes for Radios 2, 3 and 4, BBC One and online. In 2002 Denis moved into senior management as Network Manager for Radio 4, where his remit ranged across every aspect of network policy and practice. In 2015, in addition to his role at Radio 4, Denis took on similar responsibilities for BBC Radio 3 and the Proms before departing in the summer of 2023.

Jacqui was born in Derry in Northern Ireland and later moved to London where she has lived and worked for her adult life.

She was introduced to IofC in 2014, joining the staff team in 2017 before taking on key responsibilities as Company Secretary in 2018 and in the Executive Team from 2020.

Jacqui had acquired vast experience in both the private and public sector, across a range of spheres, including working to address homelessness (a subject to which she remains committed), management in creative companies, including in the arts and entertainment world, in broadcasting and in the political realm.

Prior to joining IofC, Jacqui worked in Parliament in an advisory capacity for MPs in both the main political parties. Her parliamentary role followed her role as a Board Director and Company Secretary in David Miliband’s company Movement for Change, a community organising company involved in outreach work across the UK. Previously, she worked for 13 years at the BBC in television production and corporate governance. Her BBC role followed management roles in the arts and entertainment sector, and working with young street homeless people.

Jacqui is a Director of Colmcille Enterprises, a community interest company that works within the arts spectrum to build trust in communities in the Northwest of Ireland.

Drawing from her diverse professional experience, Jacqui is especially committed to building new leaders with the skills to transform their communities.

companysecretary@iofc.org.uk

Dr. Lul Seyoum is the Executive director of International Centre for Eritrean Refugees and Asylum Seekers – ICERAS, Co-Director and Co-Chair of United Against Inhumanity. Her goal is to contribute to the building of a better world by working to have positive impact on societies, emerging leaders and the underrepresented.

Dr. Seyoum’s passion for sustainable human rights drives her to engage in fighting persecution, injustice and abuse that is tearing the fabric of society. She consistently raises awareness of the causes surrounding forced mass migrations. Her efforts have been focused on the plight of refugees in their exodus from their country of origin and transit. In her effort to do so she consults with members of Parliament, policymakers, and organisations including UNHCR, International Organisation for Migration, Medicines Sans Frontiers, Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch and Migrant Voice Network.

Ian Corcoran has been involved in the work of Initiatives of Change all of his life, and strongly believes in the values and aims of the movement. His parents both worked for most of their lives for the then Oxford Group and he, with his brother and sister were brought up in its homes and centres.

Ian worked as a full-time volunteer for the Oxford Group (MRA) for 15 years in many countries and spent three years travelling with the musical show Anything to Declare, through Europe, Asia and Australasia. He was instrumental in the production of music and audio recordings for the movement and later worked on producing MRA’s film documentaries in Africa, Asia, Europe, and in the UK.

Ian then worked for twenty years at the BBC on Drama, Art, News and Current Affairs- including Panorama, before leaving to work freelance. As a freelance editor, he worked for Channel 4, Discovery, Sky, Reuters, Saudi TV and the BBC, specialising in long format and current affairs documentaries. He has continued to use his specialist knowledge to further the work of IofC, including in the production of films based in Bosnia, Czech Republic, France, India and Nigeria.

More recently, Ian has been involved in the digitisation of IofC’s film archive at Caux in Switzerland and is currently organising the UK film archive here in London.

Ian’s strong Christian faith is central to his calling with IofC. He is married to Anna, who acted in some of the Westminster theatre productions as well as performing and helping in Caux over the years. Ian and Anna have two daughters and are delighted to have recently become grandparents. They live in West Sussex where Ian is on a number of committees for the Parish Council.

Catherine Boobbyer grew up in a home where both her parents, Peter and Fiona Hannon, had been involved with MRA / IofC all their lives. As a family they moved to Cape Town in the early seventies where Catherine spent her youth. At that stage Catherine was an active participant in and subsequently helped to organize multi-racial youth camps run by IofC. It was through both church and these camps that a deeply held Christian faith was nurtured from a young age.

After leaving South Africa Catherine completed a degree in history at Oxford University and a teaching qualification, later specializing in teaching dyslexic pupils. For the past thirty years Catherine has lived and worked in boarding school environments alongside her husband, Mark Boobbyer. Most recently Catherine completed a four-year BSc in Counselling and Psychotherapy and now works as part of the Chaplaincy and Pastoral care team at one of Dublin’s universities as well as counselling private clients. Catherine and Mark also have four adult children.

A former primary school teacher, Mike began his political career as a Councillor on Manchester City Council in 1991, overseeing the investment strategy that led to Central Library’s transformation. He was the national Chair of Movement for Change 2010-13 and Acting Chief Executive of the organisation from July 2013 –February 2014. In February 2014, Mike was elected as a Member of Parliament for his home constituency, Wythenshawe and Sale East. He was Shadow Minister for International Development from September 2015 to October 2016, when he was appointed Shadow Minister for Schools. In April 2020 Mike became Shadow Minister for Aviation, Maritime, & Security. Mike is the MP for Wythenshawe and Sale East and Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State at the Department of Transport.