Colombia

Alex began his career in the organisation as Non-Technical Survey assistant and has held some other NTS positions as leader, supervisor, and senior supervisor. He has also been Operations Officer in locations throughout Colombia such as Meta, Nariño and Valle del Cauca, where he is currently Location Manager, working to coordinating the teams and their activities in an efficient and effective way.

Lina joined The HALO Trust in June 2014, working as a deminer for 7 months before becoming Team Leader, Supervisor and then Operations Officer in locations across Colombia including Antioquia, Tolima, Cauca, Valle del Cauca, and Meta. She has been Location Manager since October 2018 and was the first Colombian woman to have held this role. Lina has also visited the Somaliland Programme for EOD level III+ training.

John Carlos is one of the Colombia programme’s longest-serving staff, having joined in 2013. He started his HALO career as a Non-Technical Survey Assistant (NTS), before working as a Leader, Supervisor, and Operations Officer, as well as being a member of the Quality Management team. As of January 2019, he has been a Location Manager. John Carlos has accreditation in NTS, clearance, and primary medical intervention. He received EOD level III+ training in Somaliland.

Tyler joined HALO in January 2023 as Programme Analytics Manager and is originally from Colorado, USA. He brings over seven years of experience in humanitarian work, two of which were with the Colombian Campaign Against Landmines (CCCM). His background provides the programme an opportunity to evaluate macro-level data, at a national and sectoral level. Tyler holds a BA in International Relations from Colorado University and a MA in International Affairs from The New School, New York.

Amanda joined HALO as a Field Officer and completed her operations training and EOD level III in Cambodia in 2020. After a stint in Nagorno Karabakh as Non-Technical Survey Manager, Amanda became the Operations Technical Advisor for Colombia. She supports the operations team in improving efficiency and effectiveness, finding opportunities for innovation and adjustments to operating procedures. Amanda also has worked for NGOs in the environmental sector and in health and renewable energies.

Caterina, an Argentine national, arrived in Colombia in 2019. After working in the humanitarian sector for Warchild and DRC, she joined HALO in 2022 as the Donor and Partnerships Officer. Her role is to develop and maintain relationships with current and potential donors, and to seek out opportunities to partner with other organisations. Caterina holds a BA in Communications from the National University of Rosario and MSc in International Development Studies from the University of Amsterdam.

A psychologist with over ten years of experience working with vulnerable communities and reintegration projects for ex-combatants, Alexandra joined HALO in 2016 and is the programme’s Mine Risk Education (EORE) and Victim Assistance Officer. Her role is to ensure the deployment of teams to at-risk communities to teach them safe and life-saving behaviours. She is certified by the National Authority on EORE in both clearance and emergency situations.

After completing her operations training in Cambodia, Zita joined the Colombia team in July 2022 as operations officer, based in southern Antioquia. Prior to joining HALO, Zita worked for various NGOs in Iraq, Sierra Leone, and Lebanon, and, most recently, as an independent domestic violence advisor in London. She holds a master’s degree in Migration and Diaspora Studies and Intensive Arabic from SOAS. Zita is IMAS EOD Level III qualified having completed her training in Afghanistan.