Staff

Jean Quinn DW is a member of the International Congregation of the Daughters of Wisdom. She is a Nurse by Profession, studied Family Therapy, Addiction Studies as well as Social Housing Studies with the Irish Council for Social Housing. She also Studied Theology and Philosophy with Milltown Institute in Dublin. As well as holding many Congregational and Professional leadership roles throughout her career she has been actively involved in International Social Justice through a range of facets for many years. Jean has spent a vast number of years working with the homeless in Dublin and is the Founder of Sophia Housing in Ireland. Her vision and leadership brought strength and growth to Sophia, which is now celebrating its 21st year as an organisation committed to providing a holistic approach in supporting people, specifically women and children on their journey from Homelessness. Jean was a member of the UNANIMA International Board in 2016 and completed an internship that year also. Since joining the UNANIMA International Team as the Executive Director in 2017 Jean’s passion for Justice, Peace and Integrity of Creation have continuously been utilized in her international advocacy. Through this role, she sits as the Co-Chair of the NGO Working Group to End Homelessness and Member at Large on the NGO Committee of Social Development.

Liana Almony (USA) is the Deputy Director of UNANIMA International. As a civil society
representative to the UN, Liana advocates for holistic global policymaking through a human rights-based approach, and is Chair of the NGO Committee for Social Development for the 2024-2026 term.

Previously, Liana’s work with organizations like the Wilson Center and Cause
Communications sparked a passion for cause-driven work through impactful storytelling. Liana holds a Master’s degree in International Relations and a concentration in International Law from New York University, where she acted as President of the International Relations and Politics Association and Deputy Editor-in-Chief of the Journal of Political Inquiry.

She also holds a Bachelor’s degree in Political Science with a concentration in International Relations, and a double minor in Global Studies and Digital Media Studies, from the University of California Los Angeles.

Eliza earned her Bachelor of Arts degree, with majors in History and Political Science, at The University of Melbourne in Australia. Shortly after, she began working as an English teacher in Japan, before traveling extensively and then settling in New York. She completed her Master's degree in Library and Information Sciences at Long Island University and then worked as a School Librarian in a Jesuit High School. Her experiences with the Jesuits and being part of an institution that strongly values service and social justice, led her to seek out work in a mission-based organization that was making a difference.

Laila Wright (she/her) is a Research Intern with UNANIMA International through Project AROS Lab. She is an undergraduate student at Montclair State University and will be graduating in May 2025. She majors in Psychology with a minor in Sociology, and plans to attend graduate school and pursue a future career in the field of clinical psychology.

Laila is greatly interested in research dealing with social justice, especially regarding people of color and other marginalized populations. During her research internship with UNANIMA International she hopes to learn valuable research skills that she can later apply to other points of research and her future career.

Lucy McHugh (she/her) is a Communications and Programming Intern for the UNANIMA International team. She graduated in 2024 from New York University with a Bachelor’s degree in Politics, and double minored in Public Policy & Management and Spanish.

During her time as an undergrad at NYU, she pursued study away opportunities at NYU’s campuses in Madrid and Washington D.C, through which she gained research internship experiences at the Polytechnic University of Madrid and the Library of Congress. She also served as a contributing writer for NYU’s student newspaper and was the Club President for the NYU women’s club lacrosse team.

Currently, Lucy is pursuing a Master of Public Administration with a specialization in Social Impact, Innovation and Investment at NYU’s Wagner Graduate School of Public Service. She is an active member of the Wagner Social Innovation and Investment Alliance, as well as the Wagner Climate Action group. She is also serving as an NYU Votes ambassador to promote civic engagement to the broader NYU student body. Through these experiences inside and outside of the classroom, Lucy is working towards a career at the intersection of global sustainability, social impact and advocacy.

Sarah Ben-Farhat (she/her) is a proud first-generation Tunisian-American woman. She graduated in the Fall of 2024 from John Jay College with a B.A. in International Criminal Justice, a minor in Human Rights, and a Dispute Resolution Certificate. She plans to pursue a graduate degree in international law with the goal of becoming a policy advocate and legal advisor.

Her passion for social justice is rooted in the belief that true equality requires decolonizing systems that profit from human suffering. She believes deeply in the power of intersectionality, recognizing that when one group’s rights are threatened, all rights are at risk.

She looks forward to contributing to NGO CSoD and UNANIMA International’s advocacy efforts to center people in policy development and champion human dignity. She is committed to advancing global social justice and advocating for urgent reforms that improve the quality of life for all humankind.

Sr. Kayula Lesa, a Religious Sister of Charity (RSC), is Development Professional with 23 years of experience in the area of Social Justice. She holds a Master of Science in Development Studies from the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS), University of London and a BA in Education from the University of Zambia (UNZA)

Sr. Kayula has vast experience in the development field. She worked for a time with the Jesuit Refugee Service (JRS) in Zambia as Project Director and as a volunteer with JRS-UK. She also worked with the Jesuit Centre for Theological Reflection (JCTR), a research, education and advocacy Centre that promotes study and action on various development issues linking the Christian faith and social justice. The Centre also strives to create a value base for public policy.

In the recent past, she has been Manager for Dialogue for Development (D4D), a Peace-building Programme she founded under the Religious Sisters of Charity’s Zambia/Malawi Region, which facilitates dialogue on human rights issues. She is also a trainer in counter-human trafficking and in the Safeguarding of children and adults in situations of vulnerability.

While working for JCTR, Sr. Kayula was a Chairperson for a Civil Society Coalition on Access to Information. She was instrumental in advocating that Zambia has an Access to Information Law from 2011 until 2024 when the Law was enacted. Having interacted with media, she was nominated in 2023 to serve as a Member of the Media Ethics and Complaints Committee (MECC), a position she holds
to date.

In 2014, Pope Francis appointed Sr. Kayula as a member of the Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors, an Advisory Body to the Roman Pontiff. She served in this role for 8 years. Currently, she is the Executive Director of Talitha Kum Zambia (TAKUZA), a 47 membership National Network of Congregations of Religious Women working to prevent and address human trafficking.

While at UNANIMA, Sr. Kayula hopes to enhance her research and advocacy skills and to learn new initiatives to help her in her social justice work.