About us
Our Board of Directors
Our work is controlled by an international Board of Directors, elected amongst our governing members for a term of two years.
From the beginning on, our Board of Directors has been composed by Muslims, Christians and secularists from both shores of the Mediterranean. We count Syrians, Lebanese, Belgians, French, Germans and US Americans amongst our board members and we are combining a rich expertise in the fields of conflict transformation and humanitarian aid.
Friedrich Bokern
Chairperson
Friedrich is the founding chairperson of R&R International. He moved to Lebanon in 2012 for starting our operations and he has lived ever since at our first Peace Centre in Akkar. He holds two master degrees from Sciences Po Paris and Freie Universität Berlin and has worked as researcher, lecturer and EU official. In 2008, Friedrich spent 7 months in Syria for learning Arabic and conducting field research. He fell in love with the people and with the country. It was a call of duty for him to return and help.
Basma Chaikh
Secretary General
Originally from Aleppo, Basma is serving as R&R International's secretary general and head of operations. She holds a master degree from Bahçeşehir University and has worked as project manager in Beirut. Still in exile, she is working today in Berlin and Bratislava.
Marc-Antoine Mathijsen
Treasurer
Marc-Antoine is a Belgian writer and former CEO of an insurance company. He earned a double master in law and international relations at Université catholique de Louvain, as well as a BBA from Vlerick School. Since 2025, he is serving as R&R International's treasurer.
Ahmad Bayoush
Director
Based in Bratislava, Ahmad is serving as R&R's director for research and strategy. He holds a law degree from Damascus University and works as independent consultant.
Axelle Brémont
Director
Axelle earned a PhD in archaeology and works as the head of training and teaching activities at the French Institute of Archaeology in Cairo. Having volunteered with us in the past, she is serving today as director for education and child protection.
Catherine Amy Kropp
Director
Catherine Amy is a priest of the Episcopalian Church in the US, currently placed in Hawaii. She served as volunteer at the Peace Centre and supports our work today as director for spiritual solidarity.
Christoph Pfundstein
Director
Christoph earned a double master from Sciences Po Paris and the University of Sankt-Gallen. He is founding manager of an investment fund in London and serves as the R&R director for fundraising.
Hiyam Mkheber
Director
Originally from Syria, Hiyam lived for many years as a refugee in Lebanon before resettling to Spain. She was the very first student at our Peace Centre and serves today as our director for communications.
Maria Schweßinger
Director
Maria holds a master in Interreligious Studies from the University of Bamberg. She has served several times as volunteer at our Peace Centre and supports our work today as director for volunteer relations.
Mohamad Ghiye
Director
Mohamad is Lebanese-American. After more than 30 years in New York, he returned to his home country and joined our team in Akkar. Today, he is volunteering as R&R director for human resources.
Saydeh Makhoul
Director
Originally from Syria, Saydeh is working as EU official in Brussels. She holds a master degree from Université catholique de Louvain and volunteers as R&R's director for monitoring and evaluation.
Talal Al-Muhbani
Director
Talal was a refugee in Lebanon where he volunteered with our team. He earned a master in Islamic Law and recently returned to his home town Homs in Syria where he is serving as our new country director.
About us
We are men and women from Syria, Europe and the Arab world who could not stand by. Since the start of the peaceful revolution we have stood with the Syrian people, and after the fall of the dictatorship we returned with them to rebuild.
About us