Joyce S. Dubensky, Esq., Chief Executive Officer
Tanenbaum’s CEO, Ms. Dubensky, has directed its dramatic expansion, adding new initiatives to each of Tanenbaum’s core programs. Her dynamic leadership transformed Tanenbaum from a well-regarded U.S. institution to an internationally recognized thought leader. Ms. Dubensky has overseen many firsts, each a new contribution to the burgeoning field of interreligious understanding: the first toolkit on religious diversity for workplace managers, the first comprehensive guide on the intersections of religion and health care and the first book collecting the compelling life stories of Tanenbaum’s Peacemakers in Action.

Internationally in demand as a speaker and trainer, Ms. Dubensky speaks, trains and conducts workshops on all Tanenbaum programs including on managing issues of religion in the workplace, health care and in schools. As an attorney, Ms. Dubensky served as a National Consultant for the Council of Jewish Federations (now Jewish Federations of North America). She also created the Legal Department at the United Jewish Appeal-Federation of Jewish Philanthropies of New York and served as its General Counsel for over ten years. Ms. Dubensky began her legal career with the law firm of Botein Hays Sklar and Herzberg and holds her J.D. from New York University School of Law.

Lydia Baek, Associate Grant Writer and Coordinator
Lydia Baek works in Tanenbaum’s development department. Before joining Tanenbaum, she developed and implemented culturally-specific programs for young Asian Americans on relationship abuse awareness and prevention, healthy relationships and conflict engagement. Lydia has also created genocide awareness projects for high school students in Cambodia to promote dialogue and information about the Khmer Rouge genocide and helped support a coalition of organizations engaged in transitional justice work in South Africa. She earned an MA from the Kroc Institute for International Peace Studies at the University of Notre Dame and a BA from Emory University.

Judith Banki, Senior Advisor, Interreligious Affairs
Judith Banki is one of the pioneers of organized interreligious dialogue and an award-winning author whose articles have appeared in Commonweal, Religious Education, the Journal of Ecumenical Affairs and The American Jewish Year Book. She co-edited the anthology of Rabbi Marc Tanenbaum’s writings and two volumes emerging from conferences at Catholic Theological Union and Cambridge University which she helped coordinate. Awarded an honorary doctorate by Seton Hall University for her work in promoting Jewish-Christian understanding, she also received the “Peace through Dialogue” Interfaith Gold Medallion from the International Council of Christians and Jews.

Eliza Blanchard, Assistant Director, Workplace and Health Care Programs
Eliza Blanchard received her B.A. from Vassar College in History and Political Science and is currently completing her M.A. in Bioethics at New York University. In her position as Assistant Director at the Tanenbaum Center for Interreligious Understanding, Eliza leads the Workplace and Health Care Programs by developing training materials and presentations for clients and partners. In the Workplace program she consults with client companies in the public and private sectors, manages Tanenbaum’s Corporate Membership program, and builds the program’s capacity and impact. In the Health Care program she develops educational curriculum for medical and nursing schools on religio-cultural competence as well as delivering presentations, workshops, and train the trainers.

Janie Dumbleton, Conflict Resolution Associate
Janie works in the Conflict Resolution and Peacebuilding program. Prior to joining Tanenbaum, Janie was a Ghandi Fellow at the Joan B. Kroc School of Peace Studies at the University of San Diego (USD) where she earned a Masters in Peace and Justice Studies. During her time at USD, she volunteered with the International Rescue Committee and interned with Tanenbaum’s conflict resolution department, leading Tanenbaum’s monitoring and evaluation cycle for that year. Janie’s time in the Jesuit Volunteer Corps and at the University of Georgia studying English and Religion cultivated her passion for conflict resolution and social justice.

Rev. Mark E. Fowler, Deputy Chief Executive Officer
Mark E. Fowler is responsible for overseeing the design and implementation of Tanenbaum’s programmatic trainings. Mark has been involved in New York City’s education community for over 20 years and is a skilled facilitator/trainer who worked with teachers, counselors, administrators and students at the Anti-Defamation League on prejudice reduction, conflict resolution, and reducing bias and bullying. He is a sought-after keynote speaker and facilitator who has addressed organizations throughout New York on issues of equality in race, gender, sexual orientation and religion. He earned a B.A. in English and Education at Duke University and was trained as a Mediation and Conflict Resolution Specialist with the NYC Department of Education. Mark also is a graduate of the One Spirit Interfaith Seminary and is an ordained Interfaith/Interspiritual minister.

Liz Joslin, Senior Workplace Program Associate
Liz Joslin is an Associate in the Workplace Program at Tanenbaum. In this role, she manages client relationships, develops and delivers content, and conducts research on pressing issues related to religion in the workplace. Liz is a graduate of Connecticut College, where she majored in Religious Studies and was the leader of various diversity-focused student groups. During her junior year, she spent a semester in Belfast, Northern Ireland, where she participated in a Peace and Conflict Studies program focusing on the historical roots and modern manifestations of the conflict in the region. After graduation, Liz enjoyed a year of service with AmeriCorps at a nonprofit organization in Brooklyn as a tutor and vocational counselor for GED students.

Emily London, Workplace Program Assistant
Emily London is thrilled to be back at Tanenbaum with the Workplace Program after her internship last summer. She recently graduated from Barnard College of Columbia University with a BA in Middle Eastern Studies. At Barnard, Emily was an Athena Scholar, which is a co-curricular women’s leadership studies program. During her junior year, she participated in the Honors Peace and Conflict Studies program at the University of Haifa in Israel, and Emily wrote her senior thesis about coexistence in Haifa and its connection to the Israeli-Palestinian peace process.

Nicole Margaretten, Communications Manager
Nicole Margaretten received a Master of International Affairs (’13) from Columbia University’s School of International & Public Affairs (SIPA) with a focus on economic and political development, peacebuilding, and international communications. Nicole worked as a consultant for Covenant House International where she developed a residential intake survey for at-risk children. After conducting interviews in Honduras and Nicaragua, she authored a guide for interview best practices with children who may be victims of trafficking. In Bogotá, Colombia, she helped develop community peacebuilding workshops for corporate clients of Tandem Insourcing, SAS, a communications negotiation consulting firm. Nicole is a visual and sound artist and will be launching a jewelry line in 2015. In addition to her Master of International Affairs, she holds a Master of Fine Arts (’05) from Tufts University/the School of the Museum of Fine Arts, and she received her Bachelor of Fine Arts (’02) from Pratt Institute in Brooklyn.

Michael McShane, Peacemakers in Action Network Coordinator
Michael McShane is responsible for providing support to Tanenbaum’s Peacemakers in Action Network by systematizing communications and collaboration among Peacemakers, as well as managing the projects and documents that emerge from it. Michael is a recent graduate of The New School’s Graduate Program in International Affairs, where he earned his M.A. in International Affairs. For his final practicum, he collaborated with five New School students to produce reports on International Taxation and Global Economic Governance for the NGO Committee on Financing for Development (FfD), a faith-based advocacy organization inspired by the 2002 Monterrey Consensus. He also participated in The New School’s International Field Program, working for a pan-democrat political party in Hong Kong during the summer of 2012.

Rebecca Smith, Executive Office Coordinator
Rebecca received a Master’s of Philosophy in Justice and Transformation from the University of Cape Town and a BA in Political Science from Vassar College. As a Rotary International Global Grant Scholar at the University of Cape Town, Rebecca researched transitional justice and peacebuilding and provided a gender analysis of the Kenyan Truth, Justice, and Reconciliation Commission’s recommendations for reparations in her dissertation. Rebecca graduated with honors in the degree and dissertation. Prior to joining Tanenbaum, Rebecca worked in the United States and South Africa with grassroots non-profits and an academic research unit. At the University of Cape Town’s Gender, Health, and Justice Research Unit, Rebecca became a contributing author to an award-winning report on violence against women and children in South Africa. Rebecca also has communications and public relations experience.

Lindsay Wasserberger, Communications Project Associate
Before  joining Tanenbaum, Lindsay Wasserberger worked as a journalist and researcher in international human rights and economic development. Lindsay conceptualized and produced a 30-minute radio program about international human rights for the Bay Area station KALX. She spent time studying environmental and political conflict, transitional justice, and peacebuilding in Kenya and assisted a community-run radio station on the outskirts of Nairobi. Lindsay has published numerous articles, contributed to multimedia packages, and initiated an outreach campaign that culminated in a youth-made film exhibit about Latino issues in the U.S, which premiered at the Hamptons International Film Festival for two years. Lindsay holds a masters of journalism from UC Berkeley and a bachelors degree from Columbia University, from where she graduated magna cum laude. She also holds a professional studies certificate in global affairs from NYU.

Kat Wulwick, Operations Manager
Before joining Tanenbaum, Kat Wulwick worked at various non-profit institutions, including the London Transport Museum, Hansard Society of Parliamentary Democracy, Museum of the Moving Image, New York Public Library for the Performing Arts, National Museum of Mathematics, and National September 11 Memorial and Museum. She is a graduate of Vassar College, where she received a B.A. in History. Kat also completed an M.A. in Museum Studies and Management from University College London. As an undergraduate, she focused on the history of the Eastern Bloc and the role nostalgia plays in modern Russian culture and politics. Her graduate dissertation examined how museums that remember national, ethnic, and religious conflicts act as sites of consciousness on the local, national, and international stages. To support the rest of the Tanenbaum Staff, Kat performs a variety of administrative and operational functions within the Operations Department.