Meet Gioel, Kirsten, and Kevin

Thank you for your interest in Recrear Participacion!  If you have any questions, feel free to email us at participacion@recrear.info. Follow Recrear on Twitter @ThisIsRecrear

Project Coordinators:

Gioel Gioacchino, g.gioacchino@recrear.org –

Gioel 
believes 
that 
intercultural communication 
is 
a 
powerful 
tool 
for addressing 
development
 challenges.  
Her experiences 
in 
life 
have 
been 
motivated 
by 
a sincere 
curiosity
 in 
exploring 
different cultures
 and 
stories.  It
 is 
this curiosity
 that
 has 
pushed 
her to 
make 
the most 
out 
of 
her experience 
as 
a student.

Gioel grew 
up
 in
 a
 small 
town 
in Italy 
for 
most 
of her 
life 
and 
has always 
tried 
to
 grasp 
any opportunity 
to 
study 
abroad.  
During 
her undergraduate
 at 
the 
University 
of 
New Orleans, 
Gioel 
travelled
 the 
world 
and 
studied
 conflict
 resolution 
on 
board 
of 
the Scholar Ship.
  The 
four‐
month 
trip 
was 
a 
true intercultural 
communication 
‘experiment’ 
and 
it 
profoundly 
impacted 
her 
view 
of 
the 
world.

After 
that 
powerful 
journey, 
Gioel 
received 
a 
grant 
to 
study 
and
 work
 in 
Germany
 for 
a year.  
In 
2009, 
she 
spent 
a 
month 
in 
Nablus
delivering 
a 
‘Cultural
Dialogue’ 
workshop with 
Project 
Hope. 
 Following 
the 
project, 
Gioel
 took 
part 
in 
co‐founding 
Recrear
 with
 the 
idea 
of 
establishing 
a 
platform 
to 
facilitate students
 and
 young 
professionals’ 
access
 a platform
 to 
experiment 
innovative developmental 
approaches 
and 
launch 
their 
own 
initiatives.

Gioel 
holds 
a 
BA
 in International 
Studies 
with
 focus
 on 
Diplomacy 
from 
the 
University 
of 
New 
Orleans 
and
 
a 
MPhil 
in Development Studies
 from Cambridge
University.

Kirsten Williams,  k.williams@recrear.org –

Though
 she 
was 
born 
Canadian,
 Kirsten 
has 
come 
to 
recognize 
herself 
as 
a 
global 
citizen 
who 
thrives 
of 
being 
able 
to 
challenge world
view 
and
 embrace 
foreign 
cultures.  
After 
having 
spent 
4 
years in
 Indonesia 
and 
3 
years 
in 
Tanzania 
during 
my 
youth, 
it 
was 
no 
surprise 
that 
she
 learned 
to 
cultivate 
a 
love 
for 
the 
world 
of 
development.

Since 
returning 
to 
Canada 
Kirsten 
became 
the 
Vice-
President 
of Corporate
 Relations 
with 
AIESEC 
Carlton.  Within 
this 
chapter 
of 
the world’s 
largest 
student‐run 
organization,
 she 
was 
responsible for bringing 
interns 
from 
abroad 
to 
work 
for companies 
and 
even 
NGO’s 
in Canada’s capital.  
Since 
her 
time 
of 
cultivating 
a 
love 
for 
Development
 Theater
 in 
Tanzania, 
Kirsten continually 
maintained 
a commitment 
to 
seeking 
new
 platforms 
in 
which 
she 
can empower 
others.  
Moreover, 
in 
the 
spirit 
of understanding the policy that informs development, she has also kept a firm commitment to Model United Nations and has frequented many international conferences over the years.

New Orleans Local Coordinator: 

Kevin Potter, k.potter@recrear.org –

A native New Orleanian, Kevin’s interest in development was spun out of his studies of Urban Planning at the University of New Orleans.  It was there that he learned how the physical environment can greatly influence the perception of opportunity from within the community.  During his undergrad, he was also afforded the opportunity to study in multiple communities within Morocco and Italy which enabled him the the first-hand vision and implications that international actions can have on the local scale.  Additionally, he has striven for increasing the leadership capacity in New Orleans by working with various student organizations and developing training sessions for their members.

After participating in Recrear.beta in Berlin in 2010, Kevin saw the need for his own community to capitalize on the movement Recrear was attempting to build.  He was critical in partnering with the University of New Orleans for the launch of the first local chapter of Recrear and is looking forward to working with the new local team to include all the city’s universities within the first year.