A Firm That Builds Community. A Community That Builds the Future.
Meet Mark Kerr, CEO and Founding Member
Mark Kerr is an international development strategist, attorney, and former senior U.S. diplomat with more than 25 years of experience helping organizations de-risk operations, unlock market access, and deliver results in complex environments. A Yale-trained attorney and former U.S. Army officer, Mark served as JAG counsel in Iraq, Afghanistan, and Kosovo, supporting Special Forces units alongside conventional forces. He began his civilian career at a global law firm advising on large-scale energy projects from greenfield development through construction, experience that continues to shape his focus on execution, bankability, and real-world constraints.
Most recently, he served as the senior U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) leader in Paraguay, spearheading global initiatives and engaging at the highest levels across government, civil society, and the private sector. Across his career, Mark has managed legal, business, and regulatory portfolios valued in the tens of billions of dollars across the Andes, Central Asia, the Caribbean, and conflict-affected settings. Now based in Miami, Mark co-founded The Meridian Guild.
Meet Clinton D. White, President and Founding Member
Clinton D. White is a distinguished, strategic, mission-driven C-suite executive with more than 25 years of experience scaling global programs, strengthening international partnerships, and driving sustainable impact. Proven track record of leading cross-cultural teams, securing multimillion-dollar funding, and advancing human rights, climate, and education initiatives across the Caribbean, Middle East, Africa, and Asia while managing portfolios exceeding $1 billion. Recognized for visionary leadership, organizational transformation, financial stewardship, and commitment to inclusion. Previously, Mr. White served as the Counselor for the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). Prior to his role as USAID’s highest-ranking FSO, Mr. White was the USAID Regional Representative for Barbados, beginning in September 2019. In this role, he oversaw a portfolio encompassing the Organization of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) and Barbados, Guyana, Suriname, Trinidad and Tobago, and the Bahamas.
Meet Andrea Plucknett, Founding Member
Andrea Plucknett brings energy, expertise, and over 27 years of U.S. Government procurement experience to the table—including more than 15 years leading high-stakes acquisition efforts at USAID. Her journey has taken her across the globe, with leadership assignments in Zimbabwe, Liberia, the Dominican Republic, Indonesia, East Africa, West Bank/Gaza, and Egypt. From bustling cities to remote outposts, Andrea has designed and delivered procurement strategies that emphasize local ownership, innovative thinking, and results that matter. She’s known for building strong, mission-driven teams and championing critical initiatives like localization, anti-corruption, private sector engagement, and counter-trafficking. Whether it's navigating complex awards or advising on multi-sector programs—from health and governance to energy and humanitarian response—Andrea is all about getting things done with integrity and impact. Before joining USAID, Andrea served in senior contracting roles with the Department of Defense, supporting every branch of the U.S. military. Her work spanned everything from logistics and construction to managing the acquisition and sale of strategic minerals.
Meet Andrew Kerr, Founding Member
Dr. Andrew Kerr is an international education, leadership, and community development professional with more than 25 years of experience strengthening institutions, developing leaders, and building community capacity. His work focuses on creating culturally responsive approaches to education, workforce development, and leadership that expand opportunity while drawing on the knowledge, priorities, and strengths of the communities they serve.
Across his career, Andrew has led education and workforce initiatives, supported institutional and community development, and designed leadership programs for public, private, nonprofit, and international organizations. A consistent focus of his work has been poverty alleviation and creating locally relevant pathways to greater opportunity and sustainable development.
Meet Gerardo Tablas, Founding Member
Gerardo Tablas is a global leader with over 35 years of international experience spanning diplomacy, business, and development. He has advised public and private sector leaders across Latin America, Europe, and the Caribbean, fostering innovation, partnerships, and strategic collaboration.
His career includes pioneering roles in IT and telecommunications—helping establish international call centers in emerging markets—as well as leadership in international marketing, export promotion, and conflict resolution. Gerardo has also served as Minister Counselor in Germany and Austria, advancing global cooperation and high-level diplomacy.
Fluent in five languages, Gerardo bridges cultures and sectors to drive transformative global impact.
Meet Shiraz Ashraf, Founding Member
Shiraz Ashraf brings 29 years of leadership in international development, public policy, public financial management, governance, and institutional reform. His distinguished career includes 24 years with USAID, where he served as Senior Advisor to the Agency’s Front Office in Washington D.C. and Chief Financial Advisor in Pakistan for one of USAID’s largest bilateral programs.
He has designed and led multi-billion-dollar government-to-government assistance programs, co-authored USAID’s Local Capacity Strengthening Policy, and built national safety net systems and multi-donor trust funds across complex environments. His work in climate finance, donor coordination, and financial systems reform has strengthened institutions across regions — contributions that earned him USAID’s highest honor: Employee of the Year.
Shiraz has trained over 10,000 professionals, shaping central banks, supreme audit institutions.
Meet Anand Rudra, Engagement Manager for Global South including South Asia
Anand Rudra is a Washington, DC–based international development, partnerships, and strategy professional with more than 30 years of experience working across South Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa. A former USAID senior specialist, he led major development initiatives in governance, urban development, health, water and sanitation, and institutional strengthening while building partnerships among governments, development agencies, nonprofits, and private-sector stakeholders.
He later served as Director, Acceleration and Grants with The Kaizen Company, supporting localization and capacity-strengthening efforts across Africa. Today, Anand advises organizations on partnership strategy, grantmaking, organizational effectiveness, and cross-sector collaboration.
As Engagement Manager for Global South including South Asia with Meridian Guild, he works to strengthen connections among development, investment, and policy communities to promote sustainable economic growth and shared prosperity.
Meet Doreen Hove, Director, Global Communications
Doreen Hove is the Director for Global Communications for the Meridian Guild. She is a former USAID employee who worked as the Senior Development Outreach and Communications (DOC) Specialist and was Acting Deputy Program Office Director for USAID/Zimbabwe. She is a writer, storyteller, and poet with over 15 years of communications experience. She has led all external communications for USAID in Zimbabwe, managing media relations, multimedia storytelling, digital strategy and crisis communications for a cumulative annual portfolio of more than US $300 million.
Notably, she played a critical role in navigating messaging during the Mission’s transition to the U.S. State Department, demonstrating strategic foresight and risk mitigation expertise in complex political environments.
Furthermore, she supported USAID/Zambia to strengthen their strategic communications, hosting media trainings and conducting an in-depth analysis of Zambia’s broadcast landscape to improve outreach.
In Zimbabwe, she co-developed the award-winning USAID-supported movie Shaina, guiding its compelling storyline to inspire health-seeking behaviors among adolescent girls and young women. Shaina has aired across Africa and is currently on Netflix and Fly Emirates.
Doreen is also the Co-founder for Ladder Point, a Communications Consultancy organization covering Southern Africa.