Meet Our Team

The DME team at SFCG links all of our offices and programs. In our field offices, we have DME Coordinators who are responsible for monitoring and documenting our work; providing support to their programs colleagues; and providing methods for SFCG to constantly improve its programming. They are supported by DME staff at headquarters in DC.

Washington Staff

Nick Oatley
Director, Institutional Learning

Nick Oatley, a citizen of the UK, joined Search in July 2008. He has a diverse range of skills and experience that equips him well to promote learning throughout the organisation, provide leadership on Design, Monitoring and Evaluation, Knowledge Management and broader organisational development issues. He came from the Government Office of the South West (a regional arm of the central UK government) where he was Head of Organisational Development and Strategy responsible for a major change management programme. He worked in the UK Foreign and Commonwealth Office leading a team that worked with the UN, World Bank, UK Department for International Development, other national governments and NGOs on coordinating the development of the UK’s international sustainable development policies and implementation of UK commitments at the World Summit on Sustainable Development (including some work with the US State Department and UNEP on environmental reconstruction work in Iraq). Nick also had a period working for the Strategy and Innovation Unit in the UK Department for Education and Employment. Nick brings over 13 years experience as a trainer and educator based at the University of the West of England, Bristol where he undertook research and consultancy. Here, he was Director of a government funded consultancy that developed two Distance Learning curricula in Evaluation and Project Cycle Management. Nick Oatley holds a degree in Geography from Exeter University (UK), a degree in Town and Country Planning from Bristol Polytechnic (UK) and a Masters Degree in Geography from McMaster University (Canada).

Carolyne V. Ashton, Ph. D.
Senior Research Associate

Carolyne Ashton is a senior research associate with Search for Common Ground.  She coordinates cross-program research projects designed to raise awareness across Search and in the peacebuilding arena.  She also contributes to development of tools for design, monitoring and evaluation and toolkits on program planning based on Search’s work in media and training for conflict resolution and prevention.

She has 25 years of experience in conflict resolution, collaborative problem solving, cultural diversity/competence, and participatory evaluation of education and peacebuilding programs.  Other experience includes teaching graduate research methods, facilitation in conflict resolution, strategic planning, and results-oriented planning and evaluation.  She also provides training and curriculum development in these areas.  Carolyne specializes in the design and implementation of collaborative evaluation models, in multicultural settings, intended to measure results and lead to greater stakeholder involvement.  She has provided services at the organizational, local, state, national and international levels, including for UNICEF, OSCE, UPeace, International Relief & Development/USAID, and state and local education agencies. Carolyne graduated Phi Beta Kappa with a BS in International Relations from Trinity University, Washington, DC (1988) and has a Ph. D. from the Institute for Conflict Analysis and Resolution (ICAR), George Mason University, Fairfax, VA (2007). 

Felix Unogwu
Children & Youth Specialist

Felix is responsible for SFCG's global children and youth programs. Felix comes to Search for Common Ground with extensive experience in programming and design in youth leadership development. His wealth of experience stems from the years as a co-founder of an immigrant Human Rights - Bridge Building organization in Sweden, which addressed the prevailing social-political issues confronting young immigrants and minority groups at the time.

Felix is also an IAF trained field community organizer. He has a Master of Science degree in political science from Vaxjo University in Sweden and a Certificate of Advanced Degree in dispute resolution from University of Massachusetts Boston. Felix now serves as Children and Youth Specialist for the Search for Common Ground.  

Ratiba Taouti-Cherif
DM&E Specialist

Based in Dakar, Senegal, Ratiba Taouti-Cherif is currently Design, Monitoring & Evaluation Specialist for a DfID funded global TV and radio production project. Prior to moving to Dakar, Ratiba was DM&E Specialist at SFCG Headquarters in Washington D.C, where she was responsible for providing leadership on all design, monitoring and evaluation aspects across the organization and supporting country programs in documenting and evaluating their work. In addition to program-focused work, Ratiba conducted field and desk research on the interface between knowledge, attitude and behavior change, and media for conflict transformation.

Prior to joining Search for Common Ground in January 2007, Ratiba was an independent consultant leading research and evaluation projects in the Great Lakes region of Africa for the World Bank, CARE International and Save the Children. Before consulting, Ratiba was a Program Officer for the International Rescue Committee in Rwanda and before that a Project Manager for the British Council in Oxford (UK), where she managed a portfolio of education and governance professional exchange projects. Ratiba received a Master’s degree from the University of London’s School of Oriental and African Studies, focusing on the political economy of conflict and development; and a Bachelor’s degree in Language and History from the University of Toulouse in France, where she focused on socio-linguistics and political discourse.  

Current Interns

Farah Council
Farah joins SFCG as an intern from the School for International Training in Brattleboro, Vermont.  She is a MA candidate studying Conflict Transformation with a focus on youth and community development in conflict-affected areas. She earned a BA in Political Science from the University of New Mexico. She calls “home” the mountainous region of beautiful, expansive Northern New Mexico.

One of Farah’s passions is creating cross-cultural learning opportunities for communities.  These have included the direction and production of large events and fundraisers as well as the founding of programs for public schools and museums, all of which have introduced issues of social importance via music, dance and the arts.  Prior to enrolling in graduate school, she worked for the past 8 years in community development on initiatives including youth, education and local agricultural support. Her experience includes grant writing and management, program design and implementation, proposal development and project coordination. 

Farah works with SFCG’s Children & Youth Division, where she focuses on publishing a newsletter to increase linkage between DC and our field offices, coordinating the WNCAC and conducting country and issue-focused research addressing Search’s work around youth and livelihood in conflict-affected areas.