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ASSOCIATES
Our associates contribute unique expertise across research, health sciences, and strategic operations, working together to advance global health through research, innovation, and strategic leadership.
Jessica Carmila John
Caribbean and Global South Regional and Sustainable Food Systems Consultant for RAS
Jessica Carmila John is a nutrition and healthcare professional with fifteen years of experience across public practice, private practice and consultancy, spanning local, regional and United Nations levels. She has served as an International Nutrition Consultant in Programme and Policy with the World Food Programme, and holds an MSc in Food and Nutrition Security, a Diploma in Institutional and Community Dietetics, and a BSc in Human Nutrition and Dietetics.
Prof Sumantra Ray brings extensive experience as a Professor of Global Nutrition Health and Disease, with a focus on nutrition and health equity and systems-based approaches, most recently, Jessica and Prof Ray have worked together with Canadian counterparts to define the links between food insecurity and disease-related malnutrition, leading to a key publication serving as a global blueprint to deepen the understanding of links between food systems and health systems. Prof Ray and Jessica are now combining forces to offer high-value consulting to address global challenges in food, nutrition and health.
Her work sits at the intersection of agriculture, nutrition and health in the Caribbean and Global South, with particular focus on maternal and child health, food insecurity, climate change, and emergency preparedness and crisis management. Jessica was Lead Author of the 2025 Trinidad and Tobago Association of Nutritionists and Dietitians Position Paper on Sustainable Food Systems, and reviewed both the 2025 Lancet Countdown Climate and Health Policy Priorities for Trinidad and Tobago and the Trinidad and Tobago Medical Association's Policy on Climate Change and Health. She is a co-author of a 2026 qualitative study in BMJ Nutrition, Prevention & Health examining connections between food insecurity and disease-related malnutrition.
Jessica has held a range of leadership roles in the voluntary and non-profit sector, including President of the Trinidad and Tobago Association of Nutritionists and Dietitians and Caribbean and Global South Advisor to the International Confederation of Dietetic Associations Sustainable Food Systems Toolkit Advisory Team. She represented Trinidad and Tobago at the Global NCD Alliance Forum in Kigali in 2025, and works bilingually in English and Spanish.
Ravi Mohan Lal
Senior Data Science and AI Consultant for RAS
Ravi Mohan Lal is an AI engineer with over thirteen years of experience across data science and software engineering, currently focused on developing agentic AI systems capable of carrying out multi-step tasks with minimal human input.
Prof Sumantra Ray brings considerable experience in data science related to scientific health research and real-world health applications, with a focus on nutrition and disease prevention. Ravi and Prof Ray have been working together since 2022 and are now combining forces to offer joint consulting under the RAS framework.
His analytical foundation comes from Master's research at the University of Dundee, where he studied obesity patterns using UK Biobank data covering approximately 500,000 participants, managing secure data access, data cleaning and statistical analysis of the relationships between age, weight, ethnicity and cardiometabolic risk. He continues to work with UK Biobank data, with a growing focus on nutrition and cardiometabolic health.
Ravi has built multi-agent systems incorporating security screening, privacy protection and evaluation steps that assess output quality before release, alongside applied systems for automated document review and adversarial testing of AI assistants. His technical work spans Python, SQL, R and AWS, together with contemporary AI development frameworks, and he places particular emphasis on explainable systems that make the basis of a decision visible rather than only its outcome.
Francesco Giurdanella
International Relations and Strategic Partnerships Consultant for RAS
Francesco Giurdanella is an international relations and strategic partnerships professional working across institutions, universities, international organisations and business. He holds a Master's degree in Sociology and Social Research and a Bachelor's degree in Political, Social and International Sciences, both from the University of Bologna, with research covering the economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic across major monetary blocs and the role of global cities as hubs for investment, talent and innovation.
His work centres on institutional and external relations, stakeholder engagement and the development of international collaborations in food systems, nutrition, global health and life sciences. He has previously served as Deputy Head of Institutional Relations at the Future Food Institute, managing relationships with institutions, embassies, international organisations and private-sector stakeholders, and organising incoming missions and institutional delegations.
Francesco has been a delegate to the Youth 7 Summit, the NATO Youth Summit and the YAS/FAO World Food Forum, and is a member of the FAO World Food Forum Europe and Central Asia Agrifood Stakeholder Network. He received the America Giovani Award from Fondazione Italia USA in 2025 in recognition of potential contributions to transatlantic cooperation. He holds a Certificate of Excellence in Applied Human Nutrition from the NNEdPro Summer School, completed the Euro-Mediterranean Economy Summer School with Feuromed, and works in Italian, English, Spanish and French.
Since 2024 Prof Ray and Francesco have been working together to manage dozens of strategic collaborative partnerships with specialist organisations and academic institutions from across the world and spanning a wide range of disciplines. In addition, Prof Ray and Francesco oversee 10 formalised Regional Networks bringing together over 1,000 professionals from more than 80 countries under an international academy and linked with an Annual International Summit geared towards achieving consensus towards the 2030 goals.
Sucheta Mitra
Resource Mobilisation and Development Consultant for RAS
Sucheta Mitra is a resource mobilisation and research professional with nine years of experience across international organisations, global health, migration, research institutions and the non-profit sector in Switzerland, the United Kingdom, India and internationally.
Her work covers donor prospect research, funding opportunity identification, grant and proposal development, donor engagement and funding pipeline management, including Indian CSR and philanthropic funding. She has coordinated over eighty research and programme funding applications across European, UK and Indian funders, including Horizon Europe, SNSF, Innosuisse, Innovate UK, BBSRC, Indian CSR funders and private philanthropic donors, with individual opportunities ranging from approximately £50,000 to over £1 million.
Before this she served as Donor Relations Consultant at the International Organization for Migration in Geneva, reviewing and endorsing more than seventy donor reports with inputs from over forty field offices, and supporting donor briefings, humanitarian appeals and programme reporting across Syria, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Venezuela and the Rohingya response. She has also worked with the United Nations Office at Geneva, the Global Forum on Migration and Development, the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria, and the Permanent Mission of the Maldives to the United Nations, where she drafted statements and resolutions for the Human Rights Council.
Sucheta holds an MSc in Life Sciences — Food, Nutrition and Health from Bern University of Applied Sciences, specialising in public health nutrition, food systems policy and evidence-based research, with a dissertation on food behaviours among Eritrean migrant communities in Switzerland. She also holds an MA in International Relations and Political Science from the Geneva Graduate Institute and a BA (Hons) in Political Science from the University of Delhi. She works in English, Hindi and Bengali, with French to B2 level, and is based in Bern.
Prof Ray and Sucheta have been working closely since 2019 on strategic development and high value partnerships at an organisational level as well as research into nutrition and health improvement in underserved and migrant populations experiencing food insecurity. Through RAS Prof Ray and Sucheta are bringing together a vast array of intersectoral experience in developing organisational capacity towards pathways to population resilience across borders.
Kirby James
Kirby James is a renowned educator and coach with deep experience guiding leaders across many sectors, including healthcare, NGO’s and the corporate sector. Kirby has a clear, simple purpose: to help others unleash their potential.
Kirby studied coaching with the world-famous author and educator Robert Fritz in the Structural Consulting Certification Program. He is certified as a Fellow in Board Governance and organisational culture assessment, as a Master of Lean & 6 Sigma, holds a Master of Health Science, and is a 5th-degree Taekwondo Master Black Belt.
As a coach, Kirby helps clients implement mindfulness practices so they can bring transformational leadership to life.
As cofounder of a software company specialising in Educational Technology, he has also lived the challenge of bringing a radical idea into operational reality.
Kirby has addressed thousands of CEOs and future leaders, plus tens of thousands more adults, on a wide range of leadership, project management, and communication topics.
Matheus Abrantes
Head of Operations and Senior Digital Consultant for RAS
Matheus Abrantes holds a bachelor’s degree in Business Administration from UNIP University in São Paulo, Brazil, and has worked across the private, public and charity sectors. He joined the NNEdPro Global Institute for Food, Nutrition and Health in 2018 and now serves as Chief Operations Officer, leading digital operations, financial management, governance processes and strategic marketing across NNEdPro and its regional networks on six continents. He is responsible for implementing digital tools, supporting organisational growth, and coordinating strategic initiatives, including research collaborations, project operations and capacity-building programmes. Matheus has a strong interest in human behaviour, particularly in organisational management and strategic communication, and extensive experience in digital transformation, business intelligence and data analytics. He completed a Post-Graduate Certificate in Management with Marketing from the University of Lincoln. He recently completed an MBA in Business Intelligence & Analytics at USP, focusing on advanced data analysis, predictive modelling and strategic decision-making for social-impact projects such as the Mobile Teaching Kitchen Initiative.
Dr Samyyia Ashraf
Senior Life and Health Sciences Consultant for RAS
Dr Samyyia Ashraf is a highly accomplished clinical researcher, consultant, medical scientist, and Associate Director at NNEdPro Global Institute for Food, Nutrition and Health. She has extensive expertise in drug development, translational medicine, and regulatory affairs and has a distinguished career spanning oncology, cardiovascular, and cardiometabolic research. Dr Ashraf has played a pivotal role in clinical trials, therapeutic innovation, and public health research, providing strategic insights to advance medical research, regulatory submissions, and global health initiatives.
With a solid foundation in healthcare consulting, data analysis, and experimental medicine, as a Principal Medical Scientist in Oncology Medicine, Dr. Ashraf has extensive experience in clinical drug development, pharmacokinetics, and molecular biology techniques. She has collaborated closely with leading pharmaceutical companies, regulatory agencies, and academic institutions, contributing to biomarker-driven therapeutic strategies, cancer biology research, and disease pathology. Her expertise in precision medicine has supported the development of targeted therapies and novel treatment approaches, improving clinical outcomes in oncology.
In addition to her work in oncology, Dr Ashraf is deeply engaged in cardiovascular and cardiometabolic research, focusing on preventing and managing cardiometabolic diseases in high-risk and underrepresented populations. By integrating epidemiological insights with clinical applications, her research explores the influence of biopsychosocial factors on dietary and lifestyle behaviours, aiming to develop culturally sensitive interventions that promote health equity and improved clinical outcomes, shaping policy and healthcare strategies.
Dr Ashraf holds an academic background in Translational Medicine and Therapeutics from the University of Cambridge and is a recognized leader in cross-functional teams, mentoring professionals in medical writing, clinical research, and regulatory affairs. She has successfully delivered high-quality regulatory and clinical documents, ensuring compliance with international guidelines while driving project management and submission strategy efficiency.
Her commitment to bridging scientific discovery, regulatory compliance, and patient-centred healthcare continues to shape the future of evidence-based medicine and global regulatory excellence.
Dr Rajna Golubic
Senior Medical Academic Consultant for RAS
Dr Rajna Golubic is an expert in diabetes and cardiometabolic health, currently serving as a Clinical Lecturer at the University of Oxford. Her research focuses on glucocorticoid-induced diabetes, and she leads large-scale studies aimed at improving clinical care for cardiometabolic disorders. With over a decade of experience as a lead investigator, she brings extensive expertise in clinical research and medical education, contributing to significant advancements in healthcare.
Sarah Armes
Clinical and Public Health Nutritionist for RAS
Sarah Armes is a Registered Associate Nutritionist with a master's level in Clinical and Public Health Nutrition, serving in operational and academic roles in NNEdPro with significant content creation for various education in health system and health practices. Ms Armes holds deputy lead role of the data science and evidence synthesis hub, curating evidence with research and real-world data and strengthening data/research literacy and capacity among health professionals. Additionally, she has experience coordinating NNEdPro's annual and virtual conferences, and currently holds the position of lead organiser for the NNEdPro-IANE Summer School and committee member for the International Summit.
Dr Dionysia Angeliki Lyra
Dr Dionysia Angeliki Lyra is a Senior Research Agronomist specialising in saline agriculture, with over 15 years of experience leading multidisciplinary R&D projects and teams globally. Her key research areas include halophytes farming, the halophytes value chain, integrated & sustainable crop-fish systems, agroforestry, and salt marsh restoration and management. Dr Lyra has collaborated closely with clinical scientists, nutritionists, culinary professionals, food technology experts, and food industry representatives to advance the use of halophytes as functional foods, thereby developing market access for halophyte-based products. During her tenure at the International Centre for Biosaline Agriculture (ICBA), Dr Lyra established the “Halophytic Kitchen Lab” program to raise public awareness on the nutritional and health benefits of halophytes. She has worked with national and international bodies across the Middle East, North Africa, the EU, and Central Asia, collaborating with global organisations such as the FAO, the EU, USAID, governmental agencies, financial institutions, and private sector entities on the development of sustainable crop production systems in hot and desert areas. She has co-led the NNEdPro Middle East and Central Asia Regional Network and led the Saline Agriculture Working Group of FAO/WASAG. She strongly believes in the interdisciplinary strength of networks like NNEdPro, which uniquely bridge different disciplines across food systems through evidence-based research and collaborative innovation, advancing education and creating lasting impact in communities.
NNEdPro Project, Operations & Strategy (POST) Team
Prof Ray and his associates work closely with the NNEdPro Global Institute for Food, Nutrition and Health, contributing to its mission of advancing nutrition research and education, and members of the NNEdPro POST may also be included in our consultancy work.
Additionally, leadership initiatives are developed in collaboration with CREATE Academy, an initiative funded by NNEdPro, focusing on fostering innovation and capacity-building in health and nutrition.