Steering Committee
The Global Social Service Workforce Alliance is overseen and guided by a diverse Steering Committee, which includes senior experts, academics and experienced practitioners from the field of social work and the wider social welfare sector. Steering Committee members participate in strategic planning and decision making and support the Alliance’s mission to promote and strengthen the social service workforce globally.
Steering Committee Members
Jane Calder, Chair
Jane, elected chair of the Steering Committee in March 2026, previously served as a committee member 2018 – 2022, and prior to that as a GSSWA ambassador, while working as Senior Advisor, Child Protection, with Save the Children, for the Asia and Pacific regions. Jane has recently retired from this role, having worked for 30 years on child protection programmes in both Asia and Africa. A social science graduate and trained social worker with almost 45 years of working with vulnerable children, she has managed and advised protection programmes in the UK, in East Africa and in Asia and the Pacific. Jane co-led Save the Children’s global Technical Working Group on Child Protection Systems, has a particular interest in supporting the community level workforce and has led innovative, competency based ways of reaching the community and family level through a strengthened social service workforce. Jane retains a strong interest in the social service workforce and brings this passion to her role as chair.
Aniruddha Kulkarni
Senior Advisor for Evidence and Learning, Better Care Network
Sandhyaa Mishra
Senior Director, Government Partnership & Strategic Alliance, Miracle Foundation India
With 26 years in the social development sector, Sandhyaa’s accomplishments span from working with large non-profits to small community-led initiatives and projects for refugees with UNHCR, children living with HIV, and children of prisoners. As Senior Director of Government Partnership and Strategic Alliance at Miracle Foundation India, Sandhyaa has been pivotal in developing and strengthening partnerships with multiple stakeholders, including governments, to amplify narratives and influence the ecosystem around Family-Based Alternative Care and Family Strengthening. She has led Miracle Foundation India’s programs across more than 10 states, supporting children without parental care and promoting sustainable changes that reduce reliance on child care institutions. Sandhyaa holds a Master’s in Social Work and a Post-Graduate Diploma in Human Rights. She is also currently the Co-convener and Steering Committee member of the India Alternative Care Network.
Foluke Omoworare
Principal Consultant, Fibodaire Development Consultants, Nigeria
Foluke has 24 years of experience as a social worker and has worked with different organizations in Nigeria in the areas of child protection case management, violence against women, orphans and vulnerable children, and HIV/AIDS. Presently, she runs a private consulting organization where she serves as the lead consultant. Foluke has vast experience incorporating capacity building, community engagement, policy adaptation/development and advocacy approaches to aid in the provision of social services, build the capacity of the social service workforce, and strengthen existing systems and structures. She has proven experience working with government and non-governmental agencies to strengthen the social service workforce and ultimately improve service provision to target audiences. Her strength lies in qualitative surveys, project conceptualization, implementation and documentation of lessons learned and best practices.
Dr. Puji Pujiono
President, Independent Association of Professional Social Workers, Indonesia
Puji is an Indonesian social worker and the current President of the Indonesian Association of Social Workers. His two decades of experience with the UN, both in the field and at headquarters, includes international disaster and humanitarian operations and the development of the global humanitarian system. He was instrumental in the development of Indonesia’s Disaster Management Law and the ASEAN Regional Agreement. As a senior advisor to the Pujiono Centre and founder of the Indonesian Development – Humanitarian Alliance, he has championed the Global South civil society movement for humanitarian reform, including as the Global South Sherpa in the Grand Bargain, and currently chairs the Steering Committee of the Network of Empowered Aid Response’s (NEAR) Global Localisation Lab. He has also played a key role in digital transformation initiatives in developing countries, focusing on school connectivity and child online protection. Puji holds a doctorate in public administration and a master’s in social work.
Sazan Baban
Senior Advisor, Interagency Coordination on Child Protection Systems, Save the Children
Sazan is a Child Protection Specialist with over 10 years of experience across East Asia, the Middle East, and Europe, including Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, Ukraine, and Myanmar. Her expertise includes child protection case management, family-based care, and information management for case management (IM4CM). Since joining Save the Children in 2014, she has supported the development of child protection systems, led case management initiatives, strengthened the capacity of local organizations, and advanced global guidance and tools. Sazan co-leads the global Case Management Task Force within the Alliance for Child Protection in Humanitarian Action, helping shape sector priorities and strengthen collaboration and represents Save the Children in different interagency forums. Field-driven in her approach, she is committed to practical, context-based solutions. She holds a BA in Psychology and a Master of Public Health from the American University of Beirut.
Diana Stroud
Former Assistant Dean for Advancement and Alumni Affairs, University of Illinois, USA
Diana served as the Assistant Dean for Advancement and Alumni Affairs, at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, for 24 years, first in the School of Social Work and finally in the School of Library and Information Sciences. During her time at the University she was responsible for raising more than $50 million dollars. Funds raised were primarily used for student scholarship and support of their education as well as faculty research and alumni programs. Social Work has been her lifelong profession. Prior to and during her time at the University of Illinois, Diana worked in a variety of community non-profit organizations as a licensed clinical social worker. She worked for more than 27 years in medical and child welfare settings. Diana was a Founding Board Member of Prevent Child Abuse Illinois, the statewide child abuse and neglect organization that continues to thrive today. Always identifying as a social worker, Diana served and continues to participate in the local, state and national boards of the U.S. National Association of Social Workers (NASW).
Aminul Islam
Child Protection Specialist, UNICEF Global Programme Division
Aminul is based at UNICEF’s Centre of Excellence in Amman, Jordan. He specializes in child protection systems strengthening, social service workforce strengthening for child protection, and child care reform. Aminul leads UNICEF’s technical support to country offices and partners in these areas and collaborates with global partners and stakeholders to maximize impact for children. He is an experienced child protection professional who has worked with UNICEF Country Offices in Ethiopia, Libya, Kenya, Somalia, and Bangladesh since 2006. Aminul has supported child protection systems in both development and humanitarian contexts. His expertise includes legal and policy reform, social service workforce strengthening, child protection case management and information management systems, and the prevention of and response to violence against children and harmful practices. Aminul is a strong advocate for a systems approach to child protection, particularly in preventing and responding to violence against children across development and humanitarian contexts.
Akiko Yokoyama
JICA Expert, ASEAN Training Center for Social Work and Social Welfare, Bangkok, Thailand.
Akiko is a social worker and international development professional specializing in social work education, social service workforce development, and community-based care. At the ASEAN Training Center for Social Work and Social Welfare she supports human resource development in social work across the ASEAN (Association of SE Asian Nations) region. Her work focuses on strengthening social work education and training, developing competencies for social workers, and promoting regional collaboration. Akiko has extensive experience in international cooperation and social work in both development and community-based settings. She has worked with an international NGO, served as a JICA International Cooperation Promotion Coordinator, and taught at universities. She was involved in the JICA Tanzania Integrated Malaria Control Project and later worked in Thailand on the JICA Project on Seamless Health and Social Services Provision for Elderly Persons (S-TOP), supporting the development of community-based integrated care services for older persons. She also worked as a social worker at a law firm in Japan. Akiko holds a Master’s degree in Development Studies and a PhD in Human Sciences, and is a qualified social worker in Japan.