Our Leadership
Women artisans in some of the most impoverished communities in rural Latin America inspired Yale students to found Mercado Global in 2004. The journey from a Yale dorm room to the cover of Newsweek and a rising standard of living for rural artisans would not be possible without the hard work, partnership and creativity of many artisan leaders in Guatemala; talented designers; willing volunteers; savvy fashion executives; and far-sighted corporate leaders, among others. Our leadership includes:
Board of Directors
Garrard Beeney, MG Board Chair and Partner at Sullivan and Cromwell
Rick DeGolia, President and CEO of Green Wireless Systems
Ruth DeGolia, Executive Director at Mercado Global
Thomas McDow, MG Board Secretary and Professor at George Mason University
Nancy Pedot, Former CEO and President of Gymboree and of Park City
Jill Southard, Director of Category Management at TransFair
Mark Swedlund, Partner at SolutionSet
Henry Webb, MG Treasurer and VP at Goldman Sachs
Senior Staff
Ruth DeGolia, Executive Director
As Mercado Global’s Co-Founder and Executive Director, Ruth DeGolia has overseen Mercado Global’s growth from an organization working with a dozen artisans in Guatemala’s highlands to its partnership with hundreds of artisans and a number of major U.S. specialty retail chains and catalogs in the U.S.
Ruth has been recognized for her role in founding and supporting a variety of programs and organizations related to international development and poverty alleviation. She has also received honors for her academic work on the impact of globalization on political and economic development in Latin America, including the William H. Orrick prize at Yale University. In May 2004, she was named among the “World’s Best Emerging Social Entrepreneurs” by the Echoing Green Foundation. She also received the “Award for Social Innovation” from the Social Enterprise Alliance in April 2005. In July 2006 she was selected as one of the “15 People Who Make America Great” by Newsweek Magazine and was featured on the magazine’s cover along with Brad Pitt and Soledad O’Brien of CNN.
Milly Miranda, Sales Director Milly is responsible for new business development, account management, and product development, including coordinating our partnerships with product designers. Milly has over ten years experience working as an Account Executive for Better Contemporary apparel collections serving clients such as Barneys, Bloomingdales, Neiman Marcus and other women’s specialty boutique retailers.
Delia Rosario Mendoza Mendoza, Guatemala Operations Director Delia Mendoza serves as general director for Mercado Global’s operations in Guatemala. She coordinates our production and artisan training teams, and also supervises funding of educational and community development projects in the regions where we work.
Delia comes to Mercado Global after serving nearly 6 years as Finance Director for Puentes de Amistad, one of the largest microcredit organizations operating in Guatemala. Delia holds the equivalent of an MBA from Guatemala’s Landivar University, and has an extensive background in community development work.
Joanna Glovinsky, Production Manager Joanna serves as the liaison between Mercado Global’s production team in Guatemala and our sales and design teams in the U.S.. Joanna’s responsibilities include product design & development, sourcing, and operations development. Before joining the Mercado Global team, Joanna spent three years building a jewelry business that brought the traditional crafts of tribes in India to the US market.
Kristy Caylor, Design Consultant Kristy brings a wealth of experience in merchandising and product design at major U.S. specialty retail chains to her work with Mercado Global. Prior to launching an independent consulting business, Kristy served as head of merchandising for Gap Accessories and Product (RED), where she redeveloped the accessories lines, led the development and launch of Gap Jewelry, and redeveloped the business model for Product (RED).
Kristy graduated with an B.S. in Industrial Engineering and a minor in painting from Northwestern University and holds an MBA in Entrepreneurship and Finance from University of Southern California.
Elma Morales, Textiles Production Coordinator Elma Morales brings years of experience working with women’s weaving and sewing groups to her position as Textiles Production Coordinator for Mercado Global. Elma is a skilled seamstress and has an Associate’s Degree from the University of Iowa. She also is pursuing a Masters Degree at Landivar University in Guatemala.
Lidia Garcia, Jewelry Production Coordinator Lidia first worked with Mercado Global as a member of one of the organization’s partner jewelry cooperatives. Lidia now oversees the organization’s work with dozens of cooperatives in Guatemala, including providing technical and business trainings in communities across the highlands. Lidia is pursing a degree in Business Administration at Landivar University in Guatemala.
Michaela Parnell, Operations & Development Associate
Marisol Morales, Artisan Training & Asset Development Program Coordinator
Harry Stevens, Development Associate A recent graduate ofthe University of Puget Sound, Harry has worked on a variety of development projects throughout Latin America. Trained in Spanish and International Relations, Harry has the knowledge and capacity to connect the work of our partner artisans to our supporters in the United States.
Caroline Zawadzki, Finance Director A Chartered Accountant from the big 5 accounting firms, Caroline serves as finance director of Mercado Global. She brings with her a divers background in accounting, auditing and taxation for large and small enterprises.
We also wish to acknowledge the past contributions of our co-founder, Benita Singh, who served as Mercado Global’s Marketing Director from the organization’s inception until September 2006.