About Us

Our CEO

Jo has worked in international development for almost 20 years, working tirelessly to deliver the best emergency responses in the most pressing humanitarian crises.

Jo worked for DFID’s Chase Operations Team (CHASE OT), for 13 years, in humanitarian affairs and latterly as Senior Humanitarian Deployments Manager, for the deployment of surge capacity for humanitarian response, including engaging with the UN, INGOs and private sector.  

Jo is an expert in deployment surge mechanisms and is experienced in managing capacity building projects, recognising that human resources are the most important asset within any organisation.  

Jo joined RedR in 2019, aiming to utilise her background in surge capacity, strong in her belief  that a humanitarian response is only as good as the people that work within a response and  confident in RedR’s long history, expertise, achievements and standing within the humanitarian community. 

Jo was awarded an OBE in 2016 for her work in global humanitarian emergency response and an Honorary Doctorate from the University of Portsmouth in 2017 for her work in global humanitarian emergency response and international relations. 

 

I’ve known of RedR’s good work since undertaking the Essentials of Humanitarian Practice over 15 years ago and so being able to lead the organisation now and be at the forefront of building the capacity of local staff is truly amazing. I look forward to being able to change the face of response, especially on the COVID-19 pandemic, and contributing to responses that are as local as possible and as international as necessary.

Jo de Serrano

RedR UK CEO

Read Jo's piece in The New Humanitarian

"Aid organisations fail to protect LGBTQI+ aid workers in the field"

Read now