Bogdan Cozma is a program coordinator at the Black Sea Trust. He supports the Pro-Elect project, which promotes participatory and representative democracy in the Eastern Partnership countries. He also writes policy briefs on electoral systems in the Black Sea area, the impact of geopolitics on Central and Eastern Europe, and the role of civic engagement in promoting democratic principles. He previously worked on grantmaking initiatives in Ukraine and Türkiye with funding from USAID, the European Commission, the Porticus Foundation, and the Rockefeller Foundation.

Cozma has additional expertise in the Three Seas Initiative, EU institutions and foreign policy, and the politics of the Black Sea region. 

Cozma holds a master’s degree in philosophy, politics, and economics and a bachelor's degree in political science from the University of Bucharest. He is a PhD candidate at the Doctoral School of International Affairs at the Bucharest Academy of Economic Studies.

Iryna Khomiak is a program officer with GMF’s Ukraine: Relief, Resilience, Recovery program, based in Berlin. She works within the emergency response programming for support of Ukrainian civil society and independent media, especially in terms of the full-scale Russian war. Prior to this, she worked as a coordinator of the Master in International Human Rights and Humanitarian Law Program at the European University Viadrina Frankfurt (Oder), Germany, and on judicial, police, and juvenile probation reforms in Ukraine. She has worked within international projects funded by USAID and Global Affairs Canada as well as on numerous projects of the British Council in Ukraine.

Inspired by the spirit of the Revolution of Dignity and her experience, Iryna decided to pursue her Master’s degree in human rights at the Friedrich-Alexander University in Erlangen-Nürnberg, Germany. There, she focused mainly on peace and conflict resolution policies, women’s rights within this, and the right to education for national minorities. She also holds Master’s and Bachelor’s degrees in the theory and history of literature and comparative studies from the National University of “Kyiv-Mohyla academy” in Kyiv, Ukraine. In addition to her native Ukrainian, she speaks English and German, and she has basic knowledge of Polish. 
 

Niklas Ebert is a program manager with GMF’s Transatlantic Security program. Based in Berlin, he works mainly on issues of deterrence and resilience as well as German security and defense policy.

Prior to joining GMF, Ebert worked as a research assistant at the International Institute for Strategic Studies’ Defence and Military Analysis Programme in Berlin. Previously, he worked for the German Federal Foreign Office focusing on nuclear disarmament and non-proliferation. He gained additional experience at PricewaterhouseCoopers and the German Council on Foreign Relations.

Ebert received a bachelor’s degree in liberal arts and sciences from Maastricht University and holds a master’s degree in war and conflict studies from the University of Potsdam.

Irene Fam is finance analyst based in Washington, DC.

Sarah Jones is GMF's managing director of leadership programs. Based in Washington, DC, she oversees the organization's leadership development portfolio including the Marshall Memorial Fellowship, Transatlantic Inclusion Leaders Network, Policy Design Network, and other initiatives aimed at strengthening and advancing the transatlantic relationship. She has more than a decade of experience building curricula and inclusive programs.

Jones joined GMF in 2022 as the organization’s inaugural senior manager of diversity, equity, and inclusion. She worked with the human resources and leadership teams to ensure equitable policies are in place, inclusive practices are encouraged at all levels, and workforce diversity is the outcome of equity efforts. She put in place GMF’s first-ever Inclusion Roadmap, ensuring the organization has a strategic plan for fostering equity and inclusion for staff and stakeholders.

Jones is a member of Black Professionals in International Affairs, Global Access Pipeline, Spark DEI through the ENAR Foundation, Think Tank DC Consortium, and Berlin-based #teamDiversity.