Meet the Members

Asun Quintana, Spain

Asun is a conference speaker and contributor of articles for the digital periodical ‘Protestante Digital.' She is also President of the working group ‘Mujer y sociedad de la AEE’ (Woman and society of the Spanish Evangelical Alliance), as well as the founder and President of the Seneca Falls Platform, whose objective is to work on behalf of women in every area, especially equality, in society, and in the church. She has been working on matters to do with equality and gender violence for more than twelve years, and is pastor of the Asamblea Cristiana de Madrid church, a position she has occupied for 20 years.

Asun is a member of CNEDA's Steering Committee.

Valérie Duval-Poujol, France

Valérie is a French Baptist theologian, who holds a doctorate in the history of religions at the Sorbonne and exegesis at the Catholic Institute of Paris. She is vice-president of the Protestant Federation of France, and is also a "fraternal delegate" to the extraordinary Catholic synod on the family at the Vatican.

Author of numerous books, Valérie is committed to raising awareness of spiritual and sexual abuse to the Christian public and to issues related to the place of women in the Church. In this context, she founded the association Une place pour Elles.

Valérie is a member of CNEDA's Steering Committee.

Rev Domnic Misolo, Kenya

Domnic is a priest in the Anglican Church of Kenya, and the founder of the Institute for Faith and Gender Empowerment (IFAGE), a faith-based organisation advocating for gender justice and equality in Kenya and East Africa.

Romina Istratii, Ethiopia and United Kingdom

Romina is a UKRI Future Leaders Fellow at the School of History, Religions and Philosophies at SOAS University of London. She is also co-Chair of the SOAS Centre of World Christianity. She acts as Principal Investigator of the UKRI-funded project “Bridging religious studies, gender & development and public health to address domestic violence: A novel approach for Ethiopia and the UK” more widely known as project dldl/ድልድል.

Amal Sarah, Pakistan

Amal Sarah works for the Women Development Services, Diocese of Raiwind, Church of Pakistan. Established in 1989, WDS works to empower women and build a just community. Amal is a member of CNEDA's Steering Committee.

Helen Paynter, United Kingdom

Helen is the Executive Director of the Centre for the Study of the Bible and Violence. Based in Bristol, UK, CSBV is a research and resource hub to promote and facilitate scholarship in the area of Bible and Violence, and to produce accessible resources for the church.

Helen is the author of The Bible Doesn’t Tell Me So: Why you don’t have to submit to domestic abuse and coercive control. The book is available in print, Kindle and audiobook. Helen has also produced a set of videos on this material, aimed at church study groups, called The Bible Doesn’t Tell Us So.

Joy Wilson, Guyana

Dr. Joy is a seminary student and a Board-Certified Master Mental Health Coach (BCMMHC), Presidential Member of the American Association of Christian Counsellors (AACC), and Member of the International Christian Coaching Association (ICCA). Joy volunteers as a Member of the Lausanne Caribbean leadership team. She is the author of two books, and with her husband, the Co-Founder of Biblical Restoration Ministries International, a family life and community development non-profit organisation. Joy is a member of CNEDA's Steering Committee.

Richard Procter, United Kingdom

Richard works as the Leading Co-ordinator for World Without Orphans Europe, which is part of the global World Without Orphans movement.

World Without Orphans is pursuing a world where every child is cared for in a safe and loving family, knows their Heavenly Father, and reaches their God-given potential.

Grace Hee, Malaysia

Grace is the Executive Director of the Asia Evangelical Alliance Women's Commision. The AEA Women's Commission desires to see each woman arise to the fullness of God's design and calling, whether in the home, church or marketplace.

Heather Purdie, Canada

Originally from Scotland, Heather completed postgraduate training at Nordoff-Robbins Music Therapy Centre in London, UK and went on to specialize in research in the field of neurological rehabilitation. She holds a Master’s Degree in Music from Edinburgh University and a Master’s degree in Public Health and Health Services Research from Aberdeen University. She moved to Montreal, Canada from Switzerland in 2004.

Heather is passionate about ending violence against women and girls, helping them find safe spaces to flourish, and equipping them to develop their agency and autonomy. She is Vice-President of the Board of Logifem, an organization which provides emergency and post-shelter services for women and children in Montreal, and continues her work as an advocate for survivors of violence against women through her writing and activism at both the local and international level. In 2021, she helped to found the Rapha Project, a community-based research study looking at the response of the church in Quebec to violence against women. 

Jenifer J. Johnson, Caribbean

Jenifer is the Executive Director of the Evangelical Association of the Caribbean Women's Commission. In a spirit of servanthood, the Evangelical Association of the Caribbean exists to unite Evangelical Christians in the Caribbean, giving them a regional identity, voice, and platform to extend the Kingdom of God through Christ-centred proclamation of the Gospel to all peoples, discipling the nations, and the transformation of society.

Mandy Marshall, United Kingdom

Mandy is an international campaigner against gender-based violence and is one of the co-founders of Restored. co-founded Mandy is currently Director for Gender Justice at the Anglican Alliance. The Anglican Alliance brings together those in the Anglican family of churches and agencies to work together for a world free of poverty and injustice.

Erika Sebestyén, Romania

An ophthalmologist and mental health professional, motivated by her deep love for Jesus and an ardent passion to build a better world for girls and women, Erika perseveres in speaking up against domestic violence, emphasising the role each of us has in preventing this societal disease. She is relentless in her pursuit to raise awareness and mobilise the Christian Church in this work. Her ministry is called erinTes (the Hungarian word for 'touch'), expressing the challenges of building healthy relationships and also the complexity of the healing process for survivors of abuse and violence - a journey that is brought to fullness only by the redemptive, gentle touch of Jesus. Erika is a member of CNEDA's Steering Committee.

Amani Khalil, Egypt

Amani is the Country Director for Life In Abundance Egypt. Life in Abundance International empowers women in poor areas through the churches on Primary Health Care Training that emphasises breastfeeding and hygiene, preventing disease and malnutrition, cessation of FGM, menstruation hygiene using reusable pads, and washable diapers for babies.

Heather King, Canada

Heather is the founder of R.E.S.T Relationship Foundation. Their mission is to provide education and information, both nationally and internationally, on relationships governed by coercive control, as well as how to create healthy, balanced relationships, be they personal, public or work-related. The vision of R.E.S.T. Relationship Foundation is to empower communities through healthy, balanced relationships.

Ada Ibezi, United Kingdom

Ada is the founder of Against Domestic Abuse.

Jenni Entrican, United Kingdom

Jenni is a Baptist minister from the UK, who has served as President of the UK Baptists (2015-16), and the Vice-President (2015-17) and President of the European Baptist Federation (2017-19). Alongside CNEDA member, Valerie Duval-Poujol, Jenni was instrumental in initiating a Global Resource Website, wwwstandagainstdv.net, which she compiled alongside other global partners.

Rosemary Hack, United Kingdom

Rosemary is passionate about tackling issues of injustice and oppression and believes that challenging some of the deep beliefs and theology that lie below the surface is a key part of this. She founded AIDSLink International in 2006. AIDSLink is ministering to people infected or affected by HIV in around 15 nations and training and equipping others to do likewise. She handed the AIDSLink leadership over in 2020. Rosemary and her husband have lived overseas and ministered with OM International in various places around the world for the past 40+ years.OM’s vision is to “See Vibrant communities of Jesus followers amongst the least reached." Rosemary is presently working on a research project for OM which seeks to answer the question, “How can a vibrant community of Jesus followers in a least reached context be vibrant for women?”

Elsa Correia Pereira, Portugal

Elsa holds a degree in Sociology and Planning and is part of the governing bodies of several Non-Profit Associations, and, as a volunteer, she conducts awareness campaigns for various social causes (Refugee and Migrant Welcoming, Prevention of Human Trafficking, Awareness of Violences against Women, etc.) and works as a consultant in the social field.

Elsa collaborates as a writer in several Christian-inspired publications. In the Portuguese Evangelical Alliance, she is responsible for Refugee Support and Human Trafficking Prevention Advice. Elsa is the author of the books: "Diary of a Happy Woman" (devotional), "The Secret of the Rainbow" (for children), and "Determined Women" (devotional). She taught Evangelical Moral and Religious Education in Public Schools, worked in a Christian Children and Youth Home for 5 years, and was a sociologist at ABLA (Multifunctional evangelical mission) between 2008 and 2023. She is part of the Steering Committee of the Global Leadership Summit in Portugal. Elsa is a Sociology Ph.D. candidate with the topic 'the role of women in Evangelical churches in Europe,' as "the voices given to women on Leadership on churches can be the voices that most likely can (or should) report violence against women."

Arlene Henry, Jamaica

A graduate of the United Theological College of the West Indies and University of the West Indies, Arlene has served for fifteen years in the Baptist Head Office Administrative hub in various capacities including direct responsibility for Youth, Christian Education, Media and Communications, among other areas.

In addition to her BA in Theology, in May 2019 Arlene completed her Master’s degree in Diakonia and Christian Social Practice at the VID Specialized University in Oslo, Norway where she, as part of her final exam, successfully completed her studies upon presentation of her thesis on the topic “Combatting Domestic Violence: The (Baptist/Methodist) churches as instruments of empowerment in the Jamaican context”. In 2023 she was awarded the Anders Backstrom Prize for the best International Master Thesis in 2019.

Lílian Lopes Goncalves, Australia

Lílian Lopes Goncalves is from Brazil but currently living in Australia and working for Anglicare Sydney. As a Caseworker, she works with families and children at risk of becoming homeless, all kinds of vulnerable people, refugees, and women fleeing from domestic violence. Lílian's passion and love for Jesus Christ motivates her to be fully committed to work in favour of minorities, spreading His Love, transforming lives, communities, and nations. Her main goal is assisting people and promoting their Dignity, Respect and Integrity.