team re:char
the re:char team is committed to finding ways to combat climate change through teamwork and collaboration.
jason aramburu: Jason, re:char’s CEO, graduated from Princeton University with a degree, cum laude, in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology and a certificate in Environmental Studies. He has extensive research experience in both the lab and field, having spent significant time studying and working at the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute in the Republic of Panama and at Princeton University’s Carbon Mitigation Initiative. Before founding re:char, Jason was a founding member of Innozone, an online expertise network. Named a 2009 Social Innovation fellow by Pop!Tech and a 2010 Echoing Green fellow, Jason believes climate change and rural poverty are the two greatest global challenges and is excited to take part in solving them.
tim callahan: Tim works as re:char’s chief operations officer. Tim graduated from Princeton University with a degree in sociology. Now based in Nairobi, Kenya, Tim brings experience in international development. Beginning in 2008, Tim worked for the International Rescue Committee in western Tanzania. Later, Tim worked with Esperanza International, a prominent micofinance institution in the Dominican Republic. He attended the Unreasonable Institute in the summer of 2010 on behalf of re:char. Tim is excited to be back in East Africa to work with farmers in rural areas, a setting he is familiar with from his time in Tanzania.
max heilveil: Max is a chemist and an engineer. He graduated from the University of Texas at Austin where he received his B.S. in chemistry. Upon graduating, Max worked to develop his machining skills, as making things from scratch has always been his passion. He worked as an engineer and scientist at Glemco, Inc. on a wide array of semiconductor related products and processes, then went on to start a business with two partners supplying parts and engineering services to the semiconductor industry. Max’s entrepreneurial prowess and inventive machining are central to re:char’s success, and he is very excited to be working as a part of the team to bring positive change to the world.
luke iseman: Luke is chief technology officer for re:char. He graduated, cum laude, from The Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania, concentrating in Entrepreneurship and Operations. Luke is passionate about open source hardware, and his projects have been covered by Make Magazine, Boingboing, Wired, and The Austin Chronicle. Before joining the re:char team, Luke worked at a variety of software technology companies, built and managed a fleet of 25 pedicabs, invented an automated gardening computer, and wrote a book about traveling around the world. Luke is excited about using the power of the physical computing revolution to build a more sustainable world.
scott little: Scott graduated from the University of Texas with a degree in Engineering-Physics. His first career involved the design and application of industrial x-ray fluorescence analyzers. He held the positions of General Manager of ASOMA Instruments and Manager of Analytical Product Development at TN Technologies, both in the Austin area. He went on to play a key role in the engineering developments that led to the creation of Active Power, Inc. (NASDAQ: ACPW), making flywheel energy storage systems. Now, in addition to his responsibilities as development engineer for re:char, he is also involved in fundamental physics research at the Institute for Advanced Studies at Austin. And he’s a farmer to boot!
eric solomonson: Eric is a Sales and Business Development Fellow at re:char. He graduated from Northwestern University with degrees in Economics and International Studies and a focus on economic development in Sub-Saharan African. Eric’s experience includes working with ORUDE, a local NGO in eastern Uganda, to engage rural communities and establish a savings and credit cooperative for 200 area farmers. Additionally he managed projects both in real estate and environment sustainability at Sears Holdings Corporation. These included property acquisitions and a solar development initiative. Eric is proud to create channels for the sale and distribution of products that are at the intersection of organic agriculture, poverty alleviation and climate change mitigation.
henrik sundgren: Henrik, re:char sales and business development fellow, graduated from The Royal Institue of Technology and Stockholm University in Sweden with degrees in Real Estate and Finance. As part of his studies he attended a semester at the Univ. of Paris, France. Upon graduation he workes as an analyst for a global IT company being part of the north & eastern European finance team. His most recent years were spent as sales & marketing manager Americas for global demolition robots manufacturer. He also has experience working as a micro business development volunteer in rural Kenya. He is very excited to be back in Kenya working with rural farmers to improve their farmind activities while also improving the environment.
michael schuster: Michael is graduated from HfG Schwäbisch Gmünd as a Product Designer and is responsible for re:char as a Web- Print- and Productdesigner. His desire to bring change through design started during his projectwork at the IDC Bombay, Indian Institute of Technology Bombay. His final thesis research was about “Farming in Urban Environments” while he designed a vertical garden to grow food installed at windows in urban areas. After his study he left Germany and started a aid project “Snowland Ranag Schoolgarden” in Kathmandu, Nepal. He is very ambitious to work as a Bottom of the Pyramid Designer for re:char.
tom odoyo: A graduate from the University of Nairobi with bsc. In Mechanical Engineering. He has a passionate interest in developing culturally sustainable designs to solve real world problems. Over the years he has been focusing on digital fabrication brought about by fablabs around the world. Tom is skilled in all kind of technical solutions. He built a wind turbine and worked with sanergy to develop an ecosan toilet. He is generally a tinkerer and appreciates tech and design.
Paul Manda: Paul joins re:char as both a field manager and engineer. Paul was born and raised in Bungoma, our Kenyan base of operations. A maize and sugarcane farmer growing up, Paul then attended Moi University to study engineering. Before joining re:char, Paul worked as a lead extension officer for ACON – re:char’s partner organization in Bungoma that specializes in farmer outreach and organic farming methods. Paul also worked at Mumias Sugar Plant as a supervisor in the agricultural engineering department of the company.