Tel: 07586 340 592
Tel: 07586 340 592
Our team is comprised of passionate, skilled, and diverse professionals, each committed to generate positive change in the communities we serve.
Marcella leads the operational and strategic delivery of all DRI activities, driving coordination and partnership across the organisation.
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Marcella is a highly experienced senior executive with over 20 years’ leadership across the charity, public and community sectors. She is known for guiding complex, multi-site organisations through growth, transformation and change, while keeping a clear focus on people and long-term impact.
Throughout her career, Marcella has built a reputation as a thoughtful and trusted leader. She has held senior roles including Head of Operations at The Faith & Belief Forum and Assistant Director at The Conservation Volunteers, working closely with Boards and Executive teams to strengthen governance, financial sustainability and organisational resilience. Her leadership style is inclusive and values-led, with a strong commitment to safeguarding, equity and developing high-performing teams.
Marcella is particularly valued for her calm judgment, collaborative approach and ability to bring people together through periods of complexity and change. She is passionate about creating organisations where both people and ideas can thrive, and where impact is delivered at scale without losing sight of local communities.
Outside of her professional life, Marcella enjoys sea swimming, walking in the Sussex countryside with her family and their dog and spending time in her garden – interests that reflect her deep connection to nature and wellbeing, and which continue to inspire her work.
Aabha leads DRI’s evaluation and impact work, ensuring that projects deliver measurable change for communities and stakeholders.
Aabha is from a city called Tirupur in the southern Indian state of Tamil Nadu. She did her Bachelor’s degree from Azim Premji University in Bengaluru, India, in Economics with a minor in education. She then moved to Brighton to pursue an MSc in Development Economics from the University of Sussex in 2021.
She has previously worked as a researcher for a policy advisory consultancy assessing the gaps in the food security and employment guarantee programmes in India.
Aabha was also part of a helpline to assist inter-state migrant workers from the Indian state of Jharkhand during the pandemic.
She is keen on contributing to work that informs policy and focuses on decision making being inclusive and towards an equitable and just society. Her other interests include learning about anti-caste research and activism.
Aabha is thrilled to be part of an organisation that works on diversity and supports ethnic minority communities. In her free time, she likes to spend time with friends, go swimming and walk around Brighton.
Mudasir coordinates DRI’s research engagement and capacity-building programmes, connecting academic and community priorities through research.
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Originally from Kashmir, Mudasir moved to the United Kingdom in August 2023.
He has a PhD in Social Work. He works at the intersection of academia, policy, and human rights practice. Most recently he has worked with Asian Forum for Human Rights and Development (FORUM-ASIA) and Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF).
At DRI he is keen to work with the members of Ethnic Minority communities especially expanding the domain of Community Research and Training Programmes.
Anna leads DRI’s community engagement and partnership-building efforts, ensuring that community voices are central to all we do.
Anna moved to the UK from China just two months before the onset of COVID-19, and her empathy for the diverse communities here has deepened everyday.
Since settling in the UK, she has gained extensive experience as a community development professional and has also worked as a bilingual advocate and community interpreter for Vandu Languages.
With a background in corporate social responsibility (CSR), she is dedicated to uplifting others and using her knowledge and experiences to empower people.
Nadia leads DRI’s communications, marketing and outward-facing engagement, ensuring our work reaches and resonates with wider audiences.
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Nadia is of Polish nationality and grew up in Belgium. She moved to the UK in 2020 to enrol in university.
Her educational accomplishments include graduating with a Distinction for Media Practice for Development and Social Change at University of Sussex. She completed her bachelor’s in arts at University of Hertfordshire with a Year Abroad in Canada.
At DRI, she is keen to contribute to the work surrounding ethnic minority communities since it expands on the domain of postcolonialism, which she Mastered in.
Aaron plays an active role in developing and delivering training for community researchers, as well as supporting broader community-based research initiatives.
Aaron is the Deputy Director at Vandu Languages, DRI’s sister company, where he focuses on language services, community interpreting, and broader community support.
On behalf of DRI, he also provides Anti-Racism and Inclusion training to local public sector organisations.
Aaron has overseen the development of all the training courses Vandu provides, making him well placed to assist with DRI’s training and development projects.
He is currently enroled on the Open University’s Masters of Business Adminstration.
Jane delivers high quality information and support to the people affected by cancer, including carers and healthcare professionals.
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Jane has a background in the NHS as a dedicated, highly motivated and innovative senior cancer nurse with experience in multiple areas of cancer specialist nursing and cancer rehabilitation.
Currently, she is a public advisor for The Brighton and Sussex Health Research Partnership and part of the Research Engagement Network which aims to increase diversity, inclusion and participation in health and care research to impact underserved communities.
Her previous roles include Inclusion and Engagement Manager for an LGBTQ+ charity in order to inform and influence healthcare, council services and the third sector.
Trained Community Researchers
Bilingual Advocates
Community Interpreters