Our Team
The RI team includes researchers, facilitators, gender specialists, and systems thinkers with experience across global food systems. We partner with universities, NGOs, and private sector organizations to bring responsible innovation to practice.
Erin J McGuire PhD
Director (She/Her)
Erin McGuire is the Director of Responsible Innovations, where she leads international research efforts through connecting global experts to advance responsible and inclusive food system innovations. She holds a PhD in Agricultural Innovation Systems and an MS in International Agricultural Development from the University of California, Davis. Previously, she served as Director of the USAID Feed the Future Innovation Lab for Horticulture at UC Davis overseeing multi-country fruit and vegetable research across Africa, Central America, and Southeast Asia. Dr. McGuire worked for US Congress on sustainable agriculture policy and co-created GenderUp. Her work focuses on nutrition and healthy diets and scaling equitable food systems solutions.
Rashmi Ekka
Chief Operating Officer (She/Her)
Rashmi Kiran Ekka is a builder and strategist at the nexus of agriculture, finance, and innovation. With 17 years of global experience, she has scaled high-impact programs that cut food loss, grow inclusive agricultural market systems, and strengthen local capacity across Africa, Asia, and Latin America. An MBA from UC Davis, she fuses entrepreneurial thinking with development expertise to unlock capital, catalyze partnerships, and deliver measurable results in complex systems.
Ashley Mutiso
Inclusive Innovation Specialist (She/Her)
Ashley Mutiso is a gender inclusion and management consultant who helps organizations design and scale innovations that are both inclusive and climate-smart. With experience working across 13+ countries and partnerships with global institutions, she brings deep expertise in GenderUp facilitation, gender equity, and climate resilience in agriculture and food systems.
Naalamle Amissah
Agrifood Systems Value Chain Expert, GenderUp Specialist (She/Her)
Naalamle Amissah is a horticulturist dedicated to harnessing the potential of underutilized and economically significant crops. Holding a BSc. in Agriculture from the University of Science and Technology, Ghana, and an MS and PhD in Horticulture from Cornell University, USA, she has devoted her career to tackling plant propagation challenges and developing solutions for food security and climate resilience in Ghana. When she’s not immersed in research, she finds joy in growing ornamental flowers, exploring botanical gardens, and exchanging knowledge that bridges science and tradition.
Eva Valencia
Sustainability Strategist (She/Her)
Eva has been passionate about sustainability to guarantee human rights within planetary boundaries for +10 years now. She has a MSc. in Environmental Law, Policy, and Management. She has done work on innovation platforms in Africa, Mesoamerica and Europe. She has been specializing in designing innovations, and co-creating sustainability innovation strategies and processes that individuals and organizations can use to better address food, water and climate change challenges.
Dr. Freda Elikplim Asem
Agrifood Systems Value Chain Strategist, GenderUp Specialist (She/Her)
Freda is a Senior Lecturer at the Department of Agricultural Economics and Agribusiness, University of Ghana in Accra, Ghana. She holds a PhD in Development Studies from University of Ghana, and an MSc. in Agricultural and Resource Economics from University of Alberta, Edmonton, Canada. Freda was also the Regional Coordinator for the West Africa Hub for the UC Davis Feed the Future Innovation Lab for Horticulture. Her research focuses on agricultural marketing, agribusiness, agrifood systems and agricultural value chain analyses. She also has a vast experience in project and fund management from managing projects by World Bank, AGRA, USAID, BMGF, IFPRI, GIZ and Australia Awards.