Directors

The Atheist Alliance International Board consists of 4 - 13 Directors elected by the AAI Affiliate Members for two-year staggered terms. No more than one nominee from any Affiliate/Associate Member may be a Director at any time and no more than three Directors may be from any one country. The AAI Board has responsibility and full executive authority for the operations and activities of Atheist Alliance International, subject only to compliance at all times with the provisions of relevant laws, AAI's Bylaws and any policies passed at Board meetings.

All AAI Directors are volunteers.

Officers

President:  Carlos Diaz (Argentina, ArgAtea, term: 2013) - president [at] atheistalliance [dot] org

Carlos Diaz has been the Regional Coordinator for the Buenos Aires Metropolitan Area chapter of the Argentine Atheist Association (Asociación Civil de Ateos en Argentina, better known as ArgAtea) since early 2009. He co-hosted the first Argentine Atheist radio talk show (Nuevos Ayres Críticos), in a Country where the State still maintains an official religion, during 2009. As Regional Coordinator he spoke at the Second Argentine Atheist Congress in April 2010. He spoke about the Catholic Church and the Argentine State at the AAI North American Atheist Convention in Montreal in October 2010. Carlos joined the AAI Board in June 2011.

Languages: Spanish, English, French, German and Portuguese

Vice President:  Victor Franco (Australia, term: 2013) - vicepresident [at] atheistalliance [dot] org

Victor Franco has always been atheist and committed to promoting secularism and stemming the influence of religion on public policy. He had a resolutely atheistic and irreligious upbringing thanks to the influence of his father, who came to Australia as a refugee having fled his native Spain in the 1940s to avoid further imprisonment for his libertarian and secular activism. Victor joined AAI and the Atheist Foundation of Australia in 2010 shortly after attending the Global Atheist Convention in Melbourne. Victor has held executive and general management positions in the Australian public sector and has been chief of staff and senior adviser to various elected representatives. Victor has also worked in academia and held various positions on boards in the not-for-profit sector. He has an MBA and degrees in History and Philosophy of Science and Economics. He is currently a stay-at-home dad caring for his two-year old twin boys.  Victor joined the AAI Board in June 2011 and was Membership Director for the following year.

Languages: English, Spanish

Treasurer:  Stuart Bechman (US, term: 2013) - treasurer [at] atheistalliance [dot] org

Stuart Bechman has been active in the US freethought community for 15 years. He holds an accounting degree and has served as treasurer for a number of not-for-profit organizations over the course of his career. Stuart has served on the boards of the Secular Coalition for America, Americans United for Separation of Church & State and his local chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union. He has also worked with the (US) Institute of Humanist Studies, and is a past president of (the former) Atheist Alliance International (2008-2010).  Stuart joined the AAI Board in June 2011.

Languages: English, Spanish

Secretary: Jeremy Shepperd (US, term: 2013) - secretary [at] atheistalliance [dot] org

Jeremy grew up as one of Jehovah's Witnesses, and spent a year as a full-time minister. He left the religion in 2005, becoming an agnostic and researching theistic claims. Two years later, in 2007, he realized he was an atheist. In 2009, Jeremy joined the United States Army, serving as an Infantryman and deploying to Afghanistan from 2010 - 2011. Jeremy is a father of two children, is involved in the Fort Campbell chapter of Military Atheists and Secular Humanists (M.A.S.H), and supports Father's Rights. Jeremy joined the AAI board in October 2012.

Languages: English

Membership Director:  Tim Larmour (Canada, term: 2014) - membership [at] atheistalliance [dot] org

Tim was born into a Catholic family but was never able to fully resolve the requirements of faith with the reality he observed and ended up being a "quiet" atheist for most of his adult life.  In 2010, Tim came out and attended his first atheist conference and he has been increasingly active since, joining several humanist and atheist organizations in Canada, the USA and internationally.  Tim is a recently retired father of two who keeps active with his involvement in secular organizations as well as local and national politics.  He is convinced that non-religious rational thinkers need to become more organized and more actively involved in their communities if there is to be any real chance of basic human rights being respected for all people.  Tim joined the AAI Board in May 2012.

Languages: English, French

Secular World Representative:  Christine Shellska (Canada, term: 2014) - secretary [at] atheistalliance [dot] org

Christine is currently a PhD candidate (ABD) at the University of Calgary, Department of Communication and Culture, Faculty of Arts. Her research involves studying the rhetorical means by which the intelligent design movement translates religious claims into a form that convinces many to believe it is scientific discourse. She is active in several secular organizations, and in 2011, she prepared a successful application to represent the university’s students, staff and faculty who identify as non-religious, bringing together local, national and international secular groups to endorse the establishment of a Secular Humanist Liaison position at the University of Calgary’s Faith and Spirituality Centre (formerly Multi-Faith Chaplaincy). She also runs a small business, offering a repertoire of specialized graphic design services, and extensive experience in marketing, advertising, corporate communications, and public relations. Christine sees atheism as a site of political engagement; she believes that many of the threats to environmental sustainability, global peace, and social justice stem from irrationalism and superstition, and that reason and compassion are the requisite tools to promote a reality-based understanding of our world, and to counter ignorance, fear and hatred.  Christine joined the AAI Board in May 2012.

Languages: English

General Board members

Rene Hartmann (Germany, IBKA, term: 2014)

René Hartmann has been serving different positions within IBKA since 1997. He has been the AAI representative of IBKA since 2002. Currently, he is the first chairman of IBKA, with areas of responsibility including press work, website maintenance and social media. He is also editor of IBKA’s newsletter.  René joined the AAI Board in June 2011.

Languages: German, English

Richard Morris (US, term: 2014)

Richard W. Morris, a lawyer licensed in two U.S. states (Arizona, active, and California, inactive) and the United Kingdom of England and Wales (non-practicing), is a member of Mensa, a former teacher and adjunct professor in economics. He holds a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration with a major in economics, Juris Doctor and Doctor of Philosophy in Business Administration. During his half-century in aviation (airline transport pilot, flight and ground instructor licenses), he flew as pilot-in-command (captain) in some 40 countries on four continents. Richard's legal career began as a prosecutor and then criminal defense counsel before he limited his practice to civil matters. His published credits include articles in the San Diego Realtor magazine, San Diego Mensan, American Ostrich, The Arizona Journal, American Atheist, Sun Life Magazine, Playboy, Truth Seeker, Art World News, and Secular World. He was also a columnist for the Page (Arizona) newspaper, "Page USA, and wrote an article for the Arizona Republic, Travel Section." Richard coauthored The Art Fraud Virus with Richard W. Stevens. His latest book is God on Trial, and he is now working on his next novel If Abe Had Been Honest.  Richard joined the AAI Board in May 2012.

Languages: English, Spanish

Alexandre Shimono (Brazil, term: 2014)

A graduate in computer engineering from the University of São Paulo, Alexandre Shimono is an artificial inteligence, technology and science enthusiast. His disbelief in the supernatural increased as his understanding of what science stands for and the way it works grew. As he grew older and noticed how religion still has political influence, standing against science and individual freedom most of the time, his decision to fight for human rights and reason against blind belief was quite easy.  Alexandre joined the AAI Board in May 2012.

Alexandre is also member of AAI's News Team (Brazil) .

Languages: Portuguese, English, German

Tanya Smith (Australia, term: 2014)

Tanya Smith joined the board of (the former) Atheist Alliance International in 2010 and was part of the transition team to establish Atheist Alliance International and Atheist Alliance of America as separate organisations through 2011.  Tanya was one of the principal co-ordinators of the 2010 Global Atheist Convention in Melbourne and has been a member of the Atheist Foundation of Australia’s public relations team since 2009. By profession Tanya is an investment banker specialising in mergers & acquisitions, and she has worked at a number of global investment banks in Australia and Europe.  Tanya joined the AAI Board in June 2011 and was President for the following year. 

Tanya is also AAI's General Manager.

Languages: English

Ebou Sohna (Gambia, Gambia Secular Assembly, term: 2014)

Ebou Sohna is the founder of the Gambia Secular Assembly and its current President. He became a skeptic of Islam - the religion of his parents and ancestors - at an early age.   He owes this largely to his almost secular upbringing by an almost non-religious father, a Second World War veteran who had few of society's religious and superstitious beliefs and practices.  Ebou has three children - one daughter and two sons - and has given them the best of a dogma and creed free upbringing.  Ebou puts all his efforts into raising an independent and secular minded family.  As a local saying of the Gambia Secular Society goes, 'charity begins at home'.  Ebou joined the AAI Board in May 2012.

Ebou is also member of AAI's News Team (Africa).

Languages: English, Wollof, Mandinka

Rupert Young (UK, Atheism UK, term: 2013)

Fortunately, Rupert Young did not have a religious upbringing and, so, was not exposed to the doctrinal brainwashing from which much of the world has suffered. As a result he has been able to cultivate an open and inquiring mind based upon rationality, reason and evidence. He considers the dangers to individuals and society of believing things without any basis are clear and his goal is to actively challenge religious faith and its inherent invalidity. Rupert has been interested and peripherally involved in the humanist and atheist movements for a couple of decades, though has recently taken a more active role as a co-founder and current board member of AtheismUK. He takes great interest in human rights and the rational, scientific approach to understanding. Currently working in Information Technology his academic background is in Artificial Intelligence and Robotics Vision; in which he maintains an active interest.  Rupert joined the AAI Board in June 2011.

Languages: English