The ILCA Board of Directors has decision-making powers regarding matters of policy, direction, strategy, and governance of the organization. They steer the organization toward a sustainable future by adopting sound governance and financial management policies, and ensuring adequate resources.
Pakistan
Sabeen Adil currently lives in Lagos, Nigeria and is originally from Islamabad, Pakistan. She has experience working in lactation, pediatric, and maternity clinics and hospitals in United Arab Emirates (UAE), Pakistan, and Nigeria. Sabeen established the first lactation clinic in Pakistan, and worked to achieve recognition of lactation consultants as medical professionals in that country. She is currently a private practice lactation consultant in Nigeria.
Brooklyn, New York, United States
Tova Ovits graduated from Pace University with a BA in English. While breastfeeding her youngest child, she read The Womanly Art of Breastfeeding and discovered how much she didn’t know while nursing her older kids. Tova has been dedicated to helping mothers and babies breastfeed ever since. She volunteered with an international breastfeeding peer support organization and became an International Board Certified Lactation Consultant to help even more families enjoy a healthy, happy beginning.
Austin, Texas, United States
Janet Jones is a proud mother of three breastfed children, an IBCLC, and the CEO and Co-Owner of The Breastfeeding Success Company. Breastfeeding Success is the exclusive provider of lactation services for a network of seven hospitals in Central Texas, US. Janet’s vision for ILCA is to focus on the creation of formal career ladders with the partnerships between non-profits, NGOs, government agencies, and community-based peer counseling programs. She believes establishing career ladders for all lactation support providers from diverse backgrounds is one way to further ensure ongoing quality lactation care in marginalized communities and build skill sets to overcome systemic barriers.
Lanham, Maryland, United States
Mudiwah A. Kadeshe has more than 25 years of experience in women’s health nursing. Informed by her own birth experiences, she entered the profession wanting to support women in their birthing choices and became a certified childbirth educator and an International Board Certified Lactation Consultant to increase her ability to reach families. Mudiwah established and directed a lactation resource center at a tertiary care medical system hospital that facilitated more than 3000 deliveries per year,. She currently is a community based lactation consultant in one of the most poverty stricken wards in Washington, D.C. and oversees the peer counselor services through the Children’s National East of the River Lactation Support Center. She is currently the Vice President, Program Manager, and lead facilitator for grant-based projects for D.C. Breastfeeding Coalition.
Schull, Co. Cork, Ireland
Geraldine Cahill has been working as a private practice lactation consultant in Cork, Ireland, providing home and Skype visits since 2007. She also tutors for a mother support organisation in breastfeeding and childbirth education, and has been a breastfeeding counsellor since 1993 with the same organisation, Cuidiú. She has developed a Training of Trainer course in Lactation Management for Health Care Professionals who provide training in their own work facilities. She has spoken at many Association of Lactation Consultants of Ireland (ALCI) and Cuidiú conference on topics ranging from informed decision making and counseling to anatomy and physiology. She was the ILCA/WABA Chris Mulford Fellow in 2014 and spent time working with WABA in Penang and met with IBCLC’S there as well as providing peer support training. She was a part of the European Panel at the 2014 Lactation Summit, co-hosted by ILCA, IBLCE®, and LEAARC. She has served on the membership and education committees of ILCA since 2010.
Jarvis, Ontario, Canada
Stephanie George is an IBCLC and Aboriginal Midwife from Jarvis, Ontario, Canada. She is passionate about honoring and empowering all women through her healthcare practice. She also advocates for this platform through her roles on the National Aboriginal Council of Midwives, the Baby-Friendly Initiative Strategy of Ontario, and the Expert Panel of the Registered Nurses Association of Ontario. She hopes to continue this important work as a Board Member at ILCA, specifically through increasing access to education for lactation consultants around the world. Stephanie has served ILCA in the past as a member of the Conference Program Task Force.
Bandar Baru Bangi, Selangor, Malaysia
Nor Kamariah Mohamad Alwi resides in Bandar Baru Bangi, Selangor, Malaysia. She created the online breastfeeding support forum susuibu.com in 2004 and is a co-founder and President of Malaysian Breastfeeding Peer Counselors. She is on the Local Governance Task Force Coordinator for World Alliance for Breastfeeding Action (WABA). Kamariah is working with IBCLCs to establish a Malaysian Lactation Consultant Association. She is currently a private practice lactation consultant.
Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
Iona Macnab is the co-founder of iLactation Online Breastfeeding Conferences, a global education platform offering continuing education credits for health professionals. She was a Le Leche League (LLL) Leader in Japan (13 years) and Australia (6 years), as well as the LLL Regional Administrator for Asia, Africa and Middle East (7 years). Currently, Iona is the Conference Coordinator for Lactation Consultants for Australia and New Zealand (LCANZ) and ILCA’s Professional Development Committee Chair, in addition to her responsibilities with iLactation.
