Meet the staff that works on the East-West Center's Leadership Program team!
Gretchen Alther
Leadership Program Senior Manager
Gretchen Alther leads the East-West Center’s Leadership Program team, which builds programs that strengthen individual and community leadership for a more peaceful, prosperous, and just Asia-Pacific region. She is expanding the East-West Center’s leadership programs for women, and creating in-person and on-line programs that respond to the unique needs and opportunities of a constantly changing world. Ms. Alther directs the Center’s flagship residential course, the Asia Pacific Leadership Program, and leads other short- and long-term trainings both in Hawai`i and across the region. She designs and delivers curricula that support experiential learning and strategic thinking across a range of topic areas. With over 15 years of experience as an international educator and humanitarian, Ms. Alther infuses her program design with a commitment to equity and to grassroots communities.
Ms. Alther has also worked with Human Rights Education Associates, for which she has designed and delivered e-learning courses for senior international humanitarian and development professionals. As an occasional consultant with the EarthWatch Institute, she facilitates sustainability leadership programs around the world for global corporations. Previously, Ms. Alther designed and managed multimillion-dollar programs to support disaster relief, conflict zone aid, and resilience in marginalized communities in the US, Myanmar, Pakistan, Nepal, Gaza, Colombia, Haiti, and beyond. Ms. Alther is the chair of the board for the Campaign for Peace, Disarmament, and Common Security, and is an advisor to the Institute for Climate and Peace. She earned an MA in Sustainable International Development from the Heller School of Social Policy and Management at Brandeis University, a postgraduate certificate from the East-West Center, and a BA in Latin American Studies and Natural Resources Management from Texas A&M University. Ms. Alther was a 2018 Rotary Peace Fellow and earned a professional certificate in peace and conflict resolution at Chulalongkorn University in Bangkok.
Nathan Lancaster
Senior Program Officer
Nathan Lancaster has over 15 years’ experience facilitating programs and outreach in the fields of international exchange, public affairs and higher education. As part of the East-West Center’s Professional Development Program, he manages awards and coordinates logistics for the Center’s Leadership Program participants. He has extensive and growing experience with the Asia-Pacific region, and has lived, studied and worked in China, Japan and Korea.
Nathan was Assistant Director for Academic Programming at the East Asian Studies Center at The Ohio State University, served as a Program Assistant in the Public Affairs Section at the US Embassy in Seoul, and worked as a marketing manager for the Korea Tourism Organization, South Korea’s national tourism body. Nathan has BAs in both Asian Studies and Japanese from the University of Utah and completed coursework for an MA in East Asian Film from the Korea National University of Arts. He speaks Korean and Japanese.
Philippe Lemonnier
Senior Leadership Education and Development Specialist
Philippe Lemonnier is a Senior Leadership Education & Development Specialist in the EWC’s Leadership Program. Prior to this was a corporate lawyer for 12 years and then went on to become the founder and CEO of Pacific Ventury Corporation, a growing business aiming to help individuals and organizations better understand the world, humanity and tomorrow. He works as a “disruptive tutor”, a human & leadership development specialist in the Asia-Pacific region with extensive experience in human development, human innovation, and leadership.
He worked through a wide range of services including consulting & training programs, executive coaching, content-oriented event management, and producing digital media (podcasts and newsletters). Aiming to produce the most up-to-date, inclusive, unique, and contextual content in the region, he participated in leadership development in French Polynesia and the broad Pacific region for private, public, and non-profit organizations of different size and industries.
Philippe has helped several companies and executives to develop their strategies in an innovative and adaptive way. He has been a mentor for the PRISM startup Incubator in Tahiti, sat as CFO on the board of directors of FrenchTech Polynesie, and is a member of the Franco-New Zealand chamber of commerce, the Island Innovation network, and the TED community.
Cheryl Tokita
Program Officer
Cheryl Tokita serves as Program Officer in the Professional Development Program's Leadership Program, working on programs like the Asia Pacific Leadership Program (APLP) and virtual engagements with the administration and logistical side of program-related activities. She facilitates the application and review processes for the APLP and other Leadership Programs. In addition, she serves as supervisor to the Leadership Program student assistants, manages and creates content for the team's webpages, social media accounts, programmatic and marketing materials through data visualization and graphic design. Prior to becoming a Program Officer, Cheryl’s various roles at the Center included Program Assistant with the Leadership Program, Project Assistant with the Asia Pacific Higher Education Research Partnership (APHERP) and Asian Studies Development Program (ASDP), and an Education Program student assistant working with multiple departments.
She earned a dual-focus history and East Asian Language & Literature (EALL) BA in Asian Studies with a minor in Korean (magna cum laude, Phi Beta Kappa) and a MA in Asian Studies from the University of Hawai'i at Mānoa. Her Masters research was split between two elements of Korean popular culture: the penetration of Korean pop culture into the domestic-oriented Japanese music market, and the effectiveness of Korean national branding through the creation and longevity of soft power resources.
Kris Wee
Program Assistant
Kris Wee is a Program Assistant within the Professional Development Program (PDP) at East-West Center. He has provided administrative, logistic and technical support for multiple teams in PDP, and now resides with the Leadership Program.
Prior to East-West Center, he was part of a small Hawai'i-based consulting team, assisting in leading and managing sustainability projects and organizational change efforts within public and private sectors. Kris spent nine years on active duty in the US Navy as an Operations Specialist. He holds an MA in Global Leadership and Sustainable Development from Hawai'i Pacific University and BS in Mechanical Engineering from Trinity College.
Meet the staff that works on the East-West Center's Leadership Program team!
Gretchen Alther
Leadership Program Senior Manager
Gretchen Alther leads the East-West Center’s Leadership Program team, which builds programs that strengthen individual and community leadership for a more peaceful, prosperous, and just Asia-Pacific region. She is expanding the East-West Center’s leadership programs for women, and creating in-person and on-line programs that respond to the unique needs and opportunities of a constantly changing world. Ms. Alther directs the Center’s flagship residential course, the Asia Pacific Leadership Program, and leads other short- and long-term trainings both in Hawai`i and across the region. She designs and delivers curricula that support experiential learning and strategic thinking across a range of topic areas. With over 15 years of experience as an international educator and humanitarian, Ms. Alther infuses her program design with a commitment to equity and to grassroots communities.
Ms. Alther has also worked with Human Rights Education Associates, for which she has designed and delivered e-learning courses for senior international humanitarian and development professionals. As an occasional consultant with the EarthWatch Institute, she facilitates sustainability leadership programs around the world for global corporations. Previously, Ms. Alther designed and managed multimillion-dollar programs to support disaster relief, conflict zone aid, and resilience in marginalized communities in the US, Myanmar, Pakistan, Nepal, Gaza, Colombia, Haiti, and beyond. Ms. Alther is the chair of the board for the Campaign for Peace, Disarmament, and Common Security, and is an advisor to the Institute for Climate and Peace. She earned an MA in Sustainable International Development from the Heller School of Social Policy and Management at Brandeis University, a postgraduate certificate from the East-West Center, and a BA in Latin American Studies and Natural Resources Management from Texas A&M University. Ms. Alther was a 2018 Rotary Peace Fellow and earned a professional certificate in peace and conflict resolution at Chulalongkorn University in Bangkok.
Nathan Lancaster
Senior Program Officer
Nathan Lancaster has over 15 years’ experience facilitating programs and outreach in the fields of international exchange, public affairs and higher education. As part of the East-West Center’s Professional Development Program, he manages awards and coordinates logistics for the Center’s Leadership Program participants. He has extensive and growing experience with the Asia-Pacific region, and has lived, studied and worked in China, Japan and Korea.
Nathan was Assistant Director for Academic Programming at the East Asian Studies Center at The Ohio State University, served as a Program Assistant in the Public Affairs Section at the US Embassy in Seoul, and worked as a marketing manager for the Korea Tourism Organization, South Korea’s national tourism body. Nathan has BAs in both Asian Studies and Japanese from the University of Utah and completed coursework for an MA in East Asian Film from the Korea National University of Arts. He speaks Korean and Japanese.
Philippe Lemonnier
Senior Leadership Education and Development Specialist
Philippe Lemonnier is a Senior Leadership Education & Development Specialist in the EWC’s Leadership Program. Prior to this was a corporate lawyer for 12 years and then went on to become the founder and CEO of Pacific Ventury Corporation, a growing business aiming to help individuals and organizations better understand the world, humanity and tomorrow. He works as a “disruptive tutor”, a human & leadership development specialist in the Asia-Pacific region with extensive experience in human development, human innovation, and leadership.
He worked through a wide range of services including consulting & training programs, executive coaching, content-oriented event management, and producing digital media (podcasts and newsletters). Aiming to produce the most up-to-date, inclusive, unique, and contextual content in the region, he participated in leadership development in French Polynesia and the broad Pacific region for private, public, and non-profit organizations of different size and industries.
Philippe has helped several companies and executives to develop their strategies in an innovative and adaptive way. He has been a mentor for the PRISM startup Incubator in Tahiti, sat as CFO on the board of directors of FrenchTech Polynesie, and is a member of the Franco-New Zealand chamber of commerce, the Island Innovation network, and the TED community.
Cheryl Tokita
Program Officer
Cheryl Tokita serves as Program Officer in the Professional Development Program's Leadership Program, working on programs like the Asia Pacific Leadership Program (APLP) and virtual engagements with the administration and logistical side of program-related activities. She facilitates the application and review processes for the APLP and other Leadership Programs. In addition, she serves as supervisor to the Leadership Program student assistants, manages and creates content for the team's webpages, social media accounts, programmatic and marketing materials through data visualization and graphic design. Prior to becoming a Program Officer, Cheryl’s various roles at the Center included Program Assistant with the Leadership Program, Project Assistant with the Asia Pacific Higher Education Research Partnership (APHERP) and Asian Studies Development Program (ASDP), and an Education Program student assistant working with multiple departments.
She earned a dual-focus history and East Asian Language & Literature (EALL) BA in Asian Studies with a minor in Korean (magna cum laude, Phi Beta Kappa) and a MA in Asian Studies from the University of Hawai'i at Mānoa. Her Masters research was split between two elements of Korean popular culture: the penetration of Korean pop culture into the domestic-oriented Japanese music market, and the effectiveness of Korean national branding through the creation and longevity of soft power resources.
Kris Wee
Program Assistant
Kris Wee is a Program Assistant within the Professional Development Program (PDP) at East-West Center. He has provided administrative, logistic and technical support for multiple teams in PDP, and now resides with the Leadership Program.
Prior to East-West Center, he was part of a small Hawai'i-based consulting team, assisting in leading and managing sustainability projects and organizational change efforts within public and private sectors. Kris spent nine years on active duty in the US Navy as an Operations Specialist. He holds an MA in Global Leadership and Sustainable Development from Hawai'i Pacific University and BS in Mechanical Engineering from Trinity College.