Background
Recognizing the value of connecting across the globe, the International Association of Family Support Networks (IAFSN) was co-founded by Families Canada, the Family Hubs Network (England), the Family Resource Centre National Forum (Ireland), and the National Family Support Network (United States) in 2024. The IAFSN formalizes international collaborative efforts in the Family Support field, building upon the regular monthly peer sharing meetings and the various co-sponsored events these Networks held together since 2022.
Board of Directors
Fergal Landy
Board President
Republic of Ireland
Fergal is the Chief Executive Officer of the Family Resource Centre National Forum in Ireland, which is dedicated to fostering resilient, trauma-informed, rights-based communities. With extensive expertise in children’s human rights, child protection, and community development, he brings over two decades of leadership in social change. A strong advocate for early intervention and systemic transformation, he combines collaborative approaches, research, and advocacy to enhance services. He holds an LLM in International Law and Human Rights from the University of Galway and a Bachelor of Social Studies in Social Work from Trinity College Dublin.
Octavia Shaw
Board Treasurer
United States
Octavia has more than 20 years of leadership experience in the fields of education, social service, workforce development, and human relations. She is a Returned Peace Corps Volunteer, who previously served in Cameroon. She earned her Bachelor’s degree in Communications, with a minor in Education from Howard University, and her Master’s degree in Instructional Systems Development from the University of Maryland Baltimore County, where she was a Peaceworker Fellow at the Shriver Center.
Zindu Salih
Board Secretary
Canada
Zindu is the President and CEO of Families Canada. Prior to that she was the Director of Operations for several years. She has over 20 years of experience internationally and in Canada in areas such as family support, democratic governance, human rights, and civil society development. Before moving to Canada, she worked with the United Nations Development Program as a Governance Specialist. She holds a Master's degree in International Development and Management from Lund University, Sweden and a Bachelor's degree in Social Anthropology from the University of Waikato, New Zealand.
Maria Kruse
Board Member
Sweden
Maria is a dedicated professional with extensive experience in early preventive work for families and children. Throughout her career she has actively engaged in initiatives that support expectant and small families, fostering healthy development and well-being. She has primarily focused on Family Centers, developing collaborations with various stakeholders to create impactful programs aimed at strengthening parents and enhancing childcare. The Swedish government has highlighted the Family Center she coordinates in Salem as a model program to host study delegations from various countries, including Australia, Japan, the Netherlands, and Ukraine. She is a Board Member of the Association for the Promotion of Family Centers (FFFF) in Sweden. She has a Bachelor's degree in Social Care Science from Karlstad University and is a licensed psychotherapist with a specialization in family therapy.
Staff
Andrew Russo
Andrew has more than three decades of experience in the nonprofit social service sector at the direct service, management, and Board levels, including directing several successful Family Resource Centers (FRCs) working with the Asian community. Recognizing the immense value of bringing stakeholders together to work collaboratively at the systems level to support families, he co-founded and served as co-chair of seven Family Support networks at the neighborhood, city, state, national, and international levels.
During his 13-year tenure as Co-Founder & Director of the National Family Support Network in the United States, he supported the creation of dozens of state networks of FRCs. He effectively engaged legislators and public and private funders to secure and increase funding for these impactful programs. He authored the U.S. federal definition of FRCs that was passed into national legislation, and co-authored and implemented national standards for the Family Support field.
He has leveraged his expertise to develop highly-rated trainings to ensure that families are well-supported through quality practice, trained thousands of people in the field, and provided individualized technical assistance for hundreds of non-profit organizations, networks, foundations, and governments departments.
He has traveled extensively, having visited every inhabited continent multiple times, and lived and worked in Asia. He earned his B.A. in East Asian Languages and Cultures from Columbia University and his M.A. in Pastoral Counseling from Loyola University Chicago.
Global Partner
