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Enable USA ::
About Us >
Founders and Board of Directors
Enable-USA, Inc. was founded by Dr. Phil Johnston. Dr.
Johnston, president, along with Pierre Ferrari, chairman
of the board, form the nucleus of a growing team of
partners who participate in this humanitarian venture.
Founders:
Pierre Ferrari
Pierre has 35 years of business experience ranging from
large consumer package goods organization such as
Coca-Cola (Senior VP, Coca-Cola USA) to smaller
businesses. His business career is best characterized as
having successfully introduced a wide variety of
products and marketing approaches that have changed
business practices and created value for shareholders.
From 1995 on, he focused his energies on a variety of
social issues ranging from International Relief and
Development (Special assistant to the President of
CARE), support for the arts, Conscientious Commerce
(Director of Ben and Jerry’s, Small Enterprise
Assistance Funds, chair of the Advisory Council for The
Emory Ethics Center) as well as the environment (chair
of Businesses and Environmentalist Allied for
Recycling.) He is currently president of “Hot Fudge”
venture capital fund, a community development venture
capital fund whose purpose is to use venture capital to
create jobs, entrepreneurial capacity and wealth that
advance the livelihoods and wealth opportunities of
low-income people and the economies of distressed
communities.
Pierre is also partner in a boutique communication firm,
Tula Communications, whose focus is to be agents for
ideas. Pierre holds a Masters degree in Economics from
The University of Cambridge and a MBA (1976) from
Harvard Business School. He has two sons, reads
voraciously, enjoys squash and golf.
Philip Johnston, Ph.D.
Dr. Philip Johnston is the president and chief executive
officer of Enable-USA. Prior to starting Enable-USA, Dr.
Johnston was the president and CEO of Alternative Fuels
International, Inc., headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia.
Prior to founding AFI, Dr. Johnston worked for 33 years
with CARE, 15 as its president and CEO. Upon retiring in
December of 1996, the board of directors elected Dr.
Johnston president emeritus of CARE.
 In 1963, Dr. Johnston’s career with CARE began in
Greece, where he spent two years helping develop a
nationwide school nutrition program. In Madras, India he
again supervised a school feeding program in which USAID
food commodities were provided to 1.6 million primary
school students in over 24,000 schools. Promoted in
1970, he was transferred to Sierra Leone as country
director. During his five year tenure in the West
African country he developed an extensive farm-to-market
road project that won financial support from the World
Bank, the African Development Bank and USAID. His next
assignment was in New Delhi, India where he served for
two years as the director of development programs.
In 1976, Dr. Johnston was selected to establish and
manage CARE’s first European fundraising office, which
was responsible for soliciting funds for development and
relief programs from individuals and governments. This
work contributed to the establishment of CARE
International, a federation of CARE fundraising and
planning offices in eleven countries, Dr. Johnston
served as its first executive director. In 1980, Dr.
Johnston was elected as executive director of CARE USA
and transferred to New York. In 1989, he was elected by
the board of directors to be CARE’s president.
From October 1992 through March 1993, Dr. Johnston
served as coordinator for humanitarian assistance for
the United Nations in Somalia (UNOSOM) at the request on
the UN Secretary General. Stationed in Mogadishu, he
directed the integration of all humanitarian
organizations with the military in the wake of civil war
and famine. Dr. Johnston was received at the White House
by President Bush and thanked for his accomplishments.
Upon retirement in December of 1996, Dr. Johnston
established Alternative Fuels International, Inc. (AFI)
to continue his interest in helping people in lesser
developed countries. Dr. Johnston feels that the best
assistance is the type that helps people empower
themselves. The work that AFI was doing in Colombia led
to the establishment of Enable-USA, a not-for-profit
organization that works with children in Colombia, South
America.
Enable-USA works with Foundation Corona, a local
Foundation that specializes in the training of micro
entrepreneurs. One of the training units helps displaced
women gain the skills to design and produce greeting
cards. Foundation Corona has asked Enable-USA to develop
a marketing system for the cards in the USA. The cards
are part of the Second Chance program. Dr. Johnston has
established a system of selling the cards to churches,
schools and social groups, which they in turn will sell
to the public for the purpose of raising funds for their
under-funded activities. In this way both parties, the
children in Colombia and the entity that sells the cards
benefit and our social fabric is stronger.
A native of Wellesley, Massachusetts, Dr. Johnston
earned both his bachelor’s and master’s degrees from
Northeastern University of Boston. He later earned his
Ph.D. from the University of Madras, India, and received
an honorary Ph.D. from Northeastern University. Dr.
Johnston served as a trustee of Northeastern University
for 15 years.
Board Of Directors:
Jim
Losi
Jim is currently a doctoral candidate at the University
of California in Berkeley studying political science and
international and area studies focusing on Africa. He is
also a Rotary Peace Fellow.
Prior to attending school, he was a senior executive and
general manager with more than 25 years experience in
building new business ventures and turning around
under-performing ones. He was a key member of a
leadership team that revolutionized the brokerage
industry for the betterment of it customers.
He has extensive international experience with travel to
over 70 countries.
Over the years, he has been on several for profit and
not-for-profit boards including the American Red Cross,
UNCF and Guidestar. He was also the founder and chair of
the foundation for the Prevention of Child Abuse.
Jim lives in the San Francisco Bay Area with his wife of
31 years and his 3 children.
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