Ana Catalina Suarez Peña 

Strategy & Innovation Senior Director

Ana Catalina joins GFN after serving as Executive Director of Bancos de Alimentos de Colombia (ABACO) for nearly six years. There she developed and implemented a certification scheme in partnership with the Colombian food banks, led fundraising and food sourcing, and managed resources and projects aimed at the technical and operational strengthening of the Network. Ana serves as the relationship manager and point of contact for food banks in Latin America.

Past Campaigns

Explainer: Virtual Food Banking

Food Banks: An Unsung Hero of Climate Action

“We thought we knew poverty. We were not ready for this.”

On 12 March – the day the World Health Organization declared COVID-19 a pandemic – Ana Catalina Suarez Peña was in São Paulo, working with longtime GFN member Mesa Brasil Sesc. “The first emotion that this situation gave me was fear,” Ana said. “Something is going to happen, but you don’t know what.” She immediately returned home to Bogotá. Four days later the borders closed. 
Back to Staff