Staff + Board

Rebecca Dunn, Executive Director

Rebecca (Becca) is the Executive Director of Fair Trade LA, a nonprofit that officially made Los Angeles the largest Fair Trade City in North America and the fourth largest in the world. She and the previous Executive Director Elisha Chan host the FAIR Talks Podcast: educating everyday people for extraordinary change.  

Becca brings over 20 years of experience to her role. With a distinguished career working with various non-profits, she has dedicated her professional life to combating human trafficking, supporting fair trade initiatives, and promoting social enterprises. Her deep passion for creating a better world through Fair Trade is evident in her extensive background and unwavering commitment.

Becca's career includes a significant tenure at Ten Thousand Villages, the world's first Fair Trade restailer, where she spent the past 8 years. Her global perspective is enriched by her travels to 35 countries, which has profoundly influenced her understanding and advocacy for fair trade practices.

Becca and her husband Kris are the proud parents to their beautiful son, Callen. Her family life adds to her motivation and dedication to making a positive impact through her work.

Elisha Chan, Advisor

Elisha is the founder of Impactful Missions, a nonprofit dedicated to ending poverty through job creation, education, and empowerment. She is also the former Executive Director of Fair Trade LA and co-host of the FAIR Talks Podcast: educating everyday people for extraordinary change. She found her passion while traveling on many Haiti trips as a student at UCLA and started her social enterprise, Impactful Market, six months after she graduated. She currently works with many artisans and producers throughout Haiti, while giving back to a small village called Fond Doux, Haiti. She has established a Scholarship Program that has given over 345 scholarships, sending underserved youth to school, from preschool to university. Now, she is building a Leadership Academy and Trade School in Haiti from the grounds up. A passionate advocator of establishing long-term solutions to break the cycle of poverty.

Brittany Skiles, Board Chair

Brittany's journey into fair trade advocacy began as a student at Vanguard University of Southern California, where she promoted fair trade as a way to combat labor trafficking while working at the Global Center for Women and Justice. During a trip to Kenya, she witnessed how artisans employed by a company paying fair wages and maintaining high ethical standards created generational change through poverty alleviation. This experience solidified her commitment to supporting fair trade initiatives and advocating for ethical trade practices ever since. She has been a volunteer with Fair Trade LA since 2018 and was part of the team that campaigned to make LA the largest designated fair-trade city in the US!

Elena Alcerro, Secretary

Elena’s journey toward fair trade advocacy began during her travels to the Dominican Republic, where she witnessed the harsh exploitation of Haitian sugarcane workers living in Bateyes. Deeply moved by their difficult conditions, she resolved to take action and founded HUMAIN, a nonprofit dedicated to improving the lives of sugarcane workers across the Dominican Republic. As the Fair Trade Representative for Loyola Marymount University (LMU) and Co-President of the Oxfam America Club, Elena works to educate the LMU community about fair trade. She is passionate about showing how everyday purchases on and off campus can create lasting, positive impacts on people and communities around the world.

Erin Wallace, Treasurer

Erin is a CPA who continues to manage bookkeeping clients from the business management company where she began her career. Her professional background includes supporting teacher trainings with SCOE and UCLA, as well as working for SRA/McGraw-Hill, providing educational products to LAUSD. Passionate about social equality, climate issues, education, and combating homelessness and poverty, Erin channels her values into both her professional and personal pursuits. In her free time, she enjoys photography, design, genealogy, and exploring documentary films.

Amrita Thadani, Board of Directors 

Amrita began her career as a fashion stylist right after college, eventually establishing herself as an independent costume designer for films and advertising in India. Immersed in the country’s rich textile heritage and cotton industry, she developed a deep appreciation for fabric craftsmanship. After more than a decade of professional experience, she moved to New York and studied fashion at Parsons. While working as a stylist, she also volunteered with local refugee groups, building meaningful relationships with women navigating challenges like housing insecurity, cultural adjustment, and employment barriers. Inspired by these experiences, she founded NEOCOCO in Fall 2017 — a mission-driven apparel company that empowers refugee and displaced women through the art of hand embroidery.

Ashley Park, Board of Directors

Ashley is originally from Arkansas and holds a degree in International Studies. She moved to Los Angeles in 2021 after living in Colorado. She ran B Twentyfour Café in Lincoln Heights for two years before stepping back to pursue an MSA with the goal of becoming a CPA and making a greater impact in the business world. Passionate about fair trade, environmental protection, and sustainable livelihoods, Ashley finds joy in surfing, trail running, and connecting deeply with nature, people, and her Christian faith.

Joan Harper, Board of Directors 

Joan co-founded Fair Trade LA in 2005 and has been a dedicated advocate for social justice and global solidarity ever since. She worked with the Office of Life, Justice, and Peace of the Archdiocese of Los Angeles for 16 years, promoting domestic anti-poverty and Fair Trade programs. Holding an MBA from Loyola Marymount University and prior corporate experience, Joan brings a strong business perspective to her advocacy work. Her global engagement includes travels to India, Thailand, Ghana, El Salvador, and Honduras with Catholic Relief Services, where she witnessed development programs in agriculture, micro-finance, and fair trade. Travels also include visiting Fair Trade artisan cooperatives in Palestine, learning directly from artisans about their craft and their stories.

Karina Toro, Board of Directors

Karina is a passionate high school student committed to advancing the Fair Trade movement. Currently leading efforts to have her school Fair Trade Certified, she is dedicated to raising awareness and empowering her peers to make ethical and sustainable choices. Karina envisions a brighter, more equitable future for her generation and hopes to inspire other young people to take action and drive meaningful change in their communities.

Laurel Averill, Board of Directors 

Laurel has been actively involved with Fair Trade LA since 2010, creating her role as “Boutique Coordinator” to organize pop-up Fair Trade boutiques throughout Los Angeles County. She also serves as the Los Angeles representative for Gifts of Nature, supporting global artisans through sustainable income opportunities. Currently, she manages Ten Thousand Villages Pasadena, a nonprofit fair trade retailer partnering with artisans in over 25 countries to ensure fair wages and safe working conditions. Laurel’s passion for economic justice and ethical commerce continues to drive her advocacy and leadership in the fair trade movement.

Michelle Chavez, Board of Directors

Michelle is the Co-Founder of The Tote Project, a fair trade accessories brand that gives back to support human trafficking survivors. She's been writing and speaking about ethical fashion across the country for the past ten years, and has advocated alongside Fair Trade LA as a business member for even longer. She also served on the board of Ten Thousand Villages Pasadena as the Marketing Chair, where she helped organize events and curate social media. Michelle lives in Southern California with her husband, two children and rescue pup Jean Valjean.

Rebecca Devereaux, Board of Directors

Rebecca is a dedicated advocate for educational access and economic empowerment, focusing on marginalized communities, particularly young people and women in developing countries. With a background in higher education, nonprofit leadership, and community engagement, she has been involved with Fair Trade LA since the late 2000s and now serves as a Board Member. Her passion for equity, shaped by her studies in Ghana and her doctoral research on under-resourced schools, fuels her commitment to fostering partnerships, supporting volunteers, and promoting global solidarity through fair trade principles and economic justice.

Robin Tolkan-Doyle, Board of Directors

Robin is a 25-year beauty industry veteran with successes as a writer, editor, public relations/media expert, and entrepreneur. Following a bucket list trip to India, Robin witnessed firsthand how Western consumerism impacts developing nations – and decided she didn’t want to perpetuate this cycle any longer. She fueled her passion for beauty, love of traveling and exploring global cultures, unparalleled ability to cultivate relationships, and media savvy to found Beautyologie.com, an online beauty marketplace catering to consumers who want their dollars to make a difference. She recently launched a fair trade beauty brand called WOO World of Oil to streamline skincare options and shed light on each product’s origins and makers. Outside of work, Robin remains active in her community and enjoys supporting Fair Trade initiatives with Fair Trade Los Angeles. She loves spending time with her family and continues to jump at every opportunity to check additional countries off her bucket list.