Rupert has decades of professional consulting experience in both Southeast Asia and Africa. As a former corporate and commercial attorney he has advised some of the world’s largest companies navigate an unfamiliar regulatory landscape and structure their investments to minimize risk. He has also assisted various development organizations in their regulatory reform initiatives. In the development sector he has advised the Asian Development Bank, World Bank, International Executive Service Corps, the United Nations Capital Development Fund, International Finance Corporation and the Institute of Migration. In the private sector he is proud to have represented ANZ Bank Ltd, Standard Bank PLC, Unilever, Deloitte, Anglo-American PLC, De Beers, Nokia and New Forests Asset Management. He has developed specialist expertise in analyzing and designing policy positions for both private and public sector institutions.

Donna brings over 20 years of experience working with non-profit and development organizations in the US and Asia. She has secured and administered funding for a portfolio of grants across the arts and culture, education, health services, and youth development sectors.

Prior to moving to Laos, she served as the manager for the World Association of Girl Scouts and Girl Guides international visitor centre, Sangam World Centre, located in Pune, India. Recently she held the role of grant administrator for the Traditional Arts and Ethnology Centre’s special project, Securing Cultural Intellectual Property Rights for the Oma of Laos. 

Tia brings many years of financial management to the team. Having served as a Financial Specialist for the US Embassy in Vientiane for many years, he took charge of financial management at MAG and Save the Children in Vientiane where he was responsible for grant management and audit of donor funds from the EU, Japan, Korea, Australia, the US and the UK. He also served as Head of Finance for ANZ Bank (Lao) Co. Ltd before joining the team at Riverstone Consulting.

Sean has worked in higher education and non-profit management in the United States, India, China, and Laos. At Texas A&M International University, he taught literature and writing — including technical writing and document design — and served as Chair of the Department of Language and Literature. In Shanghai, Sean was a member of the Founding Faculty of Xingwei College, the first independent private liberal arts university in China.

After returning to the US in 2016 to resume academic work in New Orleans, Louisiana, he was recruited by the Luang Prabang Film Festival to take on the role of Executive Director. Since early 2019 Sean has led restructuring the organization and in 2020 brought the festival back virtually to Southeast Asian audiences after a two year hiatus. His working experiences in both China and Laos have bridged the public and private sectors.

A native of Laos, Vieng (Vee) lived and worked in the UK for over 10 years as a simultaneous interpreter in healthcare and other contexts. Since returning to Luang Prabang in 2015, Vee has worked on waste reduction and resource-efficiency projects with tourism businesses in the center of the UNESCO World Heritage Town, in addition to developing and operating her own apartment rental business. Starting in 2020, Vee joined the Luang Prabang Film Festival as its Development Coordinator; in that role, she works to build a network of donor and sponsor organizations inside and outside of Laos.