Melinda Hutchings is an “Interagency” subject matter expert for the U.S. Army and the U.S. Marine Corps conducting disaster response/humanitarian assistance training scenarios in live interagency exercises prior to deployment to “fragile states.” Following almost a decade of experience as a humanitarian aid worker in Africa; Somalia, Rwanda-Congo, Tanzania, Ethiopia and Mozambique, Melinda spent six years (2004-2011) in southern and eastern Afghanistan working for the U.S. Department of State and the U.S. Agency for International Development conducting Governance and Stabilization interventions to strengthen the Afghan Government in countering the insurgent threat. Melinda participated in President Obama’s Afghanistan “Civilian Surge” operation in 2009 working jointly with the U.S. Military at the lowest level of the Afghan Government’s reach, the District/Community level. In her last tour at U.S. Embassy Kabul, Melinda represented the Embassy in numerous joint Civilian/Military research projects to “measure the effect” of U.S. Government humanitarian assistance investments in Afghanistan.
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