Jeffrey Phillips serves as chair of the Board of Trustees (BoT) of Village Focus International (VFI), leading the board’s oversight of VFI’s work to combat human trafficking, secure land rights, and expand opportunities for vulnerable populations.  A member of VFI’s board since 2013, Phillips brings more than two decades of experience in international development, nonprofit leadership, philanthropy, governance, and cross-sector collaboration.

Phillips is director of policy and international partnerships at The Annenberg Foundation Trust at Sunnylands, where he develops partnerships and designs and facilitates results-oriented retreats and policy dialogues addressing pressing domestic and global challenges. His work brings together senior government officials and leaders from the nonprofit, philanthropic, academic, and private sectors to engage in ambitious problem solving.

Prior to joining Sunnylands, Phillips held several leadership positions with the International Republican Institute (IRI), a nonprofit dedicated to advancing democracy and good governance. As IRI’s resident country director for China and Laos programs, he was based in Hong Kong and worked with civil society leaders and organizations in Laos and across Asia. Earlier in his career, Phillips served as a legislative aide to former U.S. Congressman Mark Kirk.

Phillips holds a master’s degree in international relations and economics from the Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies, a bachelor’s degree in political science from the University of Michigan, and an executive certificate in facilitation from Georgetown University.

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