Brief Resumes of Current Board Members

Stephen I. Feher, President and Executive Director
Stephen I. Feher is the founder of the Sustainable Community Development Institute. SCDI is the embodiment of his vision and commitment to dedicate his extensive experience in community development, in private business and in science and engineering to furthering the cause of sustainable community development worldwide.

Prior to founding SCDI, Mr. Feher was Community Development Advisor for Newmont Mining Corporation at the Batu Hijau Mine in Sumbawa, Indonesia, then the world’s largest start-up mining operation, a more than $2 billion investment. His role there was to develop a comprehensive strategic plan for the company's community development program with a $5 million annual budget. He was instrumental in the establishment and organization of a community development foundation to carry out this plan, including the recruitment and training of local management and staff to take over and run the program. He has also supervised the planning, design and construction of housing for over 10,000 temporary and permanent workers and managed environmental protection requirements of this huge mine during the first two years of his four year stay in Indonesia, working for Fluor Daniel International.

Mr. Feher worked more than 10 years in community development prior to going to Indonesia. He managed self-help home building projects in Mexico and built affordable housing in Southern California in association with various nonprofit organizations, such as Habitat for Humanity and Esperanza International. In 1993, he founded the Rural Area Nonprofit Community Housing Organization (RANCHO), which he managed as its Executive Director for four years, developing affordable housing for migrant farm workers in California.

In addition to his community development experience, Mr. Feher has a diverse business background. As President of a California-based real estate development company, Prime Industries, Inc., he gained much environmental and public policy experience. Earlier, as CEO of the International Housing Company, Ltd. of London, UK, with construction and manufacturing operations in Africa and the Middle East, he became familiar with conditions in the Third World, where he worked and lived from the mid-70s to mid-80s.

Mr. Feher pioneered industrial housing technology development as Chief Engineer for Material Systems Corporation (MSC). He directed the company’s development program of a unique building system for housing construction using aerospace materials and manufacturing technology under the Operation Breakthrough Program sponsored by HUD in the early 1970s. He has managed the demonstration construction of more than 200 housing units in Breakthrough.

His broad professional experience started in the aerospace industry during the early 1960s at the Boeing Aircraft Company as a design engineer. Later he participated in NASA’s manned space programs and military missile programs research and development at Whittaker R&D.

Mr. Feher has a strong academic background with a Bachelor of Science Degree in Aerospace Engineering from West Virginia University (1961) and a Master of Science Degree in Engineering Sciences from the University of California in San Diego (1967), where he also undertook Ph.D. studies in aero-thermodynamics.


Elisabeth D. Feher, Vice President and Treasurer
Elisabeth Feher brings 25 years of banking experience to SCDI and has been responsible for the company’s financial and administrative activities since it’s formation. She has worked for several major California banks in positions ranging from customer service, accounts management, lending and auditing. She was named to her position as Vice President and elected as a Member of the Board of Directors in 2006 and assumed the role of Treasurer in 2007.

Throughout her marriage to Stephen, Elisabeth has played an active part in her husbands’ work. She was a hands-on participant in his projects with Habitat for Humanity and Esperanza International in Tijuana and San Diego in the 70’s and 80’s. She was also his close adviser and confidant during their fours years in Indonesia, where she assisted with community development programs for the Batu Hijau mining project on the remote island of Sumbawa.


Peter L. Gray, Esq. – Secretary and General Council
Peter Gray is a partner in the McKenna Long & Aldridge, LLP, Washington, D.C. Office, where his practice involves environmental counseling and litigation. Mr. Gray received his B.S. in 1979 in chemistry from the University of Maryland and his M.S. in 1982 in environmental science and J.D. in 1985 from The George Washington University. He joined the law firm in 1985. Mr. Gray is experienced in all manners of hazardous waste regulations and litigations. He has represented clients as both plaintiff and defendant under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act (Superfund). He also has a diverse Washington, D.C.-based regulatory practice. He regularly prepares comments on and meets with U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) officials in connection with EPA rulemakings. Mr. Gray is a past co-chair for the D.C. Bar’s International Law Section’s Committee on Energy, Environment and Minerals.


Gary MacDonald
Since the early '90s, Gary MacDonald has helped clients on four continents engage with communities undergoing complex social change. A former journalist, he has also provided senior counsel in the area of corporate social responsibility to a wide range of clients, including extractive resource and development companies working in developing economies. He was the first Director of Social Development with Newmont Mining Corporation, where he was instrumental in developing the company's global policies in the areas of human rights and community engagement. He has direct experience as a line manager in extractive projects encountering conflict.

A principal of Monkey Forest Consulting, Ltd., he has served on the boards of a variety of non-profit organizations, such as Tradeworks, a non-profit specializing in training for youth-at-risk, as well as Bolivia’s Inti Raymi Foundation. He has contributed to UN-led initiatives such as the Global Compact working group on the role of business in conflict zones and continues to participate in the International Peace Academy’s study of how business can contribute to, ameliorate or help recover from conflict situations.


Timothy McLaughlin
Timothy McLaughlin is a principal of Monkey Forest Consulting, Ltd, and specializes in working with multinational oil, gas and mining companies, helping them develop and improve company policies, strategies and procedures to obtain and maintain a social license to operate. His scope of work has included developing new corporate policies and practices to improve risk assessment strategies, conflict resolution and human rights; advising clients on global developments in corporate social responsibility trends and their potential impact on company operations and reputations; developing community engagement, sustainable community development/gift strategies; and developing strategic partnerships with NGOs and other organizations. He has additionally advised on public relations policies and helped develop crisis management plans. His work has involved operations in North and South America, Southeast Asia, Central Asia, and West Africa. Mr. McLaughlin began his consulting career in Jakarta, Indonesia in 1998, working with Assessments Group Indonesia, the premier security and risk consulting company in that country. He is a former U.S. Foreign Service Officer, and served in Indonesia and the Philippines. Mr. McLaughlin undertook graduate studies in international economics, international security and national defense studies at Johns Hopkins University, School of Advanced International Studies in Washington, D.C. He is a 1984 graduate of Oregon State University with Bachelor of Arts degrees in Political Science and Japanese Studies.


Robert C. K. Valtz
Mr. Robert C.K. Valtz is a retired business executive and government official. He currently lives in France, UK and US with his wife Marie-Claire. He graduated from Harvard with honors AB in 1958 and with highest honors MBA in 1961.

His business career includes building two optical retail chains in the U.S. He founded the second of these, Frame-n-Lens Optical, in 1980; when sold in 1998 it operated 285 stores, a large eyeglass factory, and employed over 1,100 people. Previously, he served as CEO of the Material Systems Corporation, Escondido, California, where he managed an attempt to introduce a new technology for high-quality low-cost prefabricated housing. Mr. Valtz was also President and CEO of Litton UHS, a multi-plant division of Litton Industries manufacturing material-handling equipment and large integrated systems; company was losing large sums when Mr. Valtz took over, returned it to substantial profitability within two years.

His government service started as Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense, Systems Analysis, the Pentagon; built a staff of 50 professionals analyzing a wide variety of military proposals for Secretary of Defense McNamara and, later, Secretary Clifford. Mr. Valtz was decorated for his efforts. He followed Mr. McNamara to the World Bank in Washington, as Deputy Director for Planning and Programming. At President McNamara’s request built a program planning and budgeting system for the World Bank, comparable to the techniques used in the Pentagon.

Mr. and Mrs. Valtz are the private funding source behind SCDI’s SME Loan Program described earlier. To date, they have contributed over $45,000 to the program in the form of a no-interest, no-recourse loan. They take an active role in advising SCDI on the conduct of the loan program.


George H. Wood
Mr. George H. Wood is a Certified Environmental Professional with 26-years’ experience in the public and private sector. His participation in the burgeoning environmental field has provided Mr. Wood with an understanding of the need for balance to consider natural and human environments. The information needed to adequately assess this balance has increased dramatically, and the factors that affect this balance are more intricate. Mr. Wood’s expertise is reflected in his involvement in the analysis and successful resolution of complex issues. Mr. Wood’s areas of focus are policy analysis, conflict resolution, land use management, wetland ecology, and coastal management.

Mr. Wood is a member of the National Association of Environmental Professionals (NAEP) and elected to the Board of Directors. Mr. Wood serves as Chair of the NAEP International; NAEP Business Planning; and NAEP ISO/NEPA/Sustainable Development Committees. Mr. Wood represented NAEP in an environmental contingency to Russia and to the President’s Council on Environmental Quality for the Committee to Increase the Effectiveness of NEPA.

Mr. Wood was declared a Certified Environmental Professional in Environmental Assessments and is currently on the Board of Directors of the Academic Board of Certified Environmental Professionals. Mr. Wood is also a member of the Society of Wetland Scientists and is designated as a Professional Wetland Scientist.

Mr. Wood continues his practice of environmental consulting with an emphasis in complex decision-making strategies. His broad range of experiences on the international, national, State and local levels offers an unique perspective on how to ensure the compatibility of land use with the continued productivity and value of certain critical land and water areas. Mr. Wood’s involvement in numerous public participation processes has honed his skills in offering an ear to the arguments of all sides of issues which impact our environments.