Our Board

Thomas, founder and president of The Dariu Foundation, is a pioneering entrepreneur and manager. He was the architect of Ringier’s expansion into new markets across Asia and Africa and a key figure in Swiss journalism as the founding Editor-in-Chief of Cash. His early business in Vietnam in 1992 led to the 2002 launch of The Dariu Foundation. Under his leadership, the foundation has become a digital education leader, providing coding and technology skills to more than one million children in rural Southeast Asia.

Martin Werfeli is an experienced board member and trustee serving on various corporate and non-profit boards. He has decades of leadership experience with the Ringier Group, which he led operationally as Chief Executive Officer (CEO) from 2003 to 2009. Prior to this, he was responsible for the group’s financial management as Head of Corporate Finance. After transitioning to the Board of Directors of Ringier AG (until 2017), he focused his expertise on strategic advisory roles and board mandates for charitable institutions. Martin Werfeli is a proven financial expert with extensive experience in the strategic management of complex organizations.

As the Founder and Chairperson of Fondation Rolf Schnyder, Chai has been doing philanthropic work for many years – providing education, medical and other assistance for disadvantaged children and their families. Her activities take her all over the world, while she maintains a keen interest in the Southeast Asia region and stateless children. Between 2011 and 2014, she chaired the board of Ulysse Nardin SA, a Swiss watchmaking company. 
Born and raised in Malaysia, Chai is a mother of 3, with a Master’s degree in Manufacturing Engineering.

Nathalie Xiaodan Chin is a Computer Science and Digital Law Educator specializing in learning content development and pedagogical design. With a background in law and technology, she develops inclusive and interactive educational programs tailored to diverse learner profiles, combining active learning methods with technical expertise.

Johanna Walser has been Chief Communications Officer of the globally active Ringier Group since 2019 and is a member of the Extended Group Executive Board. She joined Ringier in 2017 as Head of Corporate Communications at Ringier Axel Springer Media AG, overseeing joint venture communications in Central and Eastern Europe. Prior to Ringier, she held senior communications roles, including Senior Marketing Communications Manager at Distrelec (Daetwyler Group), and worked internationally in Malaysia as Editor-in-Chief of the KL-Post and as a project manager at a PR agency affiliated with Burson-Marsteller. Earlier, she spent 17 years with OBI as Group Head of Corporate Communications and personal advisor to founder Prof. h.c. Manfred Maus. She holds a Master of Arts from RWTH Aachen University in German language and literature and art history and studied economics and geography.

Jack Ngare has been a Trustee of the Shell Foundation since June 2023 and serves as Technical Director in the Office of the CTO at Google Cloud. In this role, he focuses on digital transformation and AI-driven insights for global enterprises. Previously, he was the founding Managing Director of Microsoft’s Africa Engineering Centre, the first hub of its kind on the continent. His professional career includes nearly a decade at British Telecom with international assignments in Japan, the USA, and Europe, as well as serving as Managing Director of Equity Group’s fintech arm, where he pioneered the democratization of banking in emerging markets. He serves on the advisory boards of several ESG-focused startups and financial institutions. Jack Ngare holds a degree in Computer Science from Leicester University and a Master’s from Harvard University, where he was named to the Dean’s List.