Charlie Richter

US Director, APOPO

Biography

Charlie joined the APOPO team in December 2014 as US Director, based in Washington DC. Previously he worked in business development and project management for Gallup, a large research and consulting firm, and One Economy, an international technology NGO, both based in Washington DC.

At APOPO Charlie is responsible for building new partnerships and projects with US based organizations that can help APOPO build its Tuberculosis (TB) and Mine Detection programs. Charlie is also responsible for developing APOPO's independent US based 501c3 organization.

Charlie plays a major role in developing operational partnerships and strategies to expand their landmine detection and TB programs. His current main focuses include; developing a project to build out the mine detection animal capacity of the Colombian Army, which has the potential to shave decades off a mine free Colombia declaration; finding partners and resources for APOPO mine detection project in Zimbabwe adjacent to Kruger Park, which has major elephant conservation and eco tourism implications; and developing a research project to develop building rubble IED search animals, which stands to be a game changing technology in paving the way for development in post conflict areas in the Middle East.

Charlie is also responsible for exploring research partnerships that would allow APOPO to explore new applications of Detection Rats Technology, including customs applications and Cancer screening.

Charlie has an MBA from Thunderbird School of Global Management and was a former Peace Corps volunteer in West Africa where he developed a passion for innovative social enterprise.

Regional Focus

South America, Southeast Asia, Middle East and North Africa, Eastern and Southern Africa

Related Content

Bart Weetjens - APOPO, Charlie Richter - APOPO, January 23, 2020
For two decades, innovative social enterprise and 2009 Skoll Awardee APOPO, has researched, developed, and implemented detection rats technology for humanitarian purposes, most notably for demining operations. It has freed…