LEADERSHIP

Executive Team

PRESIDENT
Marc is an innovative and multiple-award-winning advertising and public relations marketing professional.
Over the years, Marc has developed strategic and tactical working relationships with a Who’s Who list of politicians, corporations, clients, and philanthropy organizations. He has worked with all verticals and various industries and professions.
He has served on board positions at Silicon Valley start-ups and advised significant players in the political arena. His relationships across all verticals include the unique characteristics of advertising organizations, entertainment, and the political arena. Marc has assisted senators, governors, attorneys general, congressmen, assemblymen, mayors, etc., in some of the most critical initiatives in California and the United States.

BOARD CHAIR
Andrew is an international consultant with more than two decades of experience in trade and investment, policy, advocacy, and management. He works with public, private, and multilateral sector organizations to strengthen their international engagement, finance, innovation and business development strategies. Previously, Andrew has represented the Government of Catalonia's interests in the United States for nearly a decade, leading the development and implementation of the government's transatlantic policy priorities.
Andrew has been working for more than 15 years, in various roles and capacities, to engage the Catalan American diaspora and foster transatlantic cooperation and community, including serving as the founding Executive Director of the CAC.

PRESS SECRETARY AND TREASURER
Xavier is a journalist and author who has served as the director of Communications at the Catalan American Council. Working as a correspondent in Washington for the Catalan National Public Radio, he covered US news and events for nine years before turning to public diplomacy. Xavier became the Deputy Head of the Catalan Government Delegation for the US, Canada, and Mexico. In that capacity, he brought the Catalan idiosyncrasy into the corridors of power in Washington, Ottawa, and Mexico City. He helped expand knowledge of all things Catalan in North America.

VICE PRESIDENT
Anselm is a serial Entrepreneur, tech Founder, Strategic Advisor, and Investor with over 20 years of experience in technology, innovation, and investment. He has worked considerably with bilateral trade relations between Catalonia and America. Some of his previous and current ventures include global project management, sustainability in real estate, and late-stage, pre-IPO & pre-M&A investment.
Finally, he has extensively promoted Catalonia in the US, developing deep relationships, advocating for cooperation and innovation, and promoting inward investment opportunities. He was appointed as a Trade & Investment Commissioner and Delegate for the Catalan Government from 2014-2018, Executive Director for the Catalonia Trade & Investment, and finally the Director of Business and Innovation with the Catalonia America Council (CAC).

Katrina is a corporate responsibility manager at the Silicon Valley Community Foundation (SVCF), where she advises a portfolio of corporate clients on their domestic and international social responsibility initiatives. She provides support and strategic guidance on grantmaking and employee engagement programs to help her clients achieve their philanthropic goals.
Before SVCF, Katrina worked in the non-profit and government sectors in Los Angeles. She earned a B.A. in Political Science at the University of San Diego.

Mercedes is a Managing Director at Morgan Stanley Private Wealth Management, advising a global clientele of ultra-high-net-worth families and select institutions on their investment portfolios. Before joining Morgan Stanley in 2002, Mercedes served as the global head of Investment Advisory at Barclays Bank.

Mercedes earned an undergraduate degree in telecommunications engineering from the Polytechnic University of Barcelona and holds an MBA in finance and an M.A. in labor and industrial relations from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

Isaac is the Founder and Managing Attorney of a boutique law firm in Palo Alto, California. He has been practicing business law, non-profit law, and civil litigation for over thirty years. Isaac has substantial experience in Jewish community affairs at the local, state, and national levels, including volunteering for many Jewish organizations. Isaac is committed to promoting and advancing Catalan causes and believes they resonate with Jewish American values.
Isaac earned his undergraduate degree in international relations from Stanford University in 1989 and his juris doctorate from the UCLA School of Law in 1992, graduating with high honors from both institutions. Isaac resides in Palo Alto with his wife, both of whom are active members of the local Jewish community.

Francesc is the Senior Director of Strategy and Government Affairs at California YIMBY. This organization works to put California on a path of broad-based economic prosperity, creating vibrant, livable, and inclusive communities for everyone. Previously, he served as the California Housing Finance Agency’s Director of Policy, Strategy, and Legislation. During that time, he led CalHFA’s extensive collaboration with legislators and policymakers at the federal, state, and local levels. Martí has also worked extensively with Governor Gavin Newsom’s Administration on its housing initiatives and played a crucial role in designing and expanding several of CalHFA’s programs, most notably a first-of-its-kind partnership with Apple.