Leadership
Marc Corsi, president
Marc Corsi 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 with all verticals include the uniqueness 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.
Andrew Davis, boARD Chair
Andrew Davis is an international consultant with more than two decades of trade and investment, policy, advocacy, and management experience. 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 across the United States during that time.
Andrew has been working for more than fifteen years, in different ways and roles, to engage the Catalan American diaspora and foster transatlantic cooperation and community, including serving as the founding Executive Director of the CAC.
ANselm Bossacoma, VIce President
Anselm Bossacoma is a serial Entrepreneur, tech Founder, Strategic Advisor, and Investor with over 20 years of experience in the technology, innovation, and investment sectors. He has worked considerably with bilateral trade relations between Catalonia and America. Some of his previous and current ventures include providing global project management, sustainability real estate, and focusing on 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).
Outside work, Anselm enjoys most outdoor activities such as skiing, hiking, backpacking, RVing, and target shooting (sport).
Xavier Vilà, Secretary and Treasurer
Xavier Vilà is a journalist and author and has served as the Catalan American Council director of Communications. Working as a correspondent in Washington for the Catalan National Public Radio, he covered US news and events for nine years before turning into 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 in expanding the knowledge of all things Catalan in North America.
Ivan kiryakin, INtern
Ivan Kiryakin is an incoming sophomore at the University of California, Davis.
He is on track to graduating with a Degree in History and Economics, earning a 3.94 Freshman GPA and two consecutive spots on the Dean’s Honors List.
Prior to his college career, he was a scholarship recipient in the internationally recognized Virtuoso Program at San Domenico School as a violinist. Throughout his musical career Ivan has accumulated leadership, teamwork, and performance skills, all key to successful business. As an intern, he is eager to serve the Catalan America Council
Board of Directors
Katrina Drabeck
Katrina Drabeck 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 Paratje
Mercedes Paratje 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.
Francesc Martí
Francesc Martí 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.
Isaac winer
Isaac Winer 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 the promotion and success of Catalonian causes and believes they resonate with Jewish American values.
Isaac earned his undergraduate degree from Stanford University in 1989 in international relations and his juris doctorate degree from UCLA School of Law in 1992, graduating with high honors from both institutions. Isaac resides in Palo Alto with his wife where both are active members of the local Jewish community.