Arcadia Foundation

Robert Carmona-Borjas

Robert Carmona-Borjas is a Venezuelan lawyer and an expert in military affairs, national security, corruption and governance. In Venezuela, concerned with the issue of governability, the defense of human rights, democracy and the fight against corruption, he became an activist, disregarding the risks that such a stance implied. Following the events of April 2002, he was forced to abandon his country and seek political asylum in the United States of America, where he has continued his struggle for freedom and to advocate for accountability and transparency in government.

His passion and vocation for teaching began since 1989.In Venezuela, he taught at the Simon Bolivar University. In the US he created a course of Political Management in Latin America, which he taught to students from Georgetown University and The George Washington University in Washington DC. He also worked in the Department of Governance at the World Bank Institute.

Knowing that corruption was rampant not only in Venezuela, but around the world — and that it is the main factor that erodes democracy – Prof. Robert Carmona-Borjas decided to establish an organization that could counter such a major problem. He recognized that innovative, “next generation” anti-corruption strategies were needed to tackle corruption head on, as well as to develop close ties with local NGOs and civil society organizations to empower the people to preserve the integrity of democratic institutions.

With that in mind, Prof. Robert Carmona-Borjas founded Arcadia Foundation, a non-profit organization that seeks to fight corruption and promote democracy in the world. Prof. Robert Carmona-Borjas has launched several anti-corruption efforts through Arcadia Foundation in Honduras, Colombia, Venezuela and Uganda. In Honduras, Arcadia has registered unprecedented success: Its work has assisted the judicial branch in making corrupt culprits accountable for their actions

Professor Carmona-Borjas is the author of “Cuba: asedios, utopías y otros bloqueos” (Vestigios, Mexico, 1994) [Cuba: Sieges, Utopias and Other Blockades], and “Más Allá de la Génesis del 11 de Abril” [Beyond the Genesis of April 11] and is also a columnist for many prestigious newspapers such as El Nuevo Herald (Miami), El Heraldo (Honduras), El Universal (Caracas), La Prensa (Managua), Tiempo Latino (Washington) and the independent TV network Globovision (Venezuela).

Please feel free to contact Robert Carmona-Borjas at rcb@arcadiafoundation.org.

Samuel Amsterdam

Samuel Amsterdam joined Arcadia Foundation in the capacity of Public Relations Director  in October 2009. An advocacy and strategic new media engagement professional with corporate and political counsel experience in London, Brussels, Washington and Toronto, he worked previously in the private sector in public affairs and corporate/media relations.

Samuel studied public affairs and policy at Carleton University in Ottawa, Canada.

Please feel free to contact Samuel Amsterdam at sam@amsterdamgroup.net