Team

Kathleen McInerney
Director
+1.202.463.5341
kmcinerney@uschamber.com

Diego Bonomo
Senior Director for Policy
+1.202.463.5994
dbonomo@uschamber.com

Renata Vasconcellos
Director for Policy
+1.202.463.5628
rvasconcellos@uschamber.com

Timothy Ridout
Program Manager
+1.202.463.5427
tridout@uschamber.com

Mariana M. Yazbek
Coordinator
+1.202.463.3197
myazbek@uschamber.com

Luciana Rocha-Goldman
Associate–Export Green
+1.202.463.5496
lrochagoldman@uschamber.com

Rafael Lourenco
Manager, Business Development
+55.21.3213.9215
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
rlourenco@uschamber.com

Reeve Wolford 
Senior Advisor
+1.202.525.9607
rwolford@uschamber.com

Team Biographies:

Kathleen McInerney is director for the Brazil-U.S. Business Council. In this role, she manages the operations of the council, including overseeing programs, communications, and partner development. In addition, she is responsible for developing, promoting, and executing programs related to advancing green technology trade and investment between the United States and Brazil. Kathleen started her career at the Chamber in the Western Hemisphere Department of the International Division where she worked on trade policy and built the Latin America Trade Coalition. She then worked in the TradeRoots department for four years, where she directed the national grassroots campaign for approval of the Latin America free trade agreements.

Diego Zancan Bonomo is the senior director for policy at the Brazil-U.S. Business Council. He is in charge of identifying, framing, and negotiating policy issues affecting American businesses both in Brazil and the United States, and is the Council’s liaison with the Brazilian government and private sector. Prior to joining BUSBC, Diego served as the Executive Director of the Brazil Industries Coalition (BIC). He is also a former adviser to the Brazilian Minister of Strategic Affairs and a former General Coordinator of Foreign and Trade Affairs at the Federation of Industries of the State of São Paulo (FIESP). Diego has both a B.A. and a Master’s Degree in International Relations from the Catholic University of São Paulo (PUC-SP), Brazil, and has received trade policy training in Geneva, Brussels, and Washington. Since 2005, Diego is a Lecturer in the Professional Studies Program on International Economic Negotiations at the University of the State of São Paulo (UNESP). Diego publishes regularly on trade and investment policy, U.S. foreign and trade policies, and U.S.-Brazil relations in Brazil’s three major newspapers: Folha de SãoP aulo, O Estado de São Paulo, and Valor Econômico.

Renata B. Vasconcellos is director of policy at the Brazil-U.S. Business Council. She is in charge of identifying, researching, analyzing and summarizing policy issues affecting U.S. business both in Brazil and the United States. Renata, an attorney admitted to practice law in Brazil and in the United States (N.Y. and D.C.), worked in the international department of Ohio based law firm Porter Wright prior to joining BUSBC, where for 16 years she represented American, Brazilian and Latin American clients on a variety of trade issues, including antidumping, customs law and export controls. Renata holds a J.D. from the Universidade Federal Fluminense in Rio de Janeiro and a master’s degree in international business and trade law from the American University, in Washington D.C. Renata is also one of the Directors of the ABCI – Brazilian Scholars for International Trade, a not-for-profit organization based in Washington D.C.

Tim Ridout has worked at the Brazil-U.S. Business Council since October 2011. As program manager, he oversees the Council’s events, in addition to its legal and financial operations. He completed his master’s degree at the Fletcher School at Tufts University in 2011 and earned his bachelor’s from Wesleyan University in 2004. Prior to attending Fletcher, Tim worked in government relations at Donoghue, Barrett & Singal, a boutique Boston law firm, and consulted for the Group of Fifty at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. He is widely traveled and is a published author.

Mariana M. Yazbek joined the Brazil-U.S. Business Council as a coordinator in May 2011 after graduating Phi Beta Kappa from the Elliott School of International Affairs at The George Washington University with a bachelor’s degree in international affairs. She is responsible for developing and implementing the council’s communications strategy, including newsletters, website, and social media. Mariana interned for the council for over a year before joining the team in a full-time capacity. She also interned with the Albright Stonebridge Group and UNICA – the Brazilian Sugarcane Industry Association. Mariana speaks Portuguese, English, and German.

Luciana Rocha-Goldman joined the Brazil-U.S. Business Council to support the Export Green initiative. She is responsible for implementing all programs and activities related to Export Green. She also develops and implements the project’s communications strategy, including newsletters and website. Prior to joining BUSBC she worked as a contracts specialist for a mid-size government contractor in the Washington, DC metro area. Luciana has a law degree from University of Uberaba in Brazil, and a LL.M. from the Washington College of Law at American University. She and her husband live in Arlington, VA.

Rafael Lourenço is manager, business development for the Brazil-U.S. Business Council and the Council’s representative in Rio de Janeiro. He is responsible for developing activities for the Council’s member-companies in the areas of energy, oil & gas and infrastructure; as well as prospecting new members and managing the relationship with existing ones. Rafael is also in charge of developing and/or improving institutional relations with the key stakeholders in the Brazilian business and governmental spheres. Rafael has a bachelor’s degree in Sociology from Saint Cloud State University and a Master’s degree in Globalization, International Trade and Emerging Markets from the University of Barcelona. He is fluent in Portuguese, English and Spanish.

Reeve Wolford is senior advisor at the Brazil-U.S. Business Council, representing the Council frequently in public speaking engagements and providing strategic guidance to many of the Council’s sectoral committees, including the Oil & Gas Working Group, Defense & Security Task Force, Retail & Consumer Products Working Group and Infrastructure Working Group. In addition, he is managing director for Latin America at Altrius Group LLC, a business advisory and government affairs consultancy that provides services in Washington, DC and various Latin American countries for clients in the U.S., Latin America and Europe. Prior to his work at Altrius Group, Reeve served for eight years as Director of Marketing at the Brazil-U.S. Business Council.