Mr. James Opito holds a Master of Arts in Culture and Environment in Africa (CEA) from the University of Cologne, Germany (2013); a Postgraduate Diploma in Conflict Management and Peace Studies; and a Bachelor’s degree in Development Studies from Gulu University. Before joining ACODE, he served as the Executive Director at Gulu NGO Forum where he led policy advocacy, coordination, and capacity-building initiatives for civil society. At CEED Uganda he served as the Project Coordinator -Waste Management Project and Program Advisor supporting organizational development, coordination, and building networks with civil society organizations. From May 2019 to June 2023, James served as a member of the National Steering Committee of the Civil Society Coalition on Oil and Gas in Uganda (CSCO). Before that role, he had served as the Secretary for the thematic group on Oil Justice, Gender, and Human Rights for the Coalition since March 2017.Before joining CEED Uganda, James had served as the Program Coordinator at Voluntary Initiative Support Organisation where he managed programs and partnerships with Save the Children and Geneva Global Inc. and participated in network building with Action Aid Uganda and with several regional civil society networks. James is a strong advocate for young people and participated in several civil society dialogues on national reconciliation in Uganda where he presented young people’s views. James was involved with the Commonwealth Youth Programme (CYP) as a motivational speaker for the youth; he facilitated sessions of the Commonwealth Youth Forum and participated in drafting the youth communiqués between 2007 and 2012. From September 2007 to September 2011, James worked with War Child Holland in northern Uganda where he implemented education, child protection, and psychosocial support projects integrating peacebuilding, ICT, and gender-based violence response among others. He nurtures interests in organizational development, youth empowerment, civil society networks, research, and development. James is an accomplished professional in organizational development - and is a member of the consulting for consultants academy of the USAID Uganda Civil Society Strengthening Activity (USAID/CSSA). Other skills he possesses include project planning and management, writing proposals; monitoring and evaluating projects; programming education (formal, informal, and non-formal) for children, youth, and adults; implementing youth empowerment, livelihoods, protection, advocacy, conflict resolution, and peace-building programs