Our Leadership

Arash Yomtobian is president and CEO of Mercy For Animals. He is also a global executive leader, an entrepreneur, and a longtime advocate for compassion, with more than two decades of experience building and leading high-impact organisations. Before joining Mercy For Animals, Arash held senior leadership roles at Google, Meta, and TikTok, where he oversaw multibillion-dollar global partnership portfolios, developed new industry categories, and built scalable operating systems that transformed business outcomes. He began his professional career in investment banking, focusing on mergers and acquisitions and private equity, and he has maintained more than 15 years of active nonprofit governance throughout his career, including serving as interim CFO for Global Potential and guiding the successful merger of Positive Health Project and Housing Works. As an entrepreneur, he co-founded Nomad Noé, a vegan luxury fragrance brand. Arash has been an ethical vegan for nine years, and his commitment to ending factory farming is deeply personal and rooted in a broader mission to build systems of care for human and nonhuman animals and the planet. He brings to Mercy For Animals a combination of operational rigour and heart-centred leadership, along with a vision for a compassionate food system.

Lucas Alvarenga is chief strategy officer of Mercy For Animals, a role that combines his marketing expertise and extensive knowledge of the animal protection movement. Born and raised in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Lucas played a pivotal role in launching Mercy For Animals in his home country in 2015. Since then, our support base in Brazil has rocketed to one of the largest in the farmed-animal protection movement. He has led programmatic initiatives across multiple countries and proved instrumental in Mercy For Animals’ global strategy.

Jodi Medoff is chief operating officer of Mercy For Animals, overseeing legal matters, people operations and culture, organisational operations, risk management, and board and business functions. She also serves as corporate secretary. Jodi previously served as Mercy For Animals’ general counsel, employing her legal expertise to drive operational excellence, mitigate risk, and ensure regulatory compliance.

Amanda Rainey is chief philanthropy officer of Mercy For Animals, overseeing philanthropic relationships with individuals and organisations. Amanda leads the development of comprehensive, strategic fundraising plans that align with the organisation’s mission and long-term goals.

Amanda brings more than 20 years of dedicated leadership in the nonprofit sector, specialising in fundraising, marketing, and community outreach. She has expertise in capital campaigns, corporate partnerships, digital fundraising, and strategic partnerships and is known for tenacity and an unwavering commitment to driving long-term sustainability and impact.

Amanda earned her master’s in education from Indiana University and her bachelor’s in education from Southeast Missouri State University. Amanda has also earned the CFRE (Certified Fund Raising Executive) credential.