Leslie Baer Dinkel
Leslie Baer Dinkel is the Executive Director of Local Hope Guatemala, and has nearly 30 years of experience community development for self-reliance. Her past professional posts have included Vice President for the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County, and earlier, for Harvey Mudd College. She is an award-winning documentary film maker; creator of the nationally syndicated, long-running public radio series’ EarthWatch; and is the author of a new, best-selling book about how she and a small group of friends saved lives during Guatemala’s brutal civil war—and nearly lost theirs in the process. Leslie served as a lay-person with Mother Teresa’s Order from 1988-1993, working with volunteers to provide emergency services to underserved and homeless individuals in Los Angeles County. She holds an M.A. in Organizational Development and is credentialed in psychodrama therapy. For her humanitarian work has been honored by the Guatemalan Consulate, Rotary and Soropotomists International.
