Board of Directors

Anthony J. Castaldo is HAEi’s Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of the Board. He is a founding Board member and has led HAEi since its 2004 registration as a non-profit organization. He is also a founding Board Member and CEO of the US Hereditary Angioedema Association (HAEA) – an HAEi Member Organization with 8,000 members. Tony served as Associate Inspector General at the United States Federal Reserve until his retirement in 2013. He is a co-author of over 20 HAE-related medical journal papers and is frequently invited to speak on HAE and rare diseases.

Michal Rutkowski serves as the HAEi’s Vice President of the Board and Director, Regional Patient Advocate Program. Michal is responsible for guiding, managing, and implementing the strategic direction of HAEi’s Regional Patient Advocate Program. He works closely with HAEi’s Executive Vice President of Global Advocacy, and Coordinator, Global Advocacy and ACARE. Michal is also the Regional Patient Advocate for Central Eastern Europe and Middle East. He founded HAE Poland in 2005 and continues to serve as its President. In addition to fulfilling his HAEi responsibilities, Michal remains active in his architectural profession.

Fiona Wardman is HAEi’s Executive Vice President of Global Advocacy and Chief Diversity Officer. Fiona joined the Board in 2014 and serves as HAEi’s Treasurer. She leads the global advocacy team and oversees day-to-day efforts to help Member Organizations raise awareness and advocate for access to and reimbursement for modern HAE therapies. Fiona is also the Regional Patient Advocate for South Africa and several countries in the Asia Pacific region. She co-founded the Australasian HAE organization in 2011. Prior to joining the HAEi team, Fiona held managerial positions in a variety of companies and industries.

HAEi Board Member Beverley Yamamoto founded the Japanese HAE patient organization in 2013, which became a Member Organization of HAEi the same year. She served as the President of HAE Japan for ten years until June 2023 and is now a member of the Executive Board. Beverley is a professor in Human Sciences at Osaka University and has used her research skills to work with leading clinicians in the field of HAE in Japan to conduct joint research. She has co-authored a number of papers on HAE and public patient involvement in medical research and policymaking. Beverley has been a Board Member of HAEi since 2013.

Natasha Jovanovska Popovska is a Board Member of HAEi. She was appointed to that position in 2018 after previously serving as a member of the HAEi Executive Committee since 2014. Natasha is also the founder and President of HAE Macedonia, an organization that has been very successful securing access to and reimbursement of modern life saving HAE medication. She is also very active in the entire South Eastern European region helping other Member Organizations achieving similar results.

HAEi Board Member Sarah Smith-Foltz is a co-founder of HAEi and served as HAEi’s first Treasurer. She is also a co-founder and the President of the Spanish HAE association. Until her retirement, Sarah worked as a translator and interpreter, which she combined with all her volunteer work in national and international HAE-related activities. Sarah’s late husband and three daughters have HAE. She lives in Madrid, Spain.

Rachel Annals is HAEi’s Coordinator, Global Advocacy and ACARE. Rachel’s responsibilities include supporting implementation of HAEi’s global advocacy program and our Regional Patient Advocates. She also serves as HAEi’s liaison to the GA2LEN/HAEi worldwide network of ACARE centers. Rachel joined HAEi as a Board Member in 2014. She also serves as the Executive Officer at HAE UK, a position she has held for the past 12 years. Rachel’s professional experience includes 18 years working for local government in the UK as a graphics and website manager.

Jørn Schultz-Boysen serves as HAEi’s Executive Vice President Global Operations and Chief Compliance Officer and is responsible for day-to-day operational, managerial, and financial matters. Jørn joined the Board in 2012 and has also served as HAEi’s Executive Project Manager. He is a co-founder of HAE Scandinavia where he serves as the Vice President. Jørn is also the Regional Patient Advocate for the Nordics, Germany, Austria, Switzerland, and Israel. Before joining HAEi, he held executive-level positions in a variety of companies with global operations.