About Us

Meet the UN Radio, English Unit team

Gerry Adams, Producer: Gerry, a US national, studied Television-Radio Communications at New York's Ithaca College.  She began her professional career as a writer with a number of corporations, including Thomas J. Lipton and the International Project of the Association for Voluntary Sterilization.  Following a stint with the US State Department, Gerry pursued a Masters degree in International Administration, which required her to work as television producer in Manaus, the capital of Brazil's Amazon Region.  She has worked for the United Nations since 1982. She now lives in Brooklyn, New York with her husband.

Chuck Appel, Production Assistant: Chuck has worked in the UN’s Department of Public Information in a variety of electronic media over a 37-year period.  He was hired in 1974 right out of college to work as a clerk in film promotion and distribution.  In the mid-80s, Chuck moved over to the video production section. He has spent the last seven years as a production assistant at UN Radio where, amongst other duties, he voices up news reports.  Chuck enjoys singing with his friends and is a long-time member of the UN Singers.   He lives with his wife and two children in Montclair, New Jersey.

Daniel Dickinson, Chief of the English Unit: Daniel grew up in London, England and was trained as a journalist at the BBC. Starting off in local radio he ended up working for the BBC World Service as a reporter based in Nicaragua and then Tanzania. He spent two years working as a regional information officer for the Humanitarian Aid department of the European Commission in Nairobi, Kenya before moving to UN Radio in New York in 2010. He now lives in Brooklyn with his family and enjoys exploring the many fascinating corners of New York City.

Sandra Guy, Production Assistant: Sandra hails from Uberaba in Brazil. Her first job at the United Nations was with the Guided Tours Unit. During her stint as a UN Guide, she enjoyed daily contact with the visiting public at United Nations headquarters. For the past 20 years Sandra has been working at United Nations Radio, where she enjoys putting together the daily programme with her colleagues.  She also enjoys receiving and processing feedback from UN Radio partners and listeners from around the world.

Derrick Mbatha, Producer: Derrick is from South Africa and from1977 to 1979 worked for Radio Freedom of the African National Congress (ANC) in Angola.  He moved to Zambia where he continued to work for Radio Freedom. In September 1979 he joined UN Radio in New York.  In his spare time, he plays South African music and jazz.

Aditya Menhta, Producer: Aditya, who is Indian, has worked as a press officer at the Office of the Spokesperson of the UN Secretary-General. He also spent over two years in the Spokesperson's Office at the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan. Before joining the United Nations, Aditya worked as Assistant Editor, International Affairs with CNN-IBN, India’s leading English TV news channel. He has also worked in radio and print in India and contributed to national publications such as The Hindustan Times, Tehelka, and IBNLIVE.com. When he isn’t catching up on the news, Aditya enjoys horse-riding and making omelettes.

Beng Poblete-Enriquez, Production Assistant: Florence, aka Beng, originally comes from the Philippines. She joined the UN in 1979 and is passionate about her work.  Beng especially likes mixing music and recorded interviews/speeches.  She is enthusiastic about radio and has never stopped learning.

Jocelyne Sambira, Producer: In 1996, Jocelyne began her career as a radio producer in the thick of a civil war in her native Burundi. After covering the war and the peace talks in 2000, she took up her first UN job with IRIN in Nairobi, Kenya writing about humanitarian and refugee issues in the Great Lakes region. Seven years later, she joined the UN peace-keeping mission’s radio in Sudan in charge of a unit producing programmes on the peace process. She is currently in New York City with UN Radio and is studying part-time for a Master’s degree in Digital Media at Columbia University.