Dr. Sarah Nguyen

Dr. Sarah Nguyen founded APYCF in 2018 after two decades in international child welfare, including twelve years at UNICEF where she served as Regional Director for East Asia. Her work there focused on reaching children in communities that fell outside the mandates of larger humanitarian programs — the same gap APYCF was built to close.

She holds a doctorate in Development Studies from the University of Melbourne and has advised national governments across Southeast Asia on child protection policy. Under her leadership, APYCF has grown from a single education program serving 84 children to a multi-program foundation reaching over 8,000 children annually across 12 countries.

Sarah leads APYCF's strategy, governance, and partnerships, and remains closely involved in field operations — she visits program sites in person at least twice a year.