About IAVAAN
The International Association of Volunteer Adoption Agencies and Non-governmental organizations (IAVAAN) has been a strong supporter of the Convention for more than 20 years and is committed to ensuring that the principles and practices advanced by the Hague Convention continue to work in the best interests of children, which include advocacy for transparent and ethical intercountry adoption.
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The Hague Convention promotes adoption not as an end in itself, but as part of the greater goal of doing whatever is in the best interest of a child, including the viable option of intercountry adoption. A comprehensive child welfare solution must prioritize options that result in children achieving their right to a permanent, nurturing family, and intercountry adoption must be viewed as a positive option for children who will not be reunified with their families or adopted domestically.​
IAVAAN is committed to working with all stakeholders – including Central Adoption Authorities, adoption service providers, parents, and international child welfare organizations to ensure intercountry adoptions work better for children, relinquishing families, and the families who are adopting children.
Board of Directors
Heidi Cox
Ms. Heidi Cox has served the adoption community as an Executive Vice President with the Gladney Center for Adoption for over 29 years and has impacted thousands of lives – adoptive parents, birth parents and adoptees. During her tenure, she has worked on legislation in D.C. and in Texas, trying to improve the law and child welfare systems, by advocating to focus more attention on what is best for children. Ms. Cox was appointed to the Adoption Review Committee created by the Texas legislature, to identify obstacles that impede the state’s ability to find permanent placements for children in foster care. Ms. Cox is a dedicated and passionate advocate for women and children, and she remains actively involved in local, national, and international child advocacy efforts.
Ms. Cox received her Doctor of Jurisprudence from Texas Tech University. Her undergraduate studies were at Trinity University, earning a B.A. in History with a minor in German. Ms. Cox began her child advocacy while at Trinity, volunteering at the San Antonio Children’s Shelter and Juvenile Detention Center. In law school, she served as a big sister in the Big Brothers Big Sisters program.
Kate Trambitskaya
Kate Trambitskaya became CEO of Spence-Chapin in 2019 after serving as General Counsel for seven years. Prior to coming to Spence-Chapin, Kate served as an attorney and senior team leader in the Brooklyn Family Court Legal Services for the Administration for Children’s Services (ACS), representing the Commissioner of Social Services in cases involving some of the city’s most vulnerable children and families.
Kate is a passionate and tireless advocate for the welfare of children, women, and families. Under her leadership, Spence-Chapin has expanded and enhanced programs and services that support women facing unplanned pregnancies, children living in orphanages overseas, and adoptees and their families here in the United States.
She is also a fellow of The American Academy of Adoption Attorneys, a member of New York Attorneys for Adoption & Family Formation (NYAAFF), and a faculty member of the National Judicial College (NJC).
Amy Wolfe
Amy Wolfe is the VP of Operations of National Council For Adoption. NCFA's vision
vision is a world in which all children everywhere have nurturing, permanent families.
Passionately committed to the belief that every child deserves to thrive in a nurturing, permanent family, National Council For Adoption’s mission is to meet the diverse needs of children, birth parents, adoptees, adoptive families, and all those touched by adoption through global advocacy, education, research, legislative action, and collaboration.
Kate Kennedy
Kate Kennedy serves as President and CEO of the National Council For Adoption. A nonprofit executive with more than two decades of experience advancing outcomes for children and families, she leads the organization’s efforts to promote policies and practices that help children thrive in safe, permanent, and loving families while aligning strategy, partnerships, and resources to maximize impact.
Prior to this role, Kate served as Chief Development Officer at the National CASA/GAL Association for Children, where she was part of the executive leadership team implementing a national theory of change focused on improving permanency outcomes for children in foster care. She worked in partnership with the CEO, board, and national network to align strategy, systems, and resources across more than 900 local programs to advance program quality and expand services to youth and families.
Previously, Kate served as Director of Development for Share Our Strength’s No Kid Hungry campaign in the Mid-Atlantic, where she led regional fundraising strategy, cultivated major donors, and supported a national effort to end childhood hunger through policy, public awareness, and systems change. Her earlier leadership roles also include serving as Chief Development Officer for the League of Women Voters and Director of Development for the Washington School for Girls, where she helped guide organizational growth, facility expansions, and long-term strategic planning.
In addition to her national nonprofit leadership, Kate brings cross-sector governance and program oversight experience from her six years as a three-term elected City Councilmember in College Park, Maryland. In that role, she contributed to the citywide strategic plan and launched the Community Preservation Trust, an innovative affordable housing initiative she helped take from concept to full implementation and now serves as Chair.