Tiffany Kirton (née Daniels) is a social development specialist with a focus on youth engagement, civic participation, and community resilience. She has over 18 years of experience designing, leading, and supporting evidence-based programmes across Guyana, the Caribbean, and the Commonwealth. Her work centers on participatory research and collaborative approaches to policy and programme design, with a strong emphasis on ensuring that communities, young people, and frontline actors help shape the decisions and systems that affect their lives. Her recent work has included violence prevention, social cohesion, community resilience, and regional youth development initiatives.
Throughout her career, Tiffany has worked with governments, regional institutions, donor agencies, civil society organizations, and international development partners to strengthen institutional capacity, public engagement, and sustainable social development outcomes. She has supported and advised initiatives focused on youth leadership, democratic governance, social cohesion, and violence prevention across diverse political and cultural contexts. Her experience includes voter education and civic engagement initiatives in Guyana and other Commonwealth countries, including partnerships with youth councils, youth-led networks, civil society organizations, and public awareness campaigns aimed at strengthening democratic participation and citizen engagement. Tiffany has also contributed to regional youth governance and youth work sector initiatives through support to the establishment and strengthening of entities such as the Guyana National Youth Council (GNYC), Commonwealth Alliance of Youth Workers’ Associations (CAYWA), Commonwealth Youth Peace Ambassadors Network (CYPAN), and regional youth networks and professional development platforms such as the Caribbean Regional Youth Council (CRYC) and CARICOM Young Professionals Network (CYPN).
Most recently, Tiffany served as Country Director for the USAID-funded Youth Resilience, Inclusion and Empowerment (Y-RIE) Activity in Guyana, where she led multi-sectoral programming focused on youth resilience, violence prevention, employability/livelihood, family strengthening, mentorship, and community-based interventions. Prior to this, she served in roles with the Commonwealth Secretariat supporting youth work sector development, peacebuilding, and intergovernmental engagement across Commonwealth member states.
Her consultancy portfolio over the last 8 years has included a wide variety of clients, focusing on governance and civic participation, youth policy and development, gender and social inclusion, social protection, stakeholder engagement, participatory research, impact evaluation, curriculum and training development, and regional integration initiatives. She is particularly passionate about strengthening systems and expanding inclusive opportunities for young people and communities. Tiffany is increasingly interested in how digital culture, online life, and emerging technologies are reshaping identity, wellbeing, belonging, and social experience, particularly among women, youth, and families in Caribbean and diaspora communities.
Education: Tiffany holds an MSc in Systematic Reviews for Social Policy and Practice from University College London as a Chevening Scholar, and a Bachelor’s degree in Sociology from the University of Guyana where she was also an adjunct Sociology professor focused on Youth Studies.
Countries worked in and for: Guyana, United Kingdom, Jamaica, Saint Lucia, Suriname, Belize, Barbados, Saint Kitts and Nevis, British Virgin Islands, Rwanda, Sri Lanka, India, Trinidad & Tobago, Uganda, South Africa. Regional engagements, remote stakeholder engagements and technical assistance across broader Commonwealth Member States (in Africa, Caribbean, Europe/Asia and the Pacific) and CARICOM.
Organizations: DAI Global, Caribbean Development Bank, CARICOM Secretariat, Commonwealth Secretariat, Ministry of Human Services and Social Security (Guyana), Basic Needs Trust Fund/Ministry of Finance (Guyana), International Republican Institute, Basel Convention Regional Center for Training and Technology Transfer for the Caribbean, UNICEF, Project Development Consultancy.
Years of professional experience: 18
Languages: English (Fluent), Guyanese Creole (Native), French (beginner)