As the regional director for Latin America, María Teresa García Plata leads strategies and projects to take GFN’s services in the region to new heights. She most recently served for five years as the executive director of Bancos de Alimentos de México (BAMX), a national network of 53 food banks across Mexico. In 2022, BAMX provided food assistance to more than 1.7 million vulnerable people and recovered 150,000 tons of food.
Tere brings over 10 years of experience leading high-performance teams including in the private sector at Grupo Lala and in the nonprofit sector at Mazatlán Food Bank and BAMX.
Tere holds a degree in business administration from Tecnológico de Monterrey in Mazatlán with honors and a specialization in marketing from Northern Arizona University. She also holds master’s degrees in marketing from Tecnológico de Monterrey. She holds a diploma in non-profit management and administration from Universidad ORT and was a part of IESE Universidad de Navarra’s Women and Leadership network in 2020.
Tere has served as an instructor for professional courses at Tecnologico de Monterrey in Mazatlan, Universidad Tecmilenio in Mazatlan, and Multiversidad Latinoamericana. She has been a speaker at international events in Europe, Latin America, and the United States on food safety issues, food loss and waste, and food banks.