Andrew Zacharias is the Director of Monitoring, Evaluation, and Learning (MEL) at Trees for the Future. In this role, he leads the organization’s global MEL strategy, guiding the transition from activity-based tracking toward outcome- and impact-driven measurement across country programs. He is particularly focused on supporting and strengthening field-facing systems and infrastructure, including the development, rollout, training, and documentation of tools that enable field teams to succeed. Andrew also plays a key role in Salesforce architecture restructuring and the onboarding of field staff, ensuring systems are practical, scalable, and aligned with program needs.
He works closely with country directors, technical teams, and data specialists to strengthen systems that capture farmer-level change, inform adaptive management, and support organizational learning. His leadership has helped integrate innovative approaches such as improved sampling methodologies, geospatial analysis, and enhanced data systems to better understand program effectiveness.
With over 15 years of experience in international development, Andrew brings deep expertise in performance measurement, systems design, and program evaluation. He has spent the majority of his career working across East Africa, supporting large-scale agroforestry and sustainable agriculture initiatives with smallholder farmers. In addition to his MEL leadership, he has significant experience as a Salesforce administrator and with mobile data collection systems, helping teams collect and translate complex program data into actionable insights. He began his career in the Peace Corps, an experience that continues to shape his commitment to community-driven development.
Andrew lives with his family in Ireland where he enjoys playing regional rugby and coaching his daughter’s Gaelic football team.