Richard Tren serves as a DonorsTrust Philanthropic Advisor. Prior to joining DonorsTrust, Richard served as a program officer for the Searle Freedom Trust, a grant-making organization that sunset in December 2025. In that role Richard met with grantees, prepared grant reports and proposals, and gave recommendations to the Trust’s board. Previously Richard co-founded and ran Africa Fighting Malaria, a public health policy group advocating for reforms to donor aid and public health programs. He was awarded the Competitive Enterprise Institute’s Julian Simon Prize in recognition of his efforts to reform malaria control. Richard is now a board member of the Competitive Enterprise Institute as well as the Yorktown Foundation for Freedom. He was born and raised in South Africa and received his undergraduate degree in economics from St. Andrews University and a graduate degree in environmental and resource economics from University College London.
