Board

Dr. Alexander Behrmann
President

Alexander Behrmann is the head of the Goethe-Institut San Francisco. For several years he was the Deputy Director of Communications at the headquarters of the Goethe-Institut in Munich. Before joining the Goethe-Institut, he worked as a freelance journalist, including for the German edition of Rolling Stone—a magazine that, interestingly enough, was founded right here in San Francisco in 1967, in the same year as the Goethe-Institut San Francisco opened its doors. In his spare time, he co-edits a literary magazine. He has a PhD in German Literature. He also studied political science and media studies, which included film and television history and theory.

Dennis M. Sullivan
Secretary and Treasurer

Dennis M. Sullivan, Esq. represents small and medium sized owner-managed business in formation, operation, mergers and acquisitions and other corporate transactions, with a focus on international transactions. He is a graduate of Santa Clara University and Hastings College of Law (with honors) and serves as the Legal Advisor to the Consulates General of Germany, Switzerland and Brazil (San Francisco) and related Miscellaneous Foreign Government Organizations (MFGOs) and agencies.

Shamala S. Hinrichsen

Shamala S. Hinrichsen is the founder and CEO of Hanai, a social impact venture dedicated to improving access to health information for women and girls globally. She also serves as Board President of the German International School of Silicon Valley. Originally from Malaysia, she has lived in Germany, Luxembourg, the United Kingdom, Ireland, and the United States, and brings a deeply international outlook to her work. With more than two decades of experience working across sectors, countries, and communities, she is committed to education, cultural exchange, and fostering connection across borders. She is also a published author whose work appears in anthologies and short story collections. Outside her professional work, she is devoted to her two sons and treasures summers spent with her extended family and film-filled evenings with the people who first inspired her love of cinema. She lives in San Francisco.

Franciska Obermeyer

German Deputy Consul General Franciska Obermeyer is responsible for fostering the cultural ties between Germany and the Pacific Northwest and for the public diplomacy outreach of the Consulate General. One of her task is to coordinate the activities of the partnering institutions that form the network of the foreign cultural and educational policy, such as the Goethe Institute, the German Academic Exchange Service, the German International School of Silicon Valley, the German International School of Portland, the German language advisors, as well as many more organizations and institutions active in this field. As part of her public diplomacy she informs the media and the general public about topics related to Germany. She is also the central point of contact for journalistic inquiries.

Jale Yoldas

Jale Yoldas was born in Hamburg, Germany. She moved to Istanbul, Turkey in 1984. After completing High School in Istanbul she moved to Heidelberg, Germany to study German Literature, Linguistics, and Education. She holds a Masters of Arts in German Literature. From 1996 to 2000 she was a broadcast journalist for the German Radio Broadcast Company SWR (Suedwestrundfunk). In 1999 she was part of the initial leadership team at DaimlerChrysler TV, where she led a group of producers and translators, creating their daily internal news program in six languages. In 1999 she became the first director of the German-Turkish Forum in Stuttgart. Under her leadership this organization, which was initially funded by the Robert Bosch Foundation, grew into a major non-profit, which continues to offer a variety of programs and projects in the fields of culture, education, and politics always in support of cultural awareness and immigrant rights. In 2008 she moved to San Francisco and was first the Program Curator of the Goethe-Institut SF. Since 2018 she is the Cultural and Public Diplomacy Officer at the Consulate General of Switzerland in San Francisco. 12 years after her departure from Stuttgart she was invited back to receive the Manfred-Rommel-Honorary Award by the German-Turkish Forum in appreciation for the formative role she played in the organization’s success. She is married, lives in San Francisco and has two children, Maurice and Mavi.