About Us
About Lotus Trust
Founded in 1998 and registered with the Charity Commission in the UK, Lotus Relief Charitable Trust was established by Wolfgang Sietz and Ifegenia (Evie) Christou, who continue to serve as Trustees. They are joined by Ross Badger and Axel Siepmann, long-time business associates and fellow Trustees since 1998 and 2007 respectively. Sandra Berard, who was formerly Lotus’ representative in Cambodia working alongside READA, joined the Lotus team as the newest Trustee in March 2025.
Lotus’ Trustees are located in the UK, Germany, and Switzerland.
Between 1999 and 2002, Lotus collaborated with a German NGO Hilfe Konkret e.V., supporting post-conflict recovery projects in Bosnia, Serbia, and Croatia. All the projects supported by Lotus were operated on the ground by Hilfe Konkret e.V.
In 2002, Lotus appointed a dedicated Country Manager in Croatia, Eileen Macdonald Williams, and began running its own projects in Osijek. These included English and IT education for youth whose education had been disrupted by the civil war. It also supported various facilities at a therapeutic riding centre for children with disabilities, medical equipment for a prenatal care hospital in Serbia, and supported an orphanage in Zagreb.
By the end of 2005, as the region’s immediate needs began to recede Lotus decided to shift its focus to areas with more pressing challenges.
In 2005, during a private trip, Wolfgang Sietz met and connected Lotus with Tabitha-Cambodia – an NGO founded and led by a Canadian national living in Cambodia and working with remote and impoverished communities. Over the course of three years, Lotus supported Tabitha’s highly successful savings programme in two provinces, along with smaller initiatives such as house-building projects.
In 2008, Lotus began working with READA, a Cambodian NGO, implementing sustainable community development projects. This partnership remains the cornerstone of Lotus’ work today.