Project Leaders

Renata Avila

Renata AvilaRenata Avila is a lawyer, human rights activist and the country lead of Creative Commons Guatemala. She has worked with the Rigoberta Menchu Tum Foundation, Harvard University, the Public Voice, and Women in International Security. She is a contributing writer at Global Voices and the OpenNet Initiative. Renata's interests include shared culture, open education, free culture and human rights in the digital environment. Renata served as a researcher during the first phase of the Technology for Transparency Network. Twitter: @avilarenata.

Rebekah Heacock

Rebekah HeacockRebekah Heacock is blogger, traveler and aspiring polyglot who lives in Boston. She previously lived and worked in Uganda, where she co-developed and directed a series of conferences on post-conflict development for American and African college students, and in Kansas, where she was a web producer for a local newspaper. She has a BA in Russian literature from the University of Kansas and a Master of International Affairs from the Columbia University School of International and Public Affairs. Since 2007 Rebekah has researched Internet censorship and the global blogosphere for Harvard University's Berkman Center for Internet & Society. Rebekah also covers the Ugandan blogosphere for Global Voices and writes about technology, aid and development at Jackfruity. Rebekah served as a researcher during the first phase of the Technology for Transparency Network. Twitter: @rebekahredux.

Editorial Advisor

Hazel Feigenblatt

Hazel FeigenblattHazel Feigenblatt is Media Projects Director at Global Integrity and an award-winning investigative journalist and former Washington correspondent. Her reporting of government procurement and banking practices has been recognized on three occasions with the top journalism award in Costa Rica, where she worked for the leading daily newspaper La Nacion. She has a Master’s degree in Public Affairs Reporting from the Univerisity of Maryland, a Master’s degree in Political Science and a B.A. in Communication, both from the Univeristy of Costa Rica, and was a 2002-2003 Humphrey Fellow. She’s a blogger in Costa Rica’s main financial publication El Financiero and created a website about consumer education and complaints. Twitter: @HazelFeigenblat and @quienpagamanda.

Researchers

Sopheap Chak

Sopheap ChakSopheap Chak is a graduate student of peace studies at the International University of Japan. Meanwhile, she is also running the Cambodian Youth Network for Change, which mobilizes young activists around the country. She is a contributing author at Global Voice Online and UPI Asia Online. She was previously advocacy officer of the Cambodian Center for Human Rights (CCHR) where she helped lead the "Black Box Campaign" to fight against police corruption in Cambodia. In 2006 CCHR activists - including president Kem Sokha - were arrested. That is when Sopheap began working on projects to fight corruption and foster free expression. Twitter: @jusminesophia.

Jakub Górnicki

Jakub GornickiJakub Górnicki is a freelance journalist and photographer. He frequently blogs about new media tools for journalists at KosmoReporter and hosts the online live video talk show, KosmoShow. Jakub is the head of corporate development for Mixxt, a European web-based company, and recently organized an event in Poland with Anne Nelson to discuss the role of new media in conflict reporting. Twitter: @kosmo.

Victor Kaonga

Victor KaongaVictor Kaonga is a Malawian radio journalist who has worked at Trans World Radio since 1999. He holds a bachelor of social science from the University of Malawi and an MA in Global Journalism from Örebro University in Sweden. He teaches broadcast media at the Malawi Institute of Journalism and is interested in researching the impact of information and communication technologies on local communities in a globalized world. Victor is a contributing writer at Global Voices Online. He is based in Malawi’s capital Lilongwe with his wife and four children. Twitter: @victorndagha.

Sylwia Presley

Sylwia PresleySylwia Presley is a blogger, photographer and activist currently working in word of mouth marketing, but soon moving to social media marketing for the non-profit sector. Originally from Poland, she studied communication and linguistics in her homeland and in Budapest. Since 2006 she has been based in the UK. She is studying marketing at Oxford College of Marketing and is an advocate of social media for a change. She is a contributing writer at Global Voices Online, and the editor of Global Voices in Polish. She has organized numerous events including Oxford Twestival Global and Local in 2009 and Barcamp Transparency UK last summer in Oxford, which she hopes will be replicated in other European countries this year. Sylwia served as a reviewer during the first phase of the Technology for Transparency Network. Twitter: @presleysylwia.

Anas Qtiesh

Anas QtieshAnas Qtiesh is a Syrian blogger, translator, and tech enthusiast currently based in Boston. He is the editor of the Arabic version of Global Voices Online and the Outreach Coordinator for the Arabic Speaking Region at Internews. He's active in the fields of freedom of speech online and the right to access to information. He has contributed to several projects at the Berkman Center for Internet and Society at the Harvard Law School such as the OpenNet Initiative and Herdict Web. Anas is also passionate about providing quality web content in Arabic.

Lova Rakotomalala

Lova RakotomalalaRaised in Madagascar, Lova Rakotomalala has a strong interest in international development and digital media as a tool to promote social change and transparency in the developing world. Lova has just completed his Master in Public Policy at the Woodrow Wilson School of International Affairs and Public Policy at Princeton University to further that specific interest. He previously worked as a biomedical researcher for a laboratory that focuses on designing low-cost mobile diagnostic tools for resource limited settings. He is also part of the core team of Foko, an NGO driven to promote the online exposure of social grassroots projects based in Madagascar. Twitter: @lrakoto.

Aparna Ray

Aparna RayAparna Ray is an independent qualitative research consultant by profession who is keenly interested in people, cultures, communities and social media/software. She writes both in English and Bangla, (the latter being her mother-tongue), and covers the Bangla blog world on Global Voices. She writes limericks on news and current affairs which can be found at newsmericks.com. Aparna served as a reviewer during the first phase of the Technology for Transparency Network. Twitter: @aparnaray.

Manuella Maia Ribeiro

Manuella Maia RibeiroManuella Maia Ribeiro is a recent graduate of Public Policy Management from the University of São Paulo, Brazil. Since 2007 she has been researching how governments can promote transparency, accountability and participation through the use of information and communication technologies. From September 2008 until December 2009 she participated in research on citizen participation in local governance throughout Latin America. Twitter: @manuellamr.

Claudio Ruiz

Claudio Ruiz GallardoClaudio Ruiz is the president of the NGO Derechos Digitales and a Chilean Creative Commons public leader. He graduated in law from the University of Chile, where he specialized in fundamental rights and new technologies regulation. Has been a professor of Theory of the Constitution and Fundamental Rights at Andrés Bello National University and is currently a professor of Digital Journalism at the Mayor University in Santiago, Chile. Claudio is a consultant on free software and intellectual property regulation for the Inter-American Development Bank, for the National Council of Domain Names and IP Numbers, and for the National Committee for the Digital Strategy of Chile.

Alexey Sidorenko

Alexey SidorenkoAlexey Sidorenko was born in Moscow and graduated from the Moscow State University. He is currently writing his Ph.D thesis there while simultaneously writing his MA thesis at the Warsaw University, Poland. Alexey worked at the Carnegie Moscow Center from 2005-2008 in the "Society and Regions" program. Since May 2010 he has worked as an editor of the Global Voices RuNet Echo project.

Namita Singh

Namita SinghNamita Singh is a researcher and consultant focused on participatory media. She studied mass media and mass communication at Delhi University and has a Master of Arts in Social Work from the Tata Institute of Social Sciences in Mumbai. She is currently consulting Video Volunteers and the Global Fund for Children, and writing a toolkit on Girls' Media in India based on an innovative Youth Media project that was undertaken with 30 girls in 2 different locations in India. Twitter: @nsbiswas.

Carrie Yang

Carrie YangCarrie Yang is a a postgraduate student studying new media at the Chinese University of Hong Kong. Her focus of research is on citizen journalism and new media product development. She studied English at Guangdong University of Foreign Studies in Guangzhou, China. She was previously an executive assistant at CultureFish Media and Pitchengine Asia where she organized events related to digital media in Hong Kong and mainland China. Twitter: @Carrie_Young.

Reviewers

Patrick Kpikpi

Patrick KpikpiPatrick Kpikpi holds bachelor of arts from the University of Ghana and a diploma in Public Relations/Advertising and Journalism from the Ghana Institute of Journalism. He is the founder and CEO of Media Systems & Technology, a media consultancy and Internet solutions provider based in Accra. Patrick previously worked as the Public Relations Officer of Network Computer Systems, Ghana Dot Com, and the Internet premier in West Africa between 2000 and 2005. He was the project manager for the Africa Elections Project in 2008 and currently manages the Ghana Schools Project, which provides new media training to Ghanaian schools.

Victor Ngeny

Victor NgenyVictor Ngeny trained as a journalist at Uganda Pentecostal University and is currently the Blogger Training Officer at WildlifeDirect Inc. He also handles social media promotion of WildlifeDirect through Facebook, Twitter and many of the other social networking platforms online. Victor is into all things digital, online and mobile and tries to find out ways of using them to better himself and his society. When not online, he dabbles in poetry and rugby and a cold drink once in a while. Twitter: @ngeny.

Preetam Rai

Preetam RaiPreetam Rai is an educator, event planner, and passionate blogger with broad experience throughout South East Asia and China. He was formerly the editor for South East Asia at Global Voices and has participated in dozens of barcamps, conferences, and workshops about digital media. Preetam works with educational institutions across East Asia, helping teachers and students use technology for collaboration and engagement. Twitter: @preetamrai.

Laura Vidal

Laura VidalLaura Vidal is a Venezuelan studying Science Education in Paris, France. She blogs at Sacando la Lengua about languages, literature and interactions in society, and deeply believes in the uniqueness and importance of every culture and in the study of them as a mirror to our own. She is a contributing writer at Global Voices and previously she was a columnist for Tal Cual, a Venezuelan daily newspaper.