GEWR+Participant+Bios

Participant Bios and Information
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 * **Megan Brown** - I'm the Project Officer at equalinrights, one of the two organisations hosting this e-discussion ([|www.equalinrights.org]). Last year, I coordinated the gender equity theme of the Human Dignity and Human Rights Caucus at the World Social Forum in Nairobi, where I met a number of you who are participating in this discussion. My background is an MA in International Policy Studies from the Monterey Institute of International Studies, where my research focused on gender-based violence. I worked for several years at the Women’s Learning Partnership for Rights, Development and Peace (WLP), helping coordinate a global women’s leadership program. I have a lot of event organising experience and am excited to try out a fully online organising experience with this project. I'll be in Switzerland 21-23 January for a Caucus press conference aiming to highlight the connection between human rights and the agenda at the World Economic Forum, but will be participating here before and after that.
 * **Nancy White** (event facilitator and techie) - Hi, I'm Nancy, from Seattle in the USA. I am interested in how we connect to make the world a better place using online tools - including for women's right and gender equity issues! You can find out more about me on my [|site]. If you need help with anything associated with the event, feel free to contact me. My email is nancyw at fullcirc dot com
 * **Pat Willis** I am a radical feminist activist and academic (Ph.D in Women's studies) and I have been involved in organizing for social forums since 2004 when I discovered, much to my disappointment, that the social forum arena generally has not been very feminist or even woman friendly. I teach and also work with the Coalition Against Trafficking in Women-Latin America and Caribbean Division. Violence against women and girls' issues are my major areas of interests as well as researching and trying to help construct social forums as more gender equal. I participated in the GEC events at the Nairobi WSF 2007 and am looking forward to greater feminist activism at the WSF 2009.
 * **Anita Mathew** I am a consultant for women and child rights and work from Goa in India.I began to work in the field since 1997 and until 2006 worked for a programme on childrights which is now an NGO called Children's Rights in Goa. We were the group that worked on CSEC and Human trafficking and were instrumental with other NGO's and lawyers along with the state to introduce the Goa children's Act 2003.My work focuses on introducing the rigts based framework to bring change that should be inclusive starting with gender equity in education and other areas of developmental strategy to make another world possible."
 * **Janet Rodenburg**, advisor gender and partner policy of ICCO, one of the two organisations hosting this e-discussion (janet dot rodenburg at icco dot nl). I have been with ICCO since May 2007, so I have no record of participating in WSF events. Before joining ICCO, I was responsible for integrating psychosocial support within the programmes of the International Federation of the Red Cross and Red Crescent. Prior to that I worked with the International Rehabilitation Council for Torture Victims. As a social anthropologist I obtained my PhD on gender and migration based on research in Indonesia and Malaysia.
 * **Els Hortensius** - I have been a programme officer at ICCO ([|www.icco.nl]) for many years, always working with Latin America. Starting in the Andean region, I then moved on to Central America and currently I am responsible for contacts in Haiti and Paraguay. Within the Latin American team I am also responsible for gender issues and contacts with women organisations.I studied at the University of London, at the Institute of Latin America Studies, majoring in gender studies. I participated at the gender equity seminar organized by, among others, Equalinright and ICCO, during the WSF 2007 in Nairobi.
 * **Jeanette Kloosterman**. Since one and a half year I am policy advisor at Oxfam Novib at the department of Research & Development. My theme is ON's fifth objective: The Right to an Identity: Gender and Diversity. In 1995 I finished my PhD about the collective and individual human rights of indigenous peoples. Since then I worked for the FAO-UN and the European Union (in Latin America) and got involved in gender issues within the context of indigenous communities. I am now intrigued by the concept of intersectionality and the individual rights of indigenous women in different cultural contexts.
 * **Leonida Odongo** - Please also see this page for more information about Leonida's group, EBONY YOUTH AND ORPHAN SUPPORT My name is Leonida Odongo, am a trainer of trainers in HIV/AIDS community based care and support services,a TOT in ESCR , a TOT in supervision,monitoring and evaluation of community based care and support services .I represent an organization called Ebony YOuth and Orphans Support Initiative Kenya ,a youtb organization whose mission is to improve the quality of life of youths and other vulnerable children and to build the capacity of youths for sustanable development. I have a diploma in community development ,project planning and management, diploma in marketing management .I will start pursuing my degree course in social work in May this year.
 * **Damairia Pakpahan (Damai)** from Yogyakarta, Indonesia. Since early December I am in New York till end of February 2008. I have been active in the women movement in Indonesia since 1988 when I was a student activist against the dictatorship of Suharto regime and co-founder of RUMPUN (an association of women activists working with and for women domestic worker rights) and Indonesian Women Coalition for Justice and Democracy). I was gender adviser of Oxfam GB in Indonesia and researcher with Amnesty International, and staff of World Education. Professionally I am working as the gender consultant now with Circle INdonesia (a cooperative consultants for NGOs and civil society).
 * Me llamo **Maria Cristina Cucuri Minarcaja**, tengo 34 anos de edad. Soy una mujer Indigena del pueblo Puruha de la Nacionalidad Kichwa del Ecuador. Desde muy joven he estado vinculada con las organizaciones comunitarias y los grupos de mujeres que se estructuran para defender sus derechos y participar en la vida de la comunidad y de la sociedad en general. Desde 1997 he iniciado mi trabajo profesional de apoyo a organizaciones de mujeres rurales kichwas capacitando en temas de g鮥ro y derechos de las mujeres. Adem᳠de este trabajo de fortalecimiento de organizaciones de base e apoyado dando asistencia t飮ica para la elaboraci󮠤e Planes de desarrollo cantonal con perspectiva de g鮥ro en los municipios de Guaranda, Guamote, Alaus� Chunchi de las provincias de Chimborazo y Bolivar en un programa con la Asociaci󮠤e Municipalidades del Ecuador y el Consejo Nacional de las Mujeres. Desde el 2000 estoy participando en la construcci󮠹 ejecucion del Plan deIgualdad de Oportunidades (PIO) de Chimborazo que tiene como objetivo estrat駩co disminuir las inequidades de g鮥ro y etnico en un acuerdo de gobiernos central, gobiernos locales, ONG y el movimiento de mujeres. Participo como responsable del Area de Derechos y Ciudadania del CEDIS.
 * **Adriana Gonzalez** de la liga intenrcional de mujeres por la paz y libertad WILPF
 * **Nyaradzai Gumbonzvanda** (Mrs), Chairperson, Rozaria Memorial Trust, Zimbabwe
 * **Zahra-tul-Fatima,** I am working in AMAN Pakistan Foundation for last three years as Executive Director, also serve as consultant to different national and international organizations in Pakistan. Women and peace, women’s rights, violence against women and gender development are my major areas of interests as well. These days I am developing a manual for local government on gender based planning and budgeting. I have recently completed a research for an international organization on Violence Against Women In natural disaster areas of Pakistan.
 * **Sammy Jacobs Abbey**, works as the Director at the International Centre for Conflict and Human Rights Analysis (ICCHRA)
 * **Tribune Centre** and I am joining you from New York.
 * **Faridul Alam**, Founder & Managing Director Promoting Human Rights and Education in Bangladesh (PHREB), Chittagong, Bangladesh
 * **Bether Juma Kokach,** Focal Point Officer EACOR Eastern Africa Coalition on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights
 * **Sandra Castañeda**: Programme Coordinator of Latin American and Caribbean Women´s Health Netowork.
 * **Ms. Tran Thi Lanh,** Founder, Social Policy Ecology Research Institute - SPERI Hanoi - Vietnam (see pictures of Tran's community here.)
 * **Gina Yanez,** soy feminista peruana, vivo el Lima, soy parte de Manuela Ramos, organizaci򮠦eministas que desde hace 30 a񯳠trabaja en la defensa y promocion de los derechos de la mujer peruana.
 * **Mavic Cabrera-Balleza** coordinates the International Womens Tribune Centres human security, human rights and peace building programme. She conducts workshops for and with national ministries on women, the security sector, womens groups, media and academe towards the full implementation of UN Security Council Resolution 1325. She produces local language radio programmes on Resolution 1325 in various countries in Africa and Asia and has initiated the peace building cyberdialogues project of IWTC that combines the power of new information and communication technologies (ICTs) with the broad reach of community radio to promote womens participation in decision-making on peace and security issues. Shes also active in advocacy work to effect change on policies that concern women, media and the new ICTs. Mavic also represents IWTC in the advocacy for a stronger gender equality architecture in the UN Reform process. Mavic is the president the World Association of Community Radio Broadcasters - Womens International Network. She is also a board member of the Asian Communication Network and a member of the Oversight Panel for UNDPs Information Disclosure Policy. Please visit the International Womens Tribune Centres website for more information on its work: [|www.iwtc.iwtc.org]
 * **Shirley Randell,** Senior Adviser, Education and Governance for Empowerment in SNV Rwanda. I was a reporter for the gender equity theme of the Human Dignity and Human Rights Caucus at the World Social Forum in Nairobi and am disappointed not to have been able to particpate in the discussion until now, because of the terminal illness and death of my mother in January and absence till the end of February. I have however glanced at the contributions of members and look forward to continuting involvedment in the discussion.
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