Many speakers and moderators made the conference possible. They came together in different panels and workshops thanks to the WIDE+ conference Working Group. One can read a brief biography of each speaker, moderator and organizer below (in alphabetical order).
Amina Abdulkadir was born in Mogadiscio, Somalia and came to Switzerland in 1989 at the age of three. She is a trained occupational therapist now solely working as a writer and spoken word poet. In her work the seemingly obvious is challenged and most of the time proven wrong.
Agirregomezkorta, Rosabel is the director at Centro de Estudios e Investigación sobre Mujeres (CEIM) developing feminist research and gender consultancy. She has been involved in Gender and women’s rights work for the last 20 years. Areas of expertise: human rights, gender violence and Humanitarian Aid. Actively involved with feminist networks at international (CPDE`s Feminist Group), european (WIDE+) and local level (spanish CEDAW platform, Marea Violeta), she also collaborates with several universities.
Aljari, Ola Journalist, European Centre for Press and Media Freedom (ECPMF) editor about refugee and women refugee issues; was ES at SMART news agency. Personal blog: https://olaaljari.wordpress.com/
Altinisik, Serap is Programme Director at European Women’s Lobby (EWL) and as such is responsible for leading on EWL’s Fundraising and programme strategy. She was previously responsible for the Campaign Unit at European Network against Racism (ENAR) in Brussels in her time being there she played a significant role in establishing the first ever European Foundation against Racism. Serap has published a book analysing the effects of domestic violence and also led the ever first study in Germany into implementation of favourable workplace policies for those experiencing domestic violence.
Altintzís, Yorgos is an economic and social policy officer at the ITUC. He advocates workers’ interests in international trade and investment negotiation processes, advises on the use of trade instruments to promote labour rights, and promotes industrial and structural transformation policy in the global trade agenda. He is a Member of the EU-Korea Domestic Advisory Group. Yorgos deals with organising trade unions’ representation in and messaging to global governance processes like the G20, G7, ASEM, and APEC. He is the Coordinator of the Asia-Europe Labour Forum and the Asia-Pacific Labour Network.
Antonopoulou, Rania is Alternate Minister for Labour, Greece, since January 2015. Prior to her current post she had served as the macroeconomic advisor of United Nations Organization for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women. Over the last 15 years, she was adviser and consultant to the United Nations Development Programme and the International Labour Office, while teaching as Professor at New York University. During the last seven years she worked as director of the Gender Equality and the Economy Programme of the Levy Economics Institute.
Aslan, Emine is a master student in sociology at the Goethe University in Frankfurt, Germany. She co-initiated an online campaign (#ausnahmslos) to create an anti-racist feminist standing against the stigmatisation of refugees and Muslim men as rapists.
Bargen, Henning von worked many years as gender trainer, coach, and gender consultant for executives, and in political and trade-unionist education. Since 2007 he is director of the GWI (feminist institute) at the Heinrich-Böll-Foundation, Berlin.
Bos, Carina is Senior Policy Advisor at WO=MEN, the Dutch Gender Platform since 2015. At WO=MEN, Carina focus is on issues related to Sustainable Economic Development. The concern for gender is an essential component of corporate social responsibility, foreign trade and entrepreneurship. Investing in women and gender equality is not only good for women but also contributes to economic development and to healthy and profitable enterprises.
Bousiou, Alexandra, researcher completing a PHD on security issues concerning the movement of refugees. She presented a paper on Welcoming policies for EU migrants in different European cities: the cases of Amsterdam, Brussels, Copenhagen, Dublin, Gothenburg and Hamburg.
Britwum, Akua is professor, senior research fellow and director of the Centre for Gender, Research, Advocacy & Documentation at the University of Cape Coast, Ghana. Her research and publications cover among others the economics of violence against women, gender and land rights, gender and leadership in trade unions, organizing informal economy workers as well as trade union participation and representation. She is also the Convenor of the women’s rights organisation, the Network for Women’s Rights in Ghana (NETRIGHT).
Casimiro, Isabel is a researcher at the Centre of African Studies, Eduardo Mondlane University, Maputo – Mozambique. Coordinator of the Department of Development Studies and Gender at the Centre of African Studies. Co-founder of Women and Law in Southern Africa Research (WLSA) regional (1988) and WLSA Mozambique (1990). Member of Parliament on behalf of Frelimo party, 1995-99. WLSA Mozambique Board President since 2015.
Collins, Mary is Senior Policy and Advocacy Coordinator at European Women’s Lobby (EWL). She is an expert in Economic and Social Policies. Before joining the EWL in 1995, Mary worked in child protection for the Health Authority in Ireland and for the European Federation of Organisations working with the Homeless (FEANTSA) in Brussels.
Craviotto, Nerea is a Resourcing Women’s Rights Lead Advocacy Coordinator at AWID. Nerea has been involved in feminist and women’s rights work for more than 10 years. Prior to joining AWID, she spent few years in the occupied Palestinian territory working as Gender Project Manager with ACSUR-Las Segovias. Before that she worked as Advocacy Officer with the WIDE network, based in Brussels.
Cruz, Arlene is a feminist activist and member of the Migration, Gender and Development (MGD) Network, Spain. She is an expert on gender justice and equality policies. Currently, she investigates how the associationism is the key to pursuit social rights of Latin American migrant women living in Barcelona. She also provides legal advice on employment rights to women living in migration conditions.
Cruz, Carmen de la is a social anthropologist with 20 years of work experience in conflict and post-conflict humanitarian action and development cooperation in Africa, Middle East and Latin America. She has been an advisor at UNIFEM for the Latin American Program for Peace and Security. She has widely published on the role of women in peace processes, gender, globalization and women´s rights.
Daigle, Megan is Research Officer at Gender and Development Network, UK. She is focusing in particular on women’s economic justice. She is also a freelance research and communications consultant working on gender and sexuality. Prior to joining GADN, she was Research Fellow at the Gothenburg Centre for Globalization and Development.
Dharmaraj, Krishanti is the executive director of the Centre for Women’s Global Leadership, is a feminist and human rights activist with over 25 years of experience working to advance the rights of women and girls. She is the founder of the Dignity Index, a human rights measurement tool utilized to ensure equity and inclusion to reduce identity-based discrimination. Previously she was the Western Regional Spokesperson for Amnesty International USA. She is also the co-founder of the Women’s Institute for Leadership Development (WILD) for Human Rights and the Sri Lanka Children’s Fund.
Dominguez, Edmé is Associate Professor in the area of Peace and Development Studies at the University of Gothenburg.
Dowling, Emma is Senior Lecturer in Sociology at the Middlesex University in London. Current research: the crisis of social reproduction unfolding in the wake of the global economic crisis and the transformation of the welfare state, austerity and financialisation. A second key research area is affective labour.
Foerde, Janice G. is the chairwoman of K.U.L.U. – Women and Development. KULU is a Danish non-partisan advocacy and development organisation for 23 women’s organisations, women and equality councils of political parties, development NGOs, trade unions, and other civil society organizations and individual members.
Gosewinkel, Merle is Senior Program Officer at the Women Peacemakers Program. One of her main tasks includes the coordination of the WPP Training of Trainer Programs and Consultations. Merle Gosewinkel has studied European Anthropology and Gender Studies at the Humboldt University in Berlin and holds a Master Degree in Sociology with the focus on Gender, Sexuality and Society from the University of Amsterdam.
Hersh, Marcy is Senior Advocacy Officer, Women’s Refugee Commission (WRC). She advocates on behalf of displaced women and girls in countries affected by conflict and natural disasters, ensuring that the UN system addresses their protection needs. Prior to WRC, Marcy worked for Refugees International as a Senior Advocate, leading the organization’s Women and Girls’ Rights Program and representing the organization in the UN system.
Himmelweit, Susan is Emeritus Professor of Economics at the Open University. She is a founder member and past chair of the UK Women’s Budget Group, a think tank that analyses the gender aspects of economic and social policy. Susan is an active member of the International Association for Feminist Economics (IAFFE) and was its President in 2009. She is on the editorial board of Women, Politics and Policy and was Associate Editor of the journal Feminist Economics from 1996-2012. She authored a number of books in such areas as the inequalities within households, the economics of caring, feminist economics and the gender implications of economic policy.
Hunt, Abigail is a Research Officer within Oversees Development Institute’s Growth, Poverty and Inequality Programme, specializing in women’s empowerment and gender equality. Abigail has previously worked with Womankind Worldwide and the European Women’s Lobby in policy-focused roles, and as gender adviser to the Ministry of Women and the Secrétariat permanent des organisations non gouvernementales in Burkina Faso.
Ihnatovich, Aliaksandra (Belarus) is an associated researcher at the Centre for Gender Studies and a lecturer at the European Humanities University (Lithuania). She is a media/culture/gender activist and an independent filmmaker.
Ivanova, Evgenia is a researcher, activist, and gender trainer. She is an associated researcher at the Centre for Gender Studies (European Humanities University) and co-founder of NGO ‘Adliga: Women for full Citizenship’; she is also an editor-in-chief of a Russian-speaking feminist almanac “Women in Politics: New Approaches to the Political’.
Karakoulaki, Marianna is a journalist covering the refugee crisis in Greece. She has worked for Channel 4 News on the award winning film Macedonia: tracking down the refugee kidnap gangs. Her book (eds. with L. Southgate and J. Steiner) on the critical dimensions of Migration in the 21st Century will be published in 2017.
Khan, Tessa is an international human rights lawyer with expertise in the intersection of sustainable development policy and human rights, particularly women’s human rights. She previously coordinated international advocacy on behalf of the Asia Pacific Forum on Women, Law and Development. She frequently publishes articles on the impact of trade and investment regimes on human rights and equitable development. She is currently a Director of the Climate Litigation Network.
Kovats, Eszter is a Project leader of the Gender equality in East-Central Europe Programme, Friedrich Ebert Foundation (Budapest). Her research interests include: Economy and Finance; Employment; Gender Mainstreaming; Poverty and Social Exclusion; Power and Decision-making.
Lenggenhager, Jelena is a gender activist and teacher. Her principal areas of interest and work are gender, migration and education. As a member of the feminist network WIDE Switzerland she has been involved in organising conferences and events that brought together gender activists and raised awareness on the importance of topics such as care, decent work and feminist economics for a gender-just society. She is currently on Board of WIDE+.
Linsenmeier, Klaus is an economist, works since 1998 with the Heinrich-Boell-Foundation, Germany, with a focus on development and foreign politics and European affairs; since 2009 director, HBF, North America/Washington DC; since 2015 director HBF European Office/Brüssel.
Lohmann, Kinga is a co-founder and Director of Karat Coalition for gender equality, network of women’s organizations from Central and Eastern Europe and Central Asia countries. She is an activist involved in the Polish and European feminist and social movement since 1995.Areas of expertise: the situation of disadvantaged women in the labour market and women’s rights. Presently WIDE+ Board member.
Maycock, Joanna is the Women’s European Lobby’s Secretary General. She has 20 years’ professional experience in senior leadership and governance positions in the European and International Development NGO sector. For the past 12 years, she has worked in Brussels for ActionAid a global Federation working for a world free from poverty and injustice. Joanna also has an extensive experience working for migrant women’s rights at the International Organization for Migration.
Meijers, Gea is currently WIDE+ (conference) coordinator and member of the WIDE+ board. She has worked within several international and national NGOs promoting human rights in different capacities, including organizing conferences. Her activism is mainly centred around transnational feminism and humanism (the protection of non-believing). Currently she has a special interest in highlighting the interrelations between EU trade policy and economic gender discriminations.
Meißner, Kathrin coordinator of project “political feminism” at Friedrich Ebert Stiftung headquarters.
Mias, Céline is an international development professional with 15 years’ experience of managing programs, policy/advocacy and resource development for development NGOs working globally. She directs the work of CARE International’s EU Liaison Office, with the aim of maximizing CARE’s access to EU funding and influence on EU policies on relevant humanitarian and development issues.
Mukhopadhyay, Maitrayee is a social anthropologist specialised in social development with a focus on gender and development. She has 30 years of experience in gender and development research, advisory work, teaching and training.
Ortíz, Alejandra Santillana, executive director of the Institute of Ecuadorian Studies and researcher, completing a PhD in Latin American Studies in Mexico.
Osman, Hibaaq is a global political strategist. She founded and serves as the Chairperson of the ThinkTank for Arab Women, the Dignity Fund, El-Karama, and the Centre for the Strategic Initiatives of Women.
Ozbay, Nuray is a political scientist, worked with the Women Entrepreneurs Association of Turkey (KAGIDER) and served as a Board Member of The Association for the Support of Women Candidates (KA.DER), presently she works with the research company Ipsos Public Affairs on violence against women, youth unemployment, education reform, and women’s labour force participation.
Pape, Pierrette is Policy and Campaigns Director at the European Women’s Lobby (EWL). She has been at the EWL since 2009, and most specifically in charge of monitoring and influencing the EU policies on violence against women and sexual and reproductive health and rights.
Paul-Langa, Napuli organises resistance of refugees in Berlin and surroundings, known media spokesperson. is one of the first activist who started the refugees movement at Oranienplatz/Germanyhe; she is also head and the founder of Blacks and Whites together for Human rights (BWTHR) association and member of Kunst darf alles e.V.
Perrinelli, Massimo worked for many years as a historian in the academic field of gender- and sexuality-studies and on the history of racism and migrant struggle. Currently he is responsible for migration at the Rosa-Luxemburg-Foundation. He is active in migrant self-organized networks and initiatives in support of the victims of racist attacks in Germany.
Pühl, Katharina works at Rosa Luxemburg Foundation Berlin in the field of feminist analysis of society and capitalism. Previously she was a university lecturer in social sciences/gender studies. Focus of work: gender-related asymmetries in social policies, economy and welfare state structures as well as right wing populism.
Reyna, Cristina after a long career with women’s rights NGOs, she is currently an independent gender and knowledge management consultant. She has coordinated all communications strategy for WIDE conference 2016.
Sancar, Annemarie is an academic and an activist. Her research focused on the construction of ethnicity among refugees in a given national context. In 2014 she joined swisspeace as a Senior Program Officer for gender in the Policy and Platform Program and at the Center for Peacebuilding (KOFF). Previously she worked at cfd – a feminist peace organization – as an expert in feminist peace policies and migration, and as gender senior advisor for the Swiss Agency for Development Cooperation. She is a member of WIDE.
Sharples, Marion is the Coordinator of the Gender and Development Network, based in the UK. She is also a freelance consultant and her specialisms include feminist economics, alternative development paradigms, and women’s leadership and participation. She has previously worked at the ONE Campaign and the European Women’s Lobby. Marion is a member of the WIDE+ Gender and Trade working group.
Shekar, Preeti is a feminist researcher, journalist and an online communications specialist. She is currently Communications Consultant for the Post 2015 Coalition at the Center for Women’s Global Leadership (CWGL). Preeti has been the Director of Narika, a Bay area-based organization working to end domestic violence in the South Asian diaspora. She is also a board member of San Francisco Women Against Rape (SFWAR).
Thallmayer, Claudia is the (co-)coordinator of WIDE Austria – Network for Women´s Rights and Feminist Perspectives in Development. Her areas of work are the facilitation of communication and exchange, support of research, and advocacy for women´s rights in the development context.
Wegelin, Milena is a project leader of Terres des Femmes Switzerland.
Wichterich, Christa, sociologist, works as university lecturer, author and researcher; she published widely on topics of globalisation, development and gender, women’s movements, feminist economics and feminist political ecology. Presently she is a member of the WIDE+ caucus.
Williams, Mariama is Senior Programme Officer, Global Governance for Development Programme at the South Centre.
Yacef, Amel has been working in the youth and community sector in Ireland for over 15 years and engaged young people facing social issues in various contexts, specifically minority ethnic young people. She is involved in various organisations, campaigns and movements mainly engaged in combatting racism and institutional discrimination, fighting for women’s rights making room for migrant voices, looking at immigration issues and borders. Amel has recently been elected chair of the European Network Against Racism.
Zobnina, Anna is Chair of the European Network of Migrant Women (ENoMW). In this role she works on capacity-building of migrant women NGOs in Europe and strengthening their inclusion in the EU decision-making, across such diverse areas as access to justice, citizenship, labour participation, sexual & reproductive rights and non-discrimination.