IPI STAFF

Event Team Member

Edzodzi Ahiadou

Africa Program Officer

Edzodzi Ahiadou is in charge of the collection of information and research on press freedom violations across Africa and supporting the implementation of Africa Project activities and advocacy. Before joining IPI, in 2022, he was a Program Associate at Media Foundation for West Africa (MFWA). He holds a Master’s degree in Anthropology from Université de Lomé- Togo, and certificates in International Relations, Global Politics, human rights and project management.
Event Team Member

Amy Brouillette

Director of Advocacy

Amy Brouillette is responsible for driving IPI’s global advocacy and press freedom monitoring work and campaigns. She joined IPI in 2022, with more than a decade of experience in leading research, advocacy, monitoring, and capacity-building projects focused on supporting and enabling independent journalism. She holds a master’s degree in journalism from the University of Colorado, Boulder, and a master’s degree in history from Central European University in Budapest.
Event Team Member

İgor Çelov

Turkey Project Officer

Igor Çelov works as part of the IPI’s #FreeTurkeyJournalists campaign focusing on monitoring press freedom violations, advocating for media freedom, and supporting quality independent journalism in Turkey. Before joining IPI, he worked in civil society and independent media support in Turkey. Igor holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees in political science and public administration from Middle East Technical University, Ankara. His academic interest revolves around populism and democracy in Russia, Turkey, and Europe.
Event Team Member

Beatrice Chioccioli

Europe Advocacy Officer

In her current role as the Europe Advocacy Officer, Beatrice Chioccioli brings expertise in both human rights and communications. She holds a Master’s Degree in European Studies from the University of Paris III – Sorbonne Nouvelle and another in Development and Humanitarian Aid from the University of Paris I – Sorbonne Panthéon. Beatrice’s professional journey includes managerial positions in European non-profits, as well as experience in the field of journalism. Prior to joining IPI, she served as a Research Editor at Dow Jones.
Event Team Member

Scott Griffen

Deputy Director

Scott Griffen joined IPI in 2012 as press freedom adviser focusing on Latin America and the Caribbean and later as director of press freedom programmes. He is the author of numerous IPI reports on diverse topics related to press freedom and independent journalism and has led or participated in dozens of IPI press freedom missions around the world. He comments regularly on issues related to press freedom and media pluralism in international media. He holds degrees from Yale University, King’s College London, and Johannes Kepler University Linz.
Event Team Member

Zeyneb GÜLTEKİN

Turkey Programme Coordinator

Zeyneb Gültekin joined IPI as of April 2023 and works on IPI’s #FreeTurkeyJournalists campaign. She has worked with national and international human rights and humanitarian organizations in Turkey since 2010 where she managed human rights projects and protection programmes for refugees, and was also responsible for communications, networking and advocacy. Zeyneb holds a bachelor’s degree in Political Science & International Relations and a master’s degree in Human Rights.
Event Team Member

DUMITRITA HOLDIS

Programme Manager

Dumitrița Holdiș joined IPI in April 2023 and is now working as a programme manager for the organisation. She has experience in managing research projects, conducting studies on media funding, illiberal speech, and forms of cooperation in journalism. She is trained as a sociologist and prior to joining IPI, she worked in universities and in the non-profit sector in Hungary and Romania. She holds a master’s degree in sociology and social anthropology from Central European University in Budapest, Hungary.
Event Team Member

Christiane Klint

Finance & Administration Manager

Christiane is in charge of IPI’s day-to-day financial management and works closely with the Head of Finances to prepare reports for IPI’s Board and donors and ensure accuracy, transparency, and accountability in financial management. She also attends to other administrative tasks and works across all teams in a supporting role. Christiane has been working with IPI since 1993 with a primary focus on communicating with IPI’s members, as well as providing support and planning advice on congresses, conferences and other IPI activities. Christiane grew up in Mexico City and attended the German school there. She also studied at York University in Toronto and at the University of Vienna.
Event Team Member

Timothy Large

Director of Independent Media Programmes

Timothy Large is an award-winning journalist, editor and media development specialist who is responsible for expanding IPI’s existing support to independent media as a means to build resilience in the face of press freedom restrictions and financial hardship. Before joining IPI, he was Founding Editor of the Reporting Democracy cross-border journalism platform and Editor of the Fellowship for Journalistic Excellence at the Balkan Investigative Reporting Network. He was also Director of Reuters media development programmes, Editor-in-Chief of the Thomson Reuters Foundation, Editor of the Reuters AlertNet humanitarian news service and a Reuters correspondent.
Event Team Member

Martin Leonhartsberger

Head of Finance

Martin Leonhartsberger is a certified public accountant and has over 15 years experience in finance and administration working for companies such as GEWISTA WerbegesmbH, PROGRESS Werbe, VerlagsgmbH, Altstoff Recycling Austria AG, Manpower GmbH and more recently Philips Austria GmbH.

Martin ensures the smooth operation of all of IPI’s financial and administrative needs.

Event Team Member

Grace Linczer

Membership and Engagement Manager

Grace Linczer works as part of the IPI Membership Team to coordinate the onboarding of new IPI members and to enhance their overall member experience. She holds a master’s degree in public administration from Central European University and a bachelor’s degree in anthropology and international peace studies from the University of Notre Dame. Prior to her time at CEU, Grace worked as Membership Engagement Manager at PEN America where she developed the PEN Across America program, engaging communities across the U.S. in advocacy efforts to defend press freedom and civil discourse.
Event Team Member

Karol Łuczka

Eastern Europe Monitoring and Advocacy Officer

Karol Łuczka leads IPI’s work in Eastern Europe, with a focus on Belarus, Moldova, Russia and Ukraine. He is responsible for monitoring press freedom violations committed during the Russia-Ukraine war, as well as for outreach and advocating media rights in the wider region. Karol was previously a correspondent for Belsat TV, RFE/RL and Hromadske Radio in Russia and Ukraine. He earned his bachelor’s degree in Political Science at the Central and Eastern European campus of Sciences Po Paris in Dijon. He obtained his master’s degree in International Relations in 2018 from Science Po Paris.
Event Team Member

Javier Luque Martínez

Head of Digital Communications

Javier Luque coordinates advocacy and communication on IPI’s digital platforms. He has worked on online hate against journalists and media organisations since 2014. His research on this topic has been quoted by media worldwide such as The Guardian, The British Journalism Review and Bloomberg News among others. He has also worked as a consultant for the OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media for their project on Safety of Female Journalists Online. Prior to joining IPI, Javier worked as a broadcast and multimedia journalist for local and international news organisations in the US and Spain.
Event Team Member

Frane Maroević

Executive Director

Maroević brings to this position over 30 years in journalism, media development and press freedom. He developed his passion for journalism and learned the skills, professional standards and values of this profession at the BBC World Service in London. In post-war Bosnia and Herzegovina he worked on the reform of public broadcasting, media regulation and managed donor support for independent media. As the director of the office of the OSCE media freedom representative, he managed responses to numerous cases of media freedom violations in 57 countries that are part of this intergovernmental organization. Just before joining IPI, his work at the Internet and Jurisdiction Policy Network and the Freedom Online Coalition Advisory Network focused on threats to online freedom of expression.
Event Team Member

Milica Miletic

Projects and Events Coordinator

Milica Miletić plans, manages and develops IPI conferences, events, and seminars. She also coordinates IPI’s Investigative Journalism for Europe (IJ4EU) project, which funds cross-border watchdog journalism in Europe, and provides support to IPI’s innovation projects. In addition, Milica contributes extensively to the implementation of other IPI projects, communications, design, and marketing. For 10 years she managed IPI’s biggest annual press freedom event — the IPI World Congress. Prior to joining IPI, she worked for the Media Center Belgrade and the South East Europe Network for Professionalisation of Media (SEENPM). She holds degrees in journalism and media studies from the University of Belgrade.
Event Team Member

Oliver Money-Kyrle

Head of Europe Advocacy and Programmes

Oliver Money-Kyrle is a media development expert and press freedom activist with over twenty years’ experience defending the rights of journalists in Eastern Europe, the Middle East and Turkey. He joined IPI in September 2019 to head up the #FreeTurkeyJournalists campaign. Prior to that he was the Director of Projects with the International Federation of Journalists managing their global programmes and campaigns on journalists’ rights. He holds a BA in Political Science from the University of Bristol and a Graduate Certificate in Project Management from Boston University Brussels.
Event Team Member

Veera Nikkila

Helsingin Sanomat Foundation Journalism Fellow

Veera holds a bachelor’s degree in communication and media from Hogeschool Utrecht, Netherlands, and is currently in the final stages of completing her master’s degree in journalism in Tampere, Finland. She has worked for Finnish newspapers, covering local and international news. Veera has previously interned also at the Finnish Ministry for Foreign Affairs, as well as at the Finnish trade union for people working in private service sections (PAM United).
Event Team Member

Marsela Pećanac

Director of Strategy

Marsela Pećanac is an activist, organizer, and fundraiser focused on nonprofits. At IPI, she is supporting the organisation’s overall strategy. Marsela’s career has interwoven human rights and media freedom, values-driven finance, then progressive philanthropy. She serves on the Board of Directors for Rainforest Action Network and Threshold Foundation in the US. Marsela works closely with a broad global coalition on the Balkan’s Blue Heart of Europe campaign to save the last free-flowing rivers in Europe. She founded the Atelier for Community Transformation (ACT) to strengthen frontline activism in the Western Balkans. She holds an MBA in Finance from the University of Turin in Italy and the University of Sarajevo, and she graduated with honors from Marymount Manhattan College in NYC and E.F.A.P. Paris, the school of media in France.
Event Team Member

Ryan Powell

Head of Innovation and Media Business

Ryan Powell leads and designs a portfolio of training, funding and research programmes independent media pursuing diversified revenue models, audience engagement and future proofed editorial formats through innovation methodologies worldwide. Before joining IPI, he was head of an Austrian magazine’s product and publishing divisions, and advised independent media outlets in Europe and Africa on revenue diversification and product strategy. He published in and reported for the Center for International Media Assistance, World Bank, CNN International, Huffington Post and others from Dar es Salaam, Berlin, Istanbul, Accra and Vienna. He holds an MPhil from the University of Oxford and a BA from Suffolk University.
Event Team Member

Teona Sekhniashvili

Europe Network & Press Freedom Coordinator

In her current role as Europe Network & Press Freedom Coordinator, Teona Sekhniashvili coordinates the activities of IPI’s network in Central and Eastern Europe and contributes to IPI’s advocacy and monitoring efforts in the region. Before joining IPI in 2022, Teona worked in different positions in media and civil society organizations, including The Fix Media, the Media Institute in Tbilisi, and the Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung South Caucasus Office. Teona holds a master’s degree in political science from Central European University with a focus on human rights and constitutionalism, and political theory.
Event Team Member

Nompilo Simanje

Africa Advocacy and Partnerships Lead

Nompilo Simanje joined IPI in March 2023 as the Africa Advocacy and Partnerships Lead. Before joining IPI, she worked as the Legal and ICT Policy Officer for the Media Institute of Southern Africa (MISA). Nompilo has experience in advocacy and capacity building centred on promoting media freedom and freedom of expression, access to information and the right to privacy both online and offline. She holds a Bachelors’ Degree in Law (LLBS) from the University of Zimbabwe and certificates in African human rights systems and Tech law and policy from the University of Pretoria and the University of Cape Town respectively.
Event Team Member

Sérgio Spagnuolo

Innovation Projects Manager

Sérgio Spagnuolo is a Brazilian journalist specialized in data journalism, innovation, and product development. He is the founder of two news startups in Brazil and holds a Master’s Degree in International Relations. He has been a Tow-Knight Fellow for Entrepreneurial Journalism at the City University of New York and was an ICFJ Knight Fellow from 2020 to 2022.