Meet the Researchers
Access Info has recruited an excellent team of researchers, both individuals and civil society organisations, to carry out the research in 27 countries across the globe.
Individual Researchers
Elyse Howe is an Australian artist and researcher. Howe has participated in group shows and installations at 107 Gallery in Redfern, Articulate Project Space in Leichardt, Canberra Museum and Art Gallery, and Ainslie and Gorman House in Canberra; and presented at Digital Intimacies 6 Conference. She works as a research assistant on various projects about Datafication and its social impact.
Stephan Anguelov is an attorney-at-law and researcher in the Access to Information Programme, a non-governmental organization in Bulgaria. Stephan’s line of work includes providing legal aid and representation in access to information and related personal data protection cases, as well as research, and monitoring in the areas of transparency and accountability. Stephan is preparing a PhD in Constitutional law on the impact of information technologies on the freedom of expression and privacy in the Sofia University “St. Kliment Ohridski”.
Michal Škop is always connecting different things together: data science and political science, web development of applications for anyone with statistics, visualizations and the academia. Michal’s background is in mathematics, statistics and demography. He is director of KohoVolit.eu, Czech data-driven watchdog for local politics and society in general.
Niels Erik Kaaber Rasmussen has a background in computer science and political science from the University of Copenhagen. He is co-founder of the Danish local group of the worldwide Open Knowledge network. He currently works as a chief analyst in The Association of Danish Physiotherapists. He has been working with data and especially data related to transparency in politics and governance for years.
Caroline Murgue is a French Anthropologist who organized workshops on Artificial Intelligence / Data Ethics at Google, Microsoft, MIT, and 42 computer programming school. She founded the Touch Symposium to spark the conversation between philosophers and tech professionals.
Elsa is a young professional in research and evaluation currently based in Berlin. She graduated in 2015 from the Sciences Po Paris School of International Affairs with a MA in International Public Management with a focus on human rights and European studies. Since then, she worked in various consultancies providing evaluation, research and management services to international organisations and NGOs. She developed strong project management and research skills, including data collection and analysis. While her main area of expertise is related to human rights and inclusion of vulnerable population groups, she recently gained expertise in open data and digitalisation issues. Elsa speaks fluent French, English, Spanish and German.
Erasmia Tsipou is a Media Professional, M.A. Communication and Culture, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki Department of Journalism and Mass Media, B.A. in Humanitarian Studies, & B.A. in Business Administration from ACT. She has more than 20 years of working experience in Mass Media. She is Board Member of DCN Global, Research Fellow in Peace Journalism Laboratory, Leader of the Greek Team in Fake News Hunters, a DCN Global project, and she has also published scientific papers.
Sophocles P. Geroules is a postgraduate student of the “Risk Communication and Crisis Journalism” Master in Arts program from the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, in Greece, where he also obtained his bachelor degree. He has been a scholar of the Fulbright Foundation and the Konrad Adenauer Stiftung, while working as a researcher and academic associate in a series of projects, in cooperation with multiple international organizations. His main academic and professional interest focuses on the development of strategic leadership.
Denis Parfenov is passionate about empowering evidence-based decision-making by enabling the universal free flow of data with trust through employment of openly licensed distributed data infrastructures. Denis is a founder of the Data Management Hub, a member of the Creative Commons Global Network and a former founding member of the Open Data Governance Board in Ireland.
Guy Zomer is the founder of the Octopus – Public Information for All (R.A.), an organization that aims to improve public and legal information accessibility. Guy is a law graduate and analyst that believes citizens should act proactively to ensure the accessibility and availability of public information, instead of relying on authorities to do so themselves. Guy worked in the governmental unit for freedom of information and later on in the movement for freedom of information.
Liene Gatere is a non-governmental sector professional and currently works as an independent consultant and researcher specializing in anti-corruption and good governance. She has worked for Transparency International Latvia for four years and was chapter’s Executive Director from 2018 till 2020. She has been on several research teams and has participated in efforts to advance government transparency and development of open data innovations. Previously she worked for a women’s rights organization and organized political discussion events PolitiCafe. Liene holds a MA in Political Science and since September 2020 studies Law and Governance at University of Latvia.
Rugile Trumpyte is a public policy expert with more than 10 years of experience in the fields of transparency, accountability, and inclusion. Currently she is the CEO of Lithuanian Diversity Charter and a local country research correspondent for the European Commission, responsible for evaluating Lithuania’s anti-corruption efforts. She is also evaluating Lithuania’s commitments to an open, more inclusive public sector for the Open Government Partnership. In 2011 – 2020, she was a senior lead at Transparency International Lithuania.
Christoph Schwaiger is a freelance journalist from Malta. He is currently completing a master’s in journalism in the Netherlands and is interested in researching the impact news has on society. During his time working as a full-time journalist in Malta, his main areas of interest were politics, health, and education – topics that are still close to his heart. Schwaiger is active in a number of civil society organisations that champion the safeguarding of human rights and the promotion and development of a person’s skills.
Keitha Booth is a New Zealand researcher and commentator, with longstanding interests in open and digital government and information policy development and delivery. She reviews New Zealand’s Open Government Partnership commitments and has presented extensively and published on information policy, open licensing, open data, e-government and government information management.
Gustavo Magalhães is a researcher, consultant, and facilitator working at the intersection of technology, information, and public value. With a broad international experience, from large-scale projects to local field work, he is a firm believer of co-creation and interdisciplinary innovation to deal with broader social challenges. His interests include open data, digital transformation, business models, collaborative innovation, GovTech, and science communication.
Originally from Slovakia, Lucia is a researcher and a project manager in the field of international development cooperation, with a focus on anti-corruption. She currently works as a Project Coordinator with the Civil Forum for Asset Recovery, where she