Speakers

Robert Basch

Executive Director, Open Society Fund Prague, Czech Republic

Robert Basch graduated at the Charles University, Prague in Political and Economic Sociology in 1999. He started his professional career in one of the biggest NGOs in the Central Europe – People in Need. He served there on different positions – e.g. Operations Director and Head of Production of International Human Rights Film Festival One World. He moved to the US Embassy Prague in 2006 where was responsible for the cooperation with the non-profits. After leading the Vodafone CZ Foundation he became the OSF Prague Executive Director in 2008.

motto: Nothing ventured, nothing gained.

Barbora Burajová

I have been encountering the issue of violence against women in my professional career for more than 17 years. As a student of the Faculty of Law at Comenius University in Bratislava I worked as a legal counsellor in a free legal counselling centre of the Slovak Helsinki Committee focusing on human rights enforcement and antidiscrimination. Although the issue of violence against women was not articulated as gender based discrimination or a breach of human rights in Slovakia at the time, women experiencing violence in an intimate relationship were approaching the centre. During my solicitor training I also took up the representation and defense of clients’ interests in legal processes. Both of these positions gave me the great opportunity to confront the system and the real experience of women experiencing violence, as well as the way the issue of violence against women is reflected in the Slovak legal system and the decision-making practice of relevant public institutions. With regard to the need to articulate the needs of women and the realisation that a holistic approach is necessary, potentially protecting all women from any form of violence and supporting true gender equality, I accepted the job offer from the Open Society Foundation as a legal expert and project coordinator with a focus on gender equality, women’s human rights and combating gender based violence against women. This enabled me to broaden my scope of activities to include solicitor-related, analytical and educational work. International partnerships have given me the opportunity to confront Slovak practice with international standards and cooperation with NGOs to systematically deepen my knowledge of the issue. I have been working in the position of General Manager of the Coordinating Methodical Centre for Gender Based and Domestic Violence, which is a part of the Institute of Labour and Family Research, a state funded organisation of the Ministry of Labour, Social Affairs and Family of the Slovak Republic since March 2015. My team is in charge of creating and coordinating a nationwide, efficient, complex and coordinated policy including all relevant measures to prevent all forms of violence against women and domestic violence and combatting it, as defined in the Council of Europe Convention on preventing and combating violence against women and domestic violence.

Adriana Dergam

Adriana began her professional career in Madrid in 1997 in Spanish Radio’s international broadcast. Since then she has worked in various positions in the media (Czech TV, Mexican Televisa), non-governmental and academic institutions and in the business sector (Walton International Ltd., Mentora). Within Vodafone’s sustainable business strategy, she also deals with implementing SDGs, issues of diversity and equality in the workplace and in society, the development of young people and environmental issues. She is the Vice-Chair of the Board or Directors, Vodafone Foundation.

Miroslava Drahotová

Miroslava Drahotová has been working as an evaluator, consultant and project manager at HaskoningDHV Czech Republic, spol. s.r.o. She heads the areas of management, administration and EU programme evaluation. Her main focus is on the evaluation of public spending programmes and the projects linked to them. She has many years of experience in education, management and evaluation of programmes funded by EU structural funds. In 2002 she began to work in public funded programmes at the Czech Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports in the area of the further education of pedagogical employees (coordination of a national pilot educational programme for school principals – “Functional Study”). She has also been active in the area of management, implementation and evaluation of EU structural funds since 2004.

Slavenka Drakulić

Writer and Journalist, Croatia

Slavenka Drakulić, born in Croatia (former Yugoslavia) in 1949, is an author whose books and essays have been translated into many languages. Drakulić is a contributing editor in The Nation (USA) and a freelance author whose essays have appeared in The New Republic, The New York Times Magazine and The New York Review Of Books as well as in Süddeutsche Zeitung (Germany), Internazionale (Italy), Dagens Nyheter (Sweden), The Guardian (UK), Eurozine and other newspapers and magazines.
Slavenka Drakulić is the recipient of the 2004 Leipzig Book-fair “Award for European Understanding.”
www.slavenkadrakulic.com

motto: There is no democracy without participation of women.

Terje B. Englund

Communications & EEA Adviser, Royal Norwegian Embassy to the Czech Republic

Educated at the University of Oslo and the Slavonic institute in Prague, Englund worked for almost two decades as a journalist, covering Central Europe for Scandinavian media. He has also authored several books about post-communist Europe. Since 2015, Englund has been working as Communications adviser at the Norwegian Embassy in Prague.

motto:Talent has no gender.

Gerd Fleischer

Founder and Director, SEIF, Norway

She studied languages and literature. She worked as a journalist (1967-1970) and a book editor (1970-1978) in Mexico. She established the first shelter for battered women in Norway (1979-1984). She founded SEIF (Self-help for Immigrants and Refugees) in 1986 and has since worked as the head of the organization. She is an activist on the following topics: legislation and protection for battered women, rights of minor asylum seekers, political work and direct assistance to victims of honour-related violence, rights and protection of LGBTI.

motto: Problems exist just to be resolved!

Heinrich Geldschläger

Research director, Conexus Association (Barcelona), Spain

He is a psychologist and a psychotherapist. He has been working in the field of gender-based violence and, specifically, with men who use violence and abuse, for more than 15 years. Currently, she is a research director at Conexus Association in Barcelona, Spain. He is a member of the board for the European Network for the Work with Perpetrators (WWP EN) and of the steering committee for MenEngage Europe. She has been delivering conferences and trainings nationally and internationally; among his most relevant publications are: Ginés, O. Geldschläger, H., Nax, D. & Ponce, A. (2015): European perpetrator programmes: A survey on day-to-day outcome measurement. Studia Humanistyczne Agh, 14, 33 – 52. Geldschläger, H. et al. (2010). Programas europeos de intervención para hombres que ejercen violencia de género: panorámica y estándares de calidad. Intervención Psicosocial, 19, 181-190. [European intervention programmes for perpetrators of gender based violence: overview and quality standards]

motto: A coordinated community response against gender based violence should include victim-safety oriented work with perpetrators.

Barbora Hořavová

Let’s Give (Wo)Men a Chance Programme Manager, Open Society Fund Prague, Czech Republic

Barbora Hořavová studied political science at the Faculty of Social Sciences, Charles University Prague. She is the Programme Director at the Open Society Fund Prague. She has been in charge of the Let’s Give (Wo)Men a Chance programme since 2013, which has been financed with more than 150 million CZK from Norway Grants and has supported projects promoting equal opportunities and prevention of domestic and gender based violence. Before joining the OSF she worked at the Multicultural Centre Prague non-profit organisation, where her initial focus was on education and the Campaign against Racism/Variety into Libraries project and cooperating with various professional groups (teachers, librarians, media) and the public administration. Later, as the organisation’s executive director, she concentrated mainly on its overall operation and professionalization and took part in launching the educational programme for the commercial sector of Diversity Management.

motto: Never say never.

Gauri van Gulik

Deputy Director for Europe and Central Asia, Amnesty International London

Gauri van Gulik is Deputy Europe Director at Amnesty International, responsible for the organisation’s research in the EU, Turkey and the Balkans. Previously she worked for Human Rights Watch on women’s rights in Europe and around the world for 7 years. Before that she has worked in Brussels for women’s health organisation Marie Stopes International, in the European Parliament and the International Rehabilitation Council for Torture Victims.

motto: It is better to light a candle than to curse the darkness.

Monika Hilm

Disruptive hotelier and author

Monika has for 20 years worked & managed hotels; in both corporate chains and individual hotels in 10 countries on 3 different continents.
A BSc. degree in Hotel Management from Oxford Brookes University. Her blog can be found on www.monikahilm.com
Her book releases this week: Put Your people first and the rest will follow, There are more similarities between people around the world, than there are differences, People want to be respected, listened to and be treated fairly and above all most people want to do a good job and they must be given space to do just that. During my hotel career I have come across many good managers, however unfortunately I have met many, many more really poor and destructive manager who have directly lead hotel employees to leave the business or worse causing health risks and creating horrifying work conditions. During my last assignment with Daramis Group I have had the wonderful opportunity to test my theories about happy hotel workforce. Results have been extremely rewarding and gave me the courage to share my experiences with you.

Agnès Hubert

Founding Member and currently President of European feminist think-thank Gender5+

Former EU official, currently professor on gender inequalities and EU policies at the College of Europe and affiliate researcher at PRESAGE, Science po Paris and more importantly founding member of Gender5plus, the first independent European Feminist Think Tank.

motto: Empowering women, driving change.

Birger Husted

Member of the Board of Nordic Chamber, General Manager Husted s.r.o., Nordic Chamber of Commerce, Husted s.r.o., Denmark/Czech Republic

Birger Husted is a Danish National living in the Czech Republic since 1992. He is the owner of the Executive Search firm Husted s.r.o. |EMA Partners Czech & Slovak and a Scandinavian Expert on the Czech Republic. He has advised the major Scandinavian firms in the Czech Republic on their organisational development and found the top management for many of the companies. Birger is furthermore a member of the board of Nordic Chamber of Commerce in the Czech Republic since 2000 and board of the Danish Business Club in the Czech Republic since its establishment in 2015. Birger was the initiator of a Mentoring project for Czech Women in Politics run by Forum 50% and the Danish and Norwegian Embassies in Prague.

motto: Be involved and engaged – Through your activities you can make a difference. Show respect and be fair – everyone else is just as important as you. Be positive and trustful – and the world will smile to you.

Barbora Jakobsen

Barbora Jakobsen is a clinical psychologist. She received her MA in psychology at the Department of Psychology at the Faculty of Arts, Palacký University in Olomouc. Since 2008 she has been working in Norway. She has worked at both a psychiatric centre and an addiction centre. She specialises in violence in close relationships and has been the head of the ATV Centre in Tromsø for the last 6 years. She is active as a psychotherapist, carries out training and supervisions and was responsible for the cooperation with the Czech side at ATV.

Věra Jourová

Commissioner for Justice, Consumers and Gender Equality, European Commission

Věra Jourová is currently European Commissioner for Justice, Consumers and Gender Equality. In 2014, before arriving to the European Commission, Ms Jourová held the position of Minister for Regional Development in the Czech Republic. Previous to this, from 2006 to 2013, she worked in her own company as an international consultant on European Union funding, and was also involved in consultancy activities in the Western Balkans relating to the European Union Accession. She holds a Degree in Law (Mgr.) and a Master´s degree (Mgr.) in the Theory of Culture from the Charles University, Prague.

motto: A prospering economy and gender-equal society go hand in hand.

Borbála Juhász

Ex-chair, Hungarian Women’s Lobby, Member of European Women’s Lobby Task Force on Central Eastern European, Baltic and Balkan States, Hungary

During her professional carreer, Borbála Juhász worked as a teacher, a women’s historian, a gender researcher, a civil servant specialised in gender equality, as well as an NGO volunteer and employee. She was on the board of the European Women’s Lobby since 2008, becoming its vice president in 2014 until 2016. She was the chair of the Hungarian Women’s Lobby from 2012 to 2017 and the member of the Management Committee of Social Platform from 2015 to 2017. Her main fields of expertise: women’s history, promoting women’s political participation, gender mainstreaming and equal opportunity policies. She is a dedicated feminist with a passion for the women’s cause. She lives in Budapest as a teacher, with her 13 year old daughter. Borbála Juhász graduated in history and English language and literature and English as a Foreign Language teacher at ELTE University, Budapest. Later she got an MA in history at Central European University, Budapest.

motto: “The purpose of all political association is the preservation of the natural and imprescriptible rights of woman and man. These rights are liberty, property, security, and especially resistance to oppression.” (Olympe de Gouges, 1791)

Freja Ulvestad Kärki

Project Manager, Norwegian Directorate of Health, Norway

Freja Ulvestad Kärki is specialist in clinical and organizational psychology and has experience from clinical work, management and national/international policy making (WHO, EU). She was in charge of the psycho-social follow-up for the victims of 22nd July terror in Norway. Other working areas: program management in EEA/Norway Grant Programme in gender-based and domestic violence (Estonia and Slovakia). Publications:

motto: The highest proof of virtue is to possess boundless power without abusing it.
Thomas Bobington Macauley.

Jana Smiggels Kavková

Chair, Czech Women Lobby, Director, Fórum 50 %, Czech Republic

Jana studied Political Science in Leiden, The Netherlands. She´s been working in the field of gender equality since 2005. As a member and later chair of Commission on equal representation of women and men in politics she cooperated on drafting a law proposal introducing electoral quotas. In 2010 Forum 50 % ran a successful campaign to support women in the elections resulting in election of 14 women MPs by using preferential votes. Jana is member of Council for Equality between Women and Men and former board member of European Women´s Lobby. Since 2016 she is chairing Czech Women´s Lobby, a network of 30 NGOs supporting women´s rights.

motto: If women are not included in decision making, it is like looking at the world with only one eye open.

Michael Kimmel

SUNY Distinguished Professor of Sociology and Gender Studies, Stony Brook University, USA, Executive Director, Center for the Study of Men and Masculinities, United States

Michael Kimmel is one of the world’s leading experts on men and masculinities. He is the SUNY Distinguished Professor of Sociology and Gender Studies at Stony Brook University. Among his many books are Manhood in America, Angry White Men, The Politics of Manhood, The Gendered Society and the bestseller Guyland: The Perilous World Where Boys Become Men. With funding from the MacArthur Foundation, he founded the Center for the Study of Men and Masculinities at Stony Brook in 2013. A tireless advocate of engaging men to support gender equality, Kimmel has lectured at more than 300 colleges, universities and high schools. He has delivered the International Women’s Day annual lecture at the European Parliament, the European Commission and the Council of Europe, and has worked with the Ministers for Gender Equality of Norway, Denmark and Sweden in developing programs for boys and men. He consults widely with corporations, NGOs and public sector organizations on gender equity issues. He was recently called “the world’s most prominent male feminist” in The Guardian newspaper in London.

motto:If we want to empower women and girls, we must engage boys and men

Taran Knudstad

Senior Adviser, The Norwegian Equality and Anti-Discrimination Ombud, Norway

Taran Knudstad is a senior advisor at the Norwegian Equality and Anti-Discrimination Ombud, where she monitors whether Norwegian laws and policies correspond with the United Nations’ Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination Against Women, International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination and Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. She concentrates on issues of equality and discrimination relating to gender and ethnicity or intersectional challenges and violence against women and girls with a special focus on cyber violence: its different forms and prevalence as well as mapping out legislative shortcomings, hate speech and hate crime. She coordinates the ombud’s strategy against this violence, including preventive and other measures to combat negative gender stereotypes. She creates ombud’s reports relating to the UN conventions and following up the state’s responsibilities deriving from the Istanbul Convention.

motto: Making sure the state’s efforts to combat discrimination and promote equality is in accordance with women’s human rights as well as being abreast of social, cultural and technological developments.

Heinrich Kraus

Forensic Psychotherapist, Männerberatung Wien, Austria

Heinrich Kraus is a psychologist and a forensic psychotherapist. He works with men who have been performed violence in family or public at the Men Counselling Centre in Vienna as well as in different prisons in and around Vienna.

motto: I am interrested in a victim orientated approach to domestic violence and different methods of changing violent men.

Claudie Laburdová

I am a member of the Roma womens’ group Manushe, which is a section of the non-profit organisation Word 21. In 2010-2014 I was actively engaged in one of the Manushe group projects called “Mum, Dad, I want to go to school”, which, with the help of the Theatre of the Supressed method, was aimed at convincing Roma parents of the advantages of primary schools and, on the contrary, the drawbacks of practical schools (schools for pupils with special needs). At present I work as the manager of Jileha/With all the Heart, which was initiated by long-standing members of the Manushe group. We implement this organization under the Word 21 organisation. I am in charge of leading the coordinators of local Women’s groups in twelve cities, providing them with gender issues in a relevant form, and responding to current needs of women in the given localities. I believe that Roma women can be agents of change in Roma communities, which requires empowering Roma women both in their communities and in public space.

Marta Lempart (Polsko)

Women’s Rights’ Activist and Leader of the Polish Women’s Strike (Black Monday), Poland

She is a women’s rights activist and a democracy fighter. She started and has been the leader of the national help committee of the Polish Women’s Strike, a coalition of women that on 3 October 2016 – known as Black Monday – organized and led the “black protests” in over 150 cities in Poland that stopped Polish parliament from introducing a total abortion ban in Poland. Polish protests were the inspiration to form the International Women’s Strike coalition that organized women’s protests in 60 countries worldwide on 8 March 2017. She is one of the founders and a member of the Prodemocratic Coalition, a movement formed after national protests for judicial independence, consisting of members of civic organization and opposition parties. Her main aim is mainstreaming women’s rights as unconditional, core value in modern, democratic society; not something to be “discussed later”.

motto: People don’t need to be lead the way, they need to be supported when they walk their own. That’s how we will all get there.

Belinda de León

Project Manager, SEIF, Norway

She studied Spanish and Social Anthropology at the University of Oslo. She focused on the Roma communities in Spain. She has been working at SEJF (Self-help for Immigrants and Refugees) since 2000. She is a project manager for the Daphne III project “Between Honor and Shame” – a Nordic cooperation between Norway, Sweden, Denmark and Finland – which is a comparative study on the different approaches on the fight against honour-related violence. Currently, she works with the Norwegian Roma, minority families with children with disabilities and deals with labour exploitation among migrants, honour-related violence and violence in closed relationships or gender-based violence with special focus on minority women.

motto: The ones who are crazy enough to think they can change the world, are the ones that do.

Rosa Logar

Logar Rosa is Executive Director of the Domestic Violence Intervention Center Vienna (1997), a member of the European Network WAVE (Women Against Violence Europe, 1994) and of the European Network Work with Perpetrators (WWP, 2013). In the Intervention Center Rosa is also responsible for the management of the Anti-Violence Program, a victim-safety oriented program for perpetrators of gender-based violence carried out in partnership with the Men’s Center since 1999. Rosa is a founding member of the Austrian Federal working group on victim-safety oriented work with perpetrators (BAG-OTA, 2012). The working group has developed standards for the work with perpetrators and implemented protocols for cooperation between perpetrator work and victim support organisations. Contact: rosa.logar@interventionsstelle-wien.at

motto: “The safety of, support for and the human rights of victims are of primary concern” and programmes for perpetrators “are set up and implemented in close co-ordination with specialist support services for victims.” (IC).

Line Nersnæs

Line Nersnæs is a sociologist at the Univeristy in Oslo, Norway. She has been the policy director in the Police Department of the Ministry of Justice and Public Security since October 2000. She is responsible for coordinating the Norwegian government’s efforts to combat domestic violence and ensures the implementation of measures to prevent domestic violence at the national level. She is the chair of an interministerial group responsible for coordinating actions on domestic violence and violence against woman in general.

motto: Always be well prepared.

Heidi Nordby Lunde

Member of Parliament, The Conservative Party, Norway

Heidi Nordby Lunde is serving as Member of Parliament since the 2013 general election, and is a member of the Standing Committee on Finance. Nordby Lunde is known as a speaker, commentator and columnist in Norway. She has frequent appearances on television and radio concerning a wide variety of political issues, including tax policies and economy, welfare state, gender equality and SRHR, and the impact of new technology and social media.D

motto: Don’t join them – beat them!

Michaela Marksová

Michaela Marksová-Tominová was born on the 20th of March 1969. She is a graduate of the Faculty of Science, Charles University Prague. In 1997-2004 she was Public Relations Director of the Gender Studies public benefit organisation. In 2004-2006 she was the head of the Family Policy Department at the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs and from April 2009 to September 2010 director of the Equal Opportunities in Education Department at the Ministry of Education. From August 2010 till February 2014 she was the shadow minister for Human Rights and Equal Opportunities in the shadow cabinet of the Czech Social Democratic party. At present she is nearing her fourth year as Minister of Labour and Social Affairs, where she has made good use of her previous experience. Her long term focuses have been on family policy and equal opportunities.

Joanna Maycock

Secretary General, European Women Lobby

Joanna Maycock has been Secretary General of the European Women’s Lobby (EWL) since May 2014.
Founded in 1990, the European Women’s Lobby (EWL) is the largest alliance of women’s non-governmental associations in the European Union. The EWL has over 2,000 women’s organisation members throughout the EU who come together around our common vision of a Feminist Europe.
EWL is a credible source of expertise and experience on women’s rights, representing the diversity of the women’s movement across the European Union. EWL represents an inclusive, confident, loud, independent feminist voice and brings real women’s voices into the EU political arena.
Since joining the EWL in 2014, Joanna has been leading work with the membership to define a dynamic new strategic vision for the women’s movement in Europe, to strengthen its joint vision and work towards a feminist Europe.
A lifelong feminist, Joanna has 20 years’ experience in leadership positions in Civil Society. She led ActionAid International’s work in Europe: Developing and implementing campaigns on the effectiveness of international aid, and women’s rights. Joanna was the first woman President of CONCORD, the European Confederation of Development NGOs. Prior to that she worked for the International Organisation for Migration focusing on rights of migrant women and women victims of trafficking
Joanna was named one of the most influential women in Brussels by Politico newspaper in 2016
@JoannaMaycock
@europeanwomen

motto: “Feminism has never been about getting a job for one woman. It’s about making life more fair for women everywhere. It’s not about a piece of the existing pie; there are too many of us for that. It’s about baking a new pie.”‬ Gloria Steinem

Henning Mohaupt

Specialist in Clinical Psychology, Altenativ Til Vold, Norway

She is a clinical psychologist from Bergen University. She works as a clinical psychologist at ATV Stavanger since 2008. She has experience in clinical work with men who use IPV, women who experience intimate partner violence and mothers and toddler dyads who have traumatic reactions after experiencing violence in the family. Since 2011, she is in charge of research project “How do men who use IPV experience the relationship to their children?” Since 2016, with this project she is enrolled as a PhD student at the Department of Psychology, University of Oslo. She is a co-author of “Parental Reflective Functioning in Men who Use Intimate Partner Violence: Findings from a Norwegian Clinical Sample” (Nordic Psychology, 2016), “Mentalization or Affect Consciousness? A Comparison of Two Concepts with Regard to Affect Development and Affect Regulation” (Scandinavian Journal of Psychology, 2006).

motto: Violence is based on fear. Fear feeds on loneliness. Relationships heal through the co-creation of meaning.

Frode Mortensen

Senior Sector Officer – Justice and Home Affairs, Financial Mechanism Office

I am a lawyer by occupation and I have worked more than three years in the FMO. In the FMO I am responsible for the Asylum and Migration Sector, the Judicial sector and DGBV-sector and I am responsible as a programme manager for the programmes involving the said sectors. Before 2014 I have worked in the Norwegian Directorate of Immigration since 2001 in different management position, last as project manager and acting as Director of the Strategy department. I have also worked one year as Country Director for the Norwegian Refugee Council in Uganda and worked three years at the Royal Norwegian Embassy in Nairobi.

Johanna Nejedlová

Co-founder, Konsent, Czech Republic

She is the co-founder and the head of Konsent, an organization which is trying to bust myths spread in broad public about rape and sexual assault and to prevent rape.

motto: A just global society free of all forms of violence and discrimination against women, where women’s and girl’s rights are respected and protected.

Rachel Eapen Paul

Policy Director, The Norwegian Equality and Anti-Discrimination Ombud, Norway

Masters degree in Criminology, University of Oslo, Norway
Master of Philosophy, University of Madras, India
Areas of expertise:
I have been working on Gender based violence and gender equality issues for 30 years from different perspectives.
I work at present as Policy director at the Office of the Equality and Anti-Discrimination Ombud – LDO (http://www.ldo.no/). My key professional capabilities include addressing gender based violence, gender mainstreaming, international project development and management, and expertise on the UN Conventions: CEDAW, CERD and CRPD, with a special focus on the CEDAW.
During January 2007 – May 2011, on leave from the LDO. Worked for the Norwegian Church Aid, and was based in Amman, Jordan. Developed and led a human rights and capacity building programme for women and women’s organisations in Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, Syria, Palestine and Israel. Seven Listening centers for victims of abuse in Iraq established and campaigns against violence against women and girls in Iraq held ; recommendations for the implementation of the UN SCR Resolution in the Middle East region; a report on the trafficking of women in Iraq compiled.

motto: A just global society free of all forms of violence and discrimination against women, where women’s and girl’s rights are respected and protected.

Vesna Ratković

Member of Group of Experts on Action against Violence against Women (GREVIO), Council of Europe

Vesna Ratković has 37 years of experience in public administration, justice, penitentiary system and human rights in Montenegro, in the region and beyond. She is an associate professor in Criminal Law at the Faculty of Law, University of Mediterranean, Podgorica, Montenegro, teaching also at some other institutions. She is a member of GREVIO as well as the National Prosecutorial Council, Montenegro. She worked as the Director of the Directorate for Anti-Corruption Initiative at the Ministry of Justice, Montenegro; the Head of Delegation of Montenegro in GRECO (Council of Europe); the Head of Montenegrin Delegation (UNCAC IRG) in Vienna; contact person for OECD in Montenegro; the high representative of Montenegro in Regional Anti-Corruption Initiative and Regional Cooperation Council; a member of the National Commission for Implementation of the Strategy and Action Plan for the Fight against Corruption and Organized Crime, etc. In the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) in Podgorica, she functioned as of the Coordinator of the Rule of Law Project. She was also Deputy Minister of Justice for the enforcement of criminal sanctions. Her academic research is in comparative law and management, criminal legislation at the federal level, educational and personnel issues in Montenegrin justice, human rights protection, reforms of Montenegrin justice, etc.

motto: „Recognizing that violence against women is a manifestation of historically unequal power relations between women and men, which have led to domination over, and discrimination against, women by men and to the prevention of the full advancement of women”. The facts of uneven power relations between women and men recognized as a human right violation and as an obstacle to gender equality I consider important during my extensive professional carrier (deputy minister of justice, professor of criminal law, member of GREVIO), especially in the areas of changes in legislation to protect women from gender based violence, effective implementation of relating legislation and raising awareness of the topic.

Lenka Simerská

Sociologist, Equal Pay Expert of Project 22 % to Equality, Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs of the Czech Republic

Lenka Simerska is a sociologist and internationally recognized expert in the area of gender equality, equal opportunities of women and men, work-life balance, and women’s empowerment and leadership. Since 1999 she has been active in research and implementation of gender equality and fair labour measures and policies at the domestic as well as international level.

motto: Work for something because it is good, not just because it stands a chance to succeed. Vaclav Havel

Siri Ellen Sletner

Norwegian Ambassador to the Czech Republic

After joining the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in 1982, Siri Ellen Sletner has held a number of senior positions in the Norwegian Foreign Service. Before being appointed as Ambassador to the Czech Republic in 2014, she served as Director of the European Policy Section and Ambassador to Hungary and Slovenia.

motto: In Norway, we see equal rights and equal opportunities as a fundamental part of society.

Torild Skard

Senior Researcher Women’s studies, Norway

She is a pioneer in the women’s movement nationally in Norway and internationally. She was an MP and the first woman president of the Norwegian Upper House, the director for the status of women in UNESCO, Paris, and a regional director of UNICEF West and Central Africa as well as the director general of the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs. She has written books and articles on women in Africa (Continent of Mothers), women in the UN (Forum for Development Studies) and women in politics (Women of Power).

motto: I work to promote peace, environmental protection, fundamental human rights, social justice and progress, the rights of children and equal rights of men and women.

Natalia Skoczylas

Project Manager and Antiviolence consultant, Feminoteka, Poland

She is a feminist, anti-fascist and human rights activist. She graduated from the College Against Domestic Violence in Warsaw. She is an anti-violence consultant and project manager in Feminoteka Foundation. In daily work, she is a first-contact person, legal advisor and trainer in the field of violence. She is currently coordinating the Draw The Line project in international partnership co-funded by the Rights, Equality and Citizenship Programme EU. The project’s main objective is to raise awareness about sexual violence, especially sexual harassment among migrant women and empower them to build their own support communities. She is an actress in theatre play about sexual violence “Rape.Voices” directed by Agnieszka Błońska, which is based on interviews with Polish women and personal experiences from the acting crew. She was a participant of AGORA 2016 organised by European Womens Lobby. She is finishing her studies of Law at the University of Warsaw. In love with sisterhood and socially engaged art.

motto: „I will no longer entertain debate about my right to exist” Gender Troubles. The Butches

Radan Šafařík

Director, Gender Equality Department, Office of the Government of the Czech Republic

Radan Šafařík has been working at the Gender Equality Department of the Office of the Czech Government for more than 7 years. He is responsible for drafting and evaluating legal, policy and analytic documents in the field of gender equality and gender-based violence and for the implementation of gender mainstreaming at the governmental level. He has been a member of the Council of Europe´s Gender Equality Commission since 2012 and a member of the EU High-level Group on Gender Mainstreaming since 2013. Radan Šafařík holds a Master’s degree in law and a bachelor degree in International Relations.

motto: There is no justice without gender equality.

Martina Štěpánková Štýbrová

Department for Family Policy, ‎Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs of the Czech Republic

From 2014, she works at the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs, Department of Family and Ageing Policy. She cooperates with the central authorities, the international organizations, EU institutions and non-governmental organizations on the issues related to family policy and reconciliation of work and family life. She is the author of the article “Micro-nurseries” (Veřejná správa 10/2016, 18 May 2016). She is a PhD student at the Faculty of Social Sciences, Charles University, Prague.

motto: “Far away in the sunshine are my highest aspirations. I may not reach them, but I can look up and see the beauty, believe in them and try to follow where they lead.”

Linda Štucbartová (Česká republika)

Linda Štucbartová is a Partner at ATAIRU, an international leadership development company that guides leaders to activating their uniqueness through authentic leadership. As a Chief Interviewer for Czech and Slovak Leaders Magazine, she has written more than fifty interviews with prominent Czech and CEE leaders. Moreover, she also occupies Board positions at Charles University Council for Commercialization and at Minerva 21, the personal development initiative. Finally, she is the author of the book Ambassadors Without a Diplomatic Passport. Previously, she held management positions in business, public administration, and academia.

motto: “Be the change that you wish to see in the world.” Mahatma Gandhi

Thordis Elva

Author, Journalist and Director, Word for Word, Iceland

Thordis Elva is an award-winning writer, an entrepreneur and a public speaker, who was voted Woman of the Year 2015 by the Federation of Women’s Societies in Reykjavík due to her work towards gender equality. Nine of her plays have been professionally produced and her book about gender-based violence earned her a nomination for the Icelandic Literature Prize. In 2011, she founded an equality campaign that sparked a national debate, and in 2012 she was commissioned to reinvent the approach to violence prevention and sex education in Icelandic schools, resulting in award-winning short films. She has been the Chairman of the Board of the Icelandic Women’s Shelter, has served on government committees, and is a sought-after speaker on subjects like gender-based violence and non-consensual pornography. She holds a BA in theatre, an MA in Editing and Publishing, and currently resides in Stockholm, Sweden with her partner and their son. Her recent book, “South of Forgiveness” tells the story of how she was sexually assaulted at the age of 16 by her first boyfriend, Tom Stranger, who co-authored the book with her. Following a viral TED Talk in February 2017, Thordis has since addressed audiences worldwide with the hope that her story can raise awareness of sexual assault and underline the importance of consent.

motto: Without a struggle, there can be no progress.

Emiliana Simon-Thomas

Neuroscientist, Psychologist, Research Director, Greater Good Science Center, United States

Renáta Trčková

Lecturer, Consultant, Couch, Česká cesta, Czech Republic

Renáta has been working as an instructor and coach in Česká cesta since 1999. She specialises in the issues of project management, leadership and team leading (evaluation interviews), corporate culture development, work with change, personality development, mediation and coaching. She graduated from the Faculty of Pharmacy at the University of Veterinary and Pharmaceutical Sciences in Brno. She also studied at the Prague College of Psychosocial Studies. She has completed a five-year-long self-experience SUR psychotherapy training course and a year-long training course in drama therapy. She has also undertaken a 100-hour mediation training course and has been certified as a coach. She has passed the ACE 2015 exam. Renáta is a fundraising instructor and consultant. In 2009 she was a member of an expert working group at the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports focusing on the preparation of a project for teacher support. In her free time she likes to travel, practice Yoga, meditate, teach her own and others’ children and is renovating a farm in the Kokořín region together with her husband. At the moment she is in basic training in process-oriented psychology.

motto: Happiness is a state of mind.

Branislava Marvánová Vargová

Head of Information and consulting center ROSA, psychologist, Czech Republic

Branislava Marvánová Vargová is a psychologist and Head of Information and consulting center ROSA. ROSA provides support for women, experiencing violence in their relationships, since 1993. Branislava is working directly with victims of domestic violence as well as a trainer for professionals from police, health-care and social services. She is author of several publications and articles about violence against women and it’s impact on life of victims and their children. Branislava is chair person of the Committee for Prevention of Domestic and Gender based Violence which works under the Government Council for Equal Opportunities for Women and Men.

motto: There is no excuse for violence.

Tereza Vavrečková

International Relations Deputy Director, Central Financing and Contracting Unit, Ministry of Finance of the Czech Republic

She has graduated from the Faculty of Law of the University of West Bohemia in Pilsen. Since 2009, she has been working at the Ministry of Finance in the International Relations Department. Since 2011, she has been working as the Head of the Central Financial and Contracts Unit and since 2014 as the Deputy Director of the Department. The Ministry of Finance is responsible for bilateral relations with non-EU countries, international financial institutions (World Bank, EBRD, IMF, etc.), the Swiss-Czech Cooperation program and the EEA/Norwegian Funds. The Central Finance and Contracts Unit handles managing, coordinating and monitoring the implementation of financial flows and procurement of EEA and Norwegian Funds and the Swiss-Czech Cooperation Programme.

motto: Per aspera ad astra – through hardships to the stars, be it in everyday or “project” life.

Martina Vojtíšková

Martina is the founder of the Spirála non-profit organisation in Ústí nad Labem, which organizes services for persons in crisis and also since 2007 for persons at risk of domestic violence. She is the head of the Intervention Centre of the Ústí Region. She has been the Chair of the Association of Intervention Centre Workers since 2008. For her activities in the area of domestic violence and her helpful cooperation with riot police in domestic violence instances she was awarded a medal from the Police Presidium of the Czech Republic. Our special thanks go to all those who fulfil the mission of the helping professions for their immense generosity in dividing their time between their own family and the people they only see once or twice in their lives or repeatedly during therapy sessions. They deserve our thanks for understanding a “higher principle” – a sense of justice and meaningful aid for persons at risk of domestic violence, with whom we are looking for paths that will lead them to peace and security.

Lucia Zachariášová

Lucia Zachariášová worked for seven years in the Gender Equality Department of The Office of the Government of the Czech Republic (temporarily at the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs). Last four years she was the head of the department. She coordinated preparation and implementation of the Government Strategy for Gender Equality in the Czech Republic for Years 2014 – 2020 and also the Government campaign promoting some of gender issues called “That’s Equality!”. She has experience with national, EU and international gender equality agenda. At present Lucia works for Open Society NGO where she is involved in two project concerning gender pay gap and gender mainstreaming on municipal level.

motto: Equality, Care, Solidarity

Olga Žáková

Currently the head of the Advocacy Programme in the EDUin organisation, Olga Žáková focuses on the issue of change in education policy in the Czech Republic. She returned to OSF Prague in 2013 to work in the area of equal opportunities within Let’s Give (Wo)Men a Chance. She had already previously worked here on programmes in the areas of public health and the support of Roma students. She has been working in the non-profit sector since 1992, for example in the Information Centre of Foundations and Non-Profit Organisations, in People in Need and in the British organisation Humanitarian Aid Medical Development, with whom she spent a year in Bosnia and Herzegovina. From 2003 to 2008 she was the executive director of Aperio civic association. She holds a degree in philosophy and biology at the Faculty of Arts and the Faculty of Science at Charles University in Prague.

motto: Hope is born when nothing else is left.