User:Michaeloghia

Michael J. Oghia is a Belgrade-based independent consultant, researcher, and editor working within the Internet governance ecosystem, specifically focusing on digital rights, media literacy, development & capacity building, sustainable access, and the relationship between the Internet, the environment, and sustainability. He is a third culture kid (TCK) with professional experience in conflict resolution, journalism & media, civil society, and academia across five countries: the United States, Lebanon, India, Turkey, and Serbia. Michael works with Jane Coffin, the director of development strategy at the Internet Society (ISOC), and has been a two-time ISOC ambassador to the Internet Governance Forum (IGF). He also collaborates with DiploFoundation as assistant curator for the GIP Digital Watch observatory, and was formerly the communications manager of iGmena, a program launched in 2012 by Hivos. Michael is actively involved in regional IGF initiatives, such as the Southeastern European Dialogue on Internet Governance (SEEDIG) and the European Dialogue on Internet Governance (EuroDIG), and he is also a member of multiple ICANN communities, including the Non-commercial Stakeholder Group (NCSG), Noncommercial Users Constituency (NCUC), and Middle East and Adjoining Countries Strategy Working Group (MEAC-SWG). He has lectured on Internet governance at the Media and Digital Literacy Academy of Beirut (MDLAB), and frequently writes about development, digital rights, and the relationship between the Internet and sustainability. Michael holds a Master of Arts in sociology from the American University of Beirut (Lebanon), and a Bachelors of Science in sociology from the University of Louisville (USA). Additionally, has completed various Internet governance and media policy-related training programs, including the 2017 European Summer School on Internet Governance (EuroSSIG) and 2016 Annenberg-Oxford Media Policy Summer Institute, and was a fellow to ICANN58 and ICANN60. Michael also loathes referring to himself in third person.