Michael J. Oghia


Affiliation:	Fellowship Program, GNSO
Stakeholder Group(s):	,\|xyz\|xyz\| }}
Region:	Eastern Europe and Central Asia
Country:	Serbia
Email:	mike.oghia@gmail.com
LinkedIn:	Michael J. Oghia
Twitter:	@Mikeoghia

Michael J. Oghia is a Belgrade-based consultant, editor, and researcher working within the digital policy, Internet governance, and media development ecosystems, specifically focusing on access, capacity building, digital rights, infrastructure, and sustainability. He is currently the advocacy and engagement manager for the Global Forum for Media Development (GFMD) and a Steering Committee member of the Internet Rights and Principles Coalition (IRPC). He participated as a Fellow at ICANN58 in Copenhagen, Denmark, and returned as a fellow and a first-time coach to ICANN60 in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. His involvement with ICANN includes the Non-commercial Stakeholder Group (NCSG), Non-commercial Users Constituency (NCUC), and Middle East and Adjoining Countries Strategy Working Group (MEAC-SWG).

Biography[edit | edit source]

He is a third culture kid (TCK) and a connector at heart with professional experience in conflict resolution, journalism & media, policy, and development across five countries: The United States, Lebanon, India, Turkey, and Serbia. Michael was formerly the communications manager of iGmena, a programme launched in 2012 by Hivos; worked closely with Jane Coffin, the director of development strategy at the Internet Society (ISOC), for nearly two years; and has been a two-time ISOC ambassador to the Internet Governance Forum (IGF). 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, the environment, 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, he has completed various Internet governance and media policy-related training programs, including the 2017 European Summer School on Internet Governance (EuroSSIG) and the 2016 Annenberg-Oxford Media Policy Summer Institute. Michael also loathes referring to himself in third person.