ABOUT ME
In my current role at the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) , I lead the organization’s global digital governance and brand protection portfolio. Given the organization’s well-recognized brand in the development and humanitarian space, I work on tracking and mitigating reputational risks in the digital arena. Previously, I worked as a data communications and visualizations specialist at UNICEF, where I distilled large data sets on children’s well-being into interactive data visualizations and other storytelling media.
Additionally, I have experience in print and digital journalism, the technology sector and non-profit international organizations in the U.S., France, Turkey, and the Philippines. My writing has been featured online at Business Insider, The San Francisco Chronicle, CNBC, ScotusBlog, the Eagleton Institute of Politics, NYU Journal of Intellectual Property and the DePaul Law Review. I am fluent in English and Bulgarian, and proficient in French.
I am a graduate of the Paris School of International Affairs (PSIA) — Sciences Po, where I focused on post-conflict development and humanitarian affairs (IHL and IHRL) in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) as well as Sub-Saharan Africa. Before completing my master's program at Sciences Po, I received my bachelor's degrees in Economics and English literature from Rutgers University in the U.S.
Currently based in: New York
Currently learning: Russian
Education
MASTER'S DEGREE (M2) — human rights and humanitarian affairs, International security
Sciences Po, Paris School of International Affairs, Paris, France, August 2013 - July 2015
Bachelor of Arts — ECONOMICS/Political science, magna cum laude, English literature, cum laude
Rutgers University, School of Arts and Sciences, New Brunswick, N.J., USA, September 2008 - May 2012
Certificate — International relations, African studies
Sciences Po, Collège Universitaire, Paris, France, January 2011 - June 2011
Professional Experience
Digital communications specialist, brand protection and digital governance
United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), Division of Global Communication and Advocacy, New York, N.Y., USA, March 2021 - Present
I lead UNICEF’s global digital governance and brand protection work, working with internal (190+ country offices) and external partners to secure UNICEF’s brand online. My work includes 24/7 monitoring and response system, collaborating with UNICEF offices and other UN agencies to assess and mitigate reputational risks. Using advanced social listening tools and an internal database, I distill complex data sets into actionable insights, guiding executive decisions and providing strategic guidance for UNICEF as a whole so that its brand can be more secure online.
Data visualization, mapping and communications, UNICEF Data and analytics
UNICEF, Data and Analytics Section, New York, N.Y., USA, April 2018 - March 2021
I built in-depth interactive visualizations and dashboards on the well-being of children using Flourish, Infogram and Power BI. The majority of my content appears on the UNICEF Data website for the period during which I was at this position. My work involves collaboration with teams across UNICEF and the UN as a whole, especially during global humanitarian crises that require collaboration between UN agencies and offices.
Data analyst, designer and project manager, Strategic Planning & Operations
United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), New York, N.Y., USA, February 2017 - April 2018
I was a data analytics and design consultant at UNICEF’s Stragefic Planning section, where I collected and analyzed global UNICEF HR data to create visualizations, design reports and build PowerBI dashboards.
Project manager and internal communications consultant
Siemens Healthcare, Princeton, N.J., USA, August 2016 - February 2017
As project manager at Siemens, I worked on government compliance, government grants and research partnerships in the field of medical imaging · In addition, I played a main role in ensuring that the company passed a U.S. Department of Defense audit
freelance Editor and graphic designer, covering international development & human RIGHTS
Istanbul/Manila/New York, July 2015 - September 2016
Editorial manager for Oxford Business Group · Editor and designer for several country-level UNDP development reports
Economic Affairs Intern
United Nations - OHRLLS, New York, N.Y., October 2014 - January 2015
Worked on the 2014 Landlocked Developing Countries Conference in Vienna · Helped to develop M&E indicators for landlocked developing countries · Wrote summary reports on LLDCs’ economies, SDGs, development financing, etc. · Website content management, HTML/CSS editing, managed social media
Communications consultant
bMobilized Inc., mobile tech startup, New York, N.Y., January 2013 - July 2014
Wrote press releases, blog posts, managed social media · Created infographics · Wrote copy for website redesign · Doubled the number of Twitter and Facebook followers
Assistant Editor/Researcher
Janine di Giovanni/Newsweek Magazine, Paris, France, August 2013 - May 2014
Edited Janine Di Giovanni’s non-fiction books · Researched news articles on Syrian war · Part of research team that wrote a human rights report on Syrian refugees in Lebanon, Internews 2013 · Managed website/social media
writer/Reporter
Business Insider, New York, N.Y. August 2012 - January 2013
Wrote 3 – 4 feature and news stories per day for BI’s Law section · Pitched story ideas · Beats: financial crime, Silicon Valley lawsuits · Edited photos and designed graphics/maps
Associate News Editor
The Daily Targum, daily newspaper, New Brunswick, N.J., August 2011 - May 2012
Wrote breaking and feature news stories · News beats: politics, economics · edited writers’ stories
Opinions Page Editor
The Daily Targum, New Brunswick, N.J., November 2009 - January 2011
Led daily editorial meetings · Wrote editorial column · Led a team of 12 columnists · Edited columns and readers’ letters · Designed page using Quark and InDesign
Volunteer Work
EDITOR/DESIGNER
United Nations Development Programme, Accra, Ghana, June - July 2016
Formatted and designed two 50-page UNDP reports — one on gender and inclusive policies, the other on communications policies in Ghana
AWARDS JUDGE
Pan-African Awards for Education Entrepreneurship, Teach a Man to Fish (NGO), London, UK (remote), July - August 2016
Judged/marked eighteen 600-1000-word entries in the first round of the Education Entrepreneurship awards
Skills & Languages
LanguagesEnglish - fluent
Bulgarian - fluent
French - professional proficiency (niveau C1)
Russian - basic
Skills and SoftwareData viz – Tableau, R Shiny, Flourish, Infogram
Adobe CS – Photoshop, InDesign, Illustrator, Acrobat
MS Office (adv. Excel); MS PowerBI
Wordpress; Drupal;
HTML/CSS; Python;
Stata
Google Apps; MailChimp; AP style; Web Analytics