Meri Baghdasaryan

About me

I am a human rights attorney from Armenia, focusing on international human rights litigation and research. I have served as an expert for the Council of Europe and UNDP Armenia. I have been a member of the Cooperation and Development Network Eastern Europe’s Digital[x] working group for more than three years, advising the member organisations on any issues involving new technologies, and organising webinars and seminars.

Furthermore, I am involved in the Internet Governance (IG) ecosystem, where my expertise and interests include issues related to privacy and data protection, freedom of speech and youth participation in IG. I am a member of the SEEDIG and EuroDIG communities, YCIG steering committee member for the Eastern European group and editor of the SEEsummary issues, covering digital policy and IG developments in South Eastern Europe and the neighbouring area (SEE+). Recently, I co-led the SEEDIG intersessional project, researching the COVID-19 tracking apps in SEE+. In addition, I am a member of the 2020 cohort of Open Internet for Democracy Leaders Programme.

My skills

I have considerable experience and knowledge on issues at the intersection of law and technology, in particular with regards to freedom of speech and privacy and data protection.

Having participated in and served as a trainer for both formal and non-formal training, I have a deep understanding of both formal and non-formal educational methods.

In addition, I have worked with many stakeholder groups in various countries, which has given me a profound understanding and respect for cultural, ideological and personal differences. Hence, my skill set includes organisational, facilitation, interpersonal and intercultural skills, and extensive engagement with issues concerning internet law and policy, which are also of interest to the Green movement.

Why you should work with me

Having been an active member of CDN's Digital [x] working group for over three years, I have learnt a lot about the Green ideology, movement and current issues. Having realised that green values do not end with environmental issues, I discovered that many of the issues I am passionate about are green issues. Moreover, my involvement in the Internet Governance ecosystem made me value the multi-stakeholder processes and environments even more. Therefore, to my mind, the first step is to create a respectful and safe space for different stakeholder groups/participants.

Next, it is important to give the participants food for thought without providing any answers. For example, during my session at the CDN's international ‘Critical journalism in Digital Era: Youth’s access to non-biased information’, I facilitated an open discussion with the participants on the challenges and opportunities posed by digital technologies to the media, journalists and freedom of speech. The participants simply shared their perspective on the topic without any formal overview of the global discussion, so that they could decide for themselves.

In other words, I believe that it is crucial for an inclusive and impactful event to establish a safe environment of mutual respect, where everybody is heard and there is a free flow of ideas, information and experience. All of this will contribute to the green values of equality and inclusion.

My work experiences

As a human rights attorney, I have also served as a trainer in various human rights issues in a more formal setting in Armenia, for groups such as attorneys, civil society representatives, journalists, and law students. Moreover, as a member of CDN's Digital[x] working group, I was a trainer for the international activity ‘Critical journalism in Digital Era: Youth’s access to non-biased information’. Here, I led sessions on digital rights, journalistic ethics, and the impact of new technologies on freedom of speech. In February 2020, I hosted a CDN webinar on the current state of affairs in the field of online content moderation.

My education & training

• LLM (Master of Laws) candidate at the University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School (USA).

• CDN seminar ‘Digitised Security’

• Caucasus regional meeting 2017

• CDN international seminar ‘Critical journalism in Digital Era: Youth’s access to non-biased information’

Caucasus regional meeting 2019

My references

Michael J. Oghia, GMFD

Mariam Dzneladze, CDN

Sorina Teleanu, SEEDIG