Consumers Union is sponsoring an international delegation to attend the Free Press National Media Reform Conference in Memphis, Tennessee from January 12-14, 2007. The group represents key leaders and voices from around the world who will have the opportunity to learn about critical debates over media ownership and control in the U.S., and who will benefit from meeting leaders involved in U.S. media policy. Their participation in the conference is possible due to a grant from the Ford Foundation, a lead supporter of activism on media diversity and justice issues globally.
Participants in the international delegation include public policy professionals, journalists, human rights activists and NGO executives:
- Andrew Puddephatt is the director of Global Partners and Associates. He has been an expert member of both the Council of Europe and the Commonwealth Expert working groups on freedom of information and freedom of expression. He is the Vice-Chair of International Media Support; a Danish based NGO that provides emergency support to journalists in conflict areas. He has led human rights organizations in the non-profit sector for more than twelve years.
- Lisa Horner is currently working for Global Partners on 'The Freedom of Expression Project', funded by the Ford Foundation. The project is concerned with how new technologies are affecting the way people communicate with each other, and the implications this has for the human right to freedom of expression. Lisa is based in the UK and has recently completed a Masters degree from the School of Oriental and African Studies at the University of London.
- Bjarne Pedersen is the Head of Policy and Advocacy at Consumers International where he is responsible for leading and managing the CI policy research team worldwide. Academic qualifications include a MSC in Human Nutrition, as well as a Masters in International Environment Policy. Recently Bjarne Pedersen has been Head of CI delegations to the Commission on Sustainable Development and the WHO World Health Assembly as well as the ISO SR WG. Bjarne Pedersen is also overall responsible for the various CI programs related to IP.
- Luis Fernado Marrey Moncau with IDEC of Brazil is currently with the litigation and institutional departments working on consumer rights and judicial procedures especially class actions and does research on consumer-related issues.
- Rosemary Okello Orlale (Kenya) is the Executive Director of African Woman and Child Feature Service (AWC). She is also a trustee, Media Council of Kenya, Secretary to the Kenya Editor’s Guild and a Treasurer for the African Editor’s Forum. She has extensive experience working as a journalist both locally and internationally as well as a researcher. She has been involved in media training in the region on gender mainstreaming. She was part of a team that developed reporting parliament, a book which is being used by the School of Journalism in Kenya as well as in the region. Rosemary is a trained journalist and holds post-graduate diploma research methodology, Population Studies and Research Institute-Nairobi University and currently pursuing a post graduate diploma in Journalism form London School of Journalism. She is also an award winner for the first prize as the best female reporter category of the 2004 African Information Society Initiative media awards.
Members of the international delegation will be asked to reflect on the value of the conference for their work and how efforts to bring leaders together from the U.S. and around the world can further the cause of freedom of expression globally. These reports will be made available through Consumers Unions website www.HearUsNow.org.
For more information about the Free Press National Media Reform Conference in Memphis, Tennessee from January 12-14, 2007 go to: www.freepress.net/conference.
