Directors
Eric N. Richardson, Geneva, Switzerland
Eric is founding President of INHR and leads our Geneva office’s engagement on health, human rights, migration and disarmament. As a diplomat and lawyer for the State Department, he served in and focused on China, North Korea, Libya, Tunisia, New Zealand, Israel, and the UN Human Rights Council. As an international attorney, he mediates between governments and hard-to-reach actors, teaches law at Michigan and UC Berkeley law schools; and represents trade associations, tech companies and NGOs. Eric leads INHR’s Student Legal Advisors program and published his negotiations handbook, Getting More Back, last year. He speaks Chinese, French & English.
Hans J. Hogrefe, Washington & New York
Hans has worked on international human rights and humanitarian affairs in the U.S. Congress and civil society for more than 30 years in Washington and now lives in New York. As Executive Director of the Congressional Human Rights Caucus, Hans organized hundreds of Congressional hearings concerning human rights in every corner of the globe. A strong advocate for the under-represented, Hans has a particular interest in refugees and the women, peace and security agenda. Outside the Congress, Hans' advocacy has included work for the U.S. Department of State, Refugees International, and the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum. He has dozens of media appearances and publications. He is fluent in English and German.
T. Kumar, Washington DC
Kumar was Amnesty International's USA Advocacy Director, based in Washington, for more than 20 years until he joined the INHR team as a Senior Human Rights Adviser. A former political prisoner in his native Sri Lanka, Kumar has analyzed and advocated for strong mechanisms to address human rights and humanitarian situations across the globe. His expertise ranges from Afghanistan to Myanmar and he has advocated in Washington, New York and Geneva for mistreated populations, particularly in Asia. Kumar represents INHR on the United States' Atrocity Prevention Task Force.
Senior Advisors
Jane Galvao, Geneva
Jane is a health policy professional with over 20 years of experience working in both governmental and non-governmental sectors, at national and international levels. Jane leads our projects on health and human rights from the Geneva office. She has managed grant portfolios in excess of $750 million. Examples of Jane's expertise include a PhD in public health from Brazil, research on the role of civil society organisations in the response to the HIV epidemic and various roles with the World Health Organisation, UNITAID, the World Bank, International Women's Health Coalition and presently as a consultant with the Brazilian Interdisciplinary AIDS Association (ABIA). See here Jane's letter to the Lancet on COVID-19.
Olga Bogdan de Millo Terrazzani, Brussels
Olga is the Director of our new office in Brussels. Her 16 years of experience working on international issues includes stretches at the World Meteorological Organization, the Moldovan foreign service and in various non-governmental organizations. During her Master's at the Geneva Graduate Institute, Olga co-authored a paper titled, Gendered Impacts of Weather and Climate: Evidence from Asia, Pacific and Africa, (2019), and looks forward to utilizing this research at INHR. Before joining us, Olga launched a national and then international model UN. She is leading our work on a similar project to bridge youth empowerment and climate change mitigation.
Barry O'Sullivan, Ireland
Barry is an award-winning academic working in artificial intelligence. He works as our Senior Technology Advisor, engaging in our workshops on AI and diplomacy. He is founding director of the Insight SFI Research Centre for Data Analytics at University College Cork and the SFI Centre for Research Training in AI. Barry served as Vice Chair of the European Commission High-Level Expert Group on AI and is a Fellow and a past President of the European AI Association. He is also a Fellow and a member of the Executive Council of the Association for the Advancement of Artificial Intelligence.
John Sciamanna, New York
John specializes in children’s policy, economic and social rights, labor, health, and well-being for women and youth. John has more than 30 years’ experience advancing these issues on behalf of non-profit social welfare groups and coalitions, as well as in the United States Congress and state legislatures. Monitoring, advocacy, legislative and regulatory policy, and public affairs are among his specialties. John has drafted hundreds of statements for non-profit clients, including Congressional testimony, legislative agendas, and articles on issues of social welfare. Based in New York, John speaks English and Italian.
Biro Diawara, Geneva
INHR's Senior Adviser on Africa, Biro has been an NGO activist in Geneva for more than 20 years, representing the interests of African civil society, including broadcasters, parliamentarians, religious figures and human rights defenders. He specializes in democracy and trade promotion and interfaith dialogue. A man of many hats, he has affiliations with African delegations and civil society in New York, Geneva and on the continent, including special interest in Sudan, West Africa and his home country, Guinea. Biro is a Swiss citizen and is fluent in French and English.
Sharof Azizov, Geneva
Sharof brings an extensive background in human rights law, policy, and implementation to INHR, having devoted over 25 years to serving with international organizations, including more than a decade with the United Nations. His roles as a Human Rights Officer for FOTCD OHCHR in Georgia, SPB in Geneva, and as an advisor in post-conflict countries like Croatia and Kosovo, have provided him with invaluable field experience and a deep understanding of international and regional human rights mechanisms. As an international human rights lawyer, Sharof represents a range of human rights clients before the UN Treaty Bodies and UN HRC Special Procedures Mechanisms. His latest project focuses on the human rights of entrepreneurs. Sharof's expertise covers a broad range of human rights standards and issues, backed by strong legal skills developed through diverse interactions.
INHR's Advisory Council Adds Public and Private Sector Guidance
On June 30, 2022, INHR’s Advisory Council held its inaugural meeting. The Council, chaired by Ms. Paula Schriefer, the President and CEO of the Spring Institute, provides INHR with expert advice on our strategic direction and on enhancing our strong work in humanitarian affairs, human rights, and diplomatic matters.
Joining Ms. Schriefer on the Council are Mr. Clement Voule, the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the Rights to Freedom of Peaceful Assembly and of Association; Mr. Philip French, former Director of the International Olympic Committee’s Public Affairs and Social Development through Sport Department; and Mr. Joel Millman, former Press Officer with the International Organization for Migration; and Dr. Steve Schlozman, Associate Professor of Psychiatry at Dartmouth Medical School.
INHR is fortunate to benefit from the advice of Advisory Council members with such deep, impressive expertise