The Secretariat

Loredana Teodorescu, PhD, is the President of the Italian chapter of Women in International Security. As of January 2022, she is the new Head of the MWMN. Since 2019, she is also the Coordinator of the Global Alliance of Regional Women Mediator Networks’ Secretariat, being in charge of maintaining relations with the networks’ contact group and with the partners as well as overseeing the Global Alliance’s activities. Additionally, she is the Head of European and International Affairs at Istituto Luigi Sturzo, a Rome-based foundation, and a Research Associate of the Wilfried Martens Centre for European Studies in Brussels. Her areas of research and interest focus on migration and asylum, the link between internal security and external relations, EU governance and policies, EU’s foreign and neighbourhood policy, and women’s rights and gender-related issues. She speaks Italian, Romanian, English and French and has a basic knowledge of Spanish.

Nathalie Champion is a Programme Assistant of the Mediterranean & Middle East Programme at the Istituto Affari Internazionali. As part of the MWMN Secretariat, she is in charge of the organizational aspects of the activities and oversees and coordinates the logistics of the project’s activities. She speaks French, Italian and English fluently. She provides administrative and logistics support to all activities conducted within the numerous projects of the Mediterranean & Middle East Programme.

Giulia Daga is a researcher in IAI’s Mediterranean, Middle East and Africa research programme. In parallel, she teaches Middle East Politics and Geopolitics of the Mediterranean at John Cabot University, IULM University, and IES Study Abroad-Rome. She holds a PhD from the School of International Studies of the University of Trento. Her research interests include the history and politics of the Middle East, identity and discourse studies, and theories of (non)alignment.

Irene Fellin has been the Head of the MWMN Secretariat until December 2021. She has been working at the establishment of the MWMN since early 2017 and is currently conducting research on women and mediation. As project coordinator of the Network, she oversaw the general outlook of the activities and maintained relations with the institutional and international partners of the initiative as well as  the networks’ members. Additionally, she was the Network’s representative and contact person within the Global Alliance of Regional Women Mediator Networks. She was a Senior Fellow on Gender and Security issues at the Istituto Affari Internazionali (IAI). Her research mainly focuses on the implementation of UNSCR 1325 “Women, Peace and Security” in the Mediterranean area and in the framework of international organizations such as the EU, NATO, OSCE and the UN. She is the Co-founder and Honorary President (President 2016-2021) of the Italian antenna of WIIS – Women in International Security. As of 2022, she has been appointed NATO Secretary General Special Representative on Women, Peace and Security. She speaks Italian, English and French fluently.

Giorgia Santamaria was a Project Assistant at the Istituto Affari Internazionali and is active member of the Italian antenna of WIIS – Women in International Security as project assistant and membership officer. She provided support to the MWMN Secretariat in the conduct of daily activities and general management and provides logistical support to the activities carried out by the Network. Additionally, she was the contact person for the Turkey Antenna and initially worked on the development of initiatives in the Balkans to then become the contact person for the Kosovo Antenna. She holds a Bachelor’s degree in International Relations and Human Rights and a Master’s degree in International Conflict Studies. She speaks Italian, English and French fluently and has some knowledge of Spanish and German. 

Federica Tronci was a project assistant at Women in International Security Italy, where she provided support to the coordination of the activities of Global Alliance of Regional Women Mediator Networks as part of the Secretariat. She graduated in Human Rights from the University of Padua and she holds a Masters in European and International Affairs from the University of Geneva and an Executive Masters in Women, Peace and Security from the London School of Economics and Political Science in London. Her main areas of research are EU diplomacy in Libya, the Women, Peace and Security Agenda in the Middle East and North Africa region, sexual violence as a weapon of conflict, and the Syrian refugee crisis in Lebanon.  Federica has gained experience working for the United Nations in Geneva and Beirut, the Delegation of the European Union to the United Nations and the Security Council in New York, and for several non-governmental organizations in India. She speaks Italian, French and English fluently, and has a basic level of Arabic.

Patrizia Di Micco was a project assistant at Women in International Security (WIIS) Italy, where she supported the Global Alliance of Regional Women Mediator Networks secretariat. She holds a degree in Political Science (BA) and International Affairs (MA) from LUISS University, Rome. Her main research areas include the EU’s external policies, the nexus between women, peace and security, and the role of hate speech as a global justice issue. Patrizia has gained experience working in various capacities at the Italian Ministry for Foreign Affairs, the Ministry for International Cooperation, and the Department for European Policies of the Presidency of the Council of Ministers. She is also involved in an NGO in the Netherlands and the Italian No Hate Speech Movement supported by the Council of Europe. She speaks Italian, Spanish, and English fluently and has a basic understanding of Finnish.

Francesca Caruso  is a Junior Researcher and Communication Officer at the Istituto Affari Internazionali. As part of the MWMN Secretariat, she coordinated the activities of the Cyprus Antenna and worked on the development of initiatives in the Southern shore of the Mediterranean. Additionally, she was in charge of the organization of the webinars and coordinated the publication of the newsletters. Her other research projects mainly deal with the EU-MENA region relations and its geopolitical shifts, regional order and domestic transformations. Her main areas of interests are Political Islam and State-society relations in North Africa (and in particular in Algeria), and peace and security in Sub-saharan Africa. Since December 2019, Francesca has been working as a Consultant for the Community of Sant’Egidio in the Peace Division. Within the Community of Sant’Egidio, she has recently worked for a peace-building project in the Central African Republic. She speaks Italia, French and English fluently, and has an intermediate level of Arabic.

Silvia Colombo is a Senior Fellow in the Mediterranean and Middle East Programme and Head of Italy’s Foreign Policy Programme at the Istituto Affari Internazionali. As part of the MWMN Secretariat, she coordinates and develops the research dimension of the project also overseeing its publications. She is an expert on Middle Eastern politics and conducts research on Euro-Mediterranean cooperation, transatlantic relations in the Mediterranean, and domestic and regional politics in the Arab World. Her interests also include the relations between the European Union and the countries of the Gulf Cooperation Council. She speaks Italian, English and Arabic fluently and has travelled extensively in the Middle Eastern region.

Dafne Carletti was a project officer of the Mediterranean Women Mediators Network, for which she was in charge of the local Antennas in Cyprus, Kosovo, and Turkey. She followed the developments of local projects and initiatives, and bridged the Antennas and the Secretariat of the MWMN. She was also a member of Women In International Security (WIIS) Italy, and collaborated also with the organizations Agency for Peacebuilding and EgyptWide.
Dafne holds a Master Degree from the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies, where she concentrated in International Law and International Economics. Her interests lie in social movements and civil disobedience, specifically in revolutionary processes that lead to radical democratic transformations, focusing on the role women play in such processes. She speaks Italian, English, Spanish and French fluently, and Intermediate Arabic.

Ilaria Bertocchini was part of the Secretariat of the Mediterranean Women Mediators Network, for which she was in charge of communication and advocacy activities. She was also a member of Women In International Security (WIIS) Italy, and worked  as an Analyst for Voluntās in Tunisia.
Ilaria holds a Master’s Degree from SOAS in Politics of the Middle East and a Master’s Degree from LUISS University in Government and policies. Her interests lie in democratic governance and state building, focusing on the role women play in such processes. She speaks Italian, English, and French fluently, has an advanced knowledge of Arabic (MSA) and intermediate level of Spanish

Chiara Langerame was part of the Secretariat of the Mediterranean Women Mediators Network, for which she was in charge of communication and advocacy activities. She is also a member of Women In International Security (WIIS) Italy.
Chiara is a PhD student in Gender Studies of the University of Salerno, where she obtained a Master’s Degree in International Relations, and she holds an Advanced Training Qualification in “Women, Peace and Mediation” (Università La Sapienza, Rome). Her interests lie in gender studies with particular regards to their application to the Mediterranean region. She speaks Italian, English, and French fluently, has an intermediate level of Spanish and a basic knowledge of Arabic (MSA).