BOARD
Our Board includes professionals who generously donate their time, talent and skills to help Plain Ink get better and better.
Prof. Aleh Tsyvinski
Aleh Tsyvinski is a Professor of Economics at Yale University (USA) and a Co-director of the Macroeconomics Research Program at Cowles Foundation at Yale. He is also a Professor by courtesy at the New Economic School (Russia), and a Research Fellow at the National Bureau of Economic Research (USA).
Professor Tsyvinski received a Ph.D. in economics from the University of Minnesota, and has received several awards, including a five-year CAREER award from the National Science Foundation (USA), and an Alfred P. Sloan Research Fellowship given to the very best young professors in the U.S.A. and Canada. In 2009, the World Economic Forum selected Professor Tsyvinski as a Young Global Leader.
I support Plain Ink because… Plain Ink stands out for me in two distinct ways. Firstly, the model the Plain Ink uses is cost effective. Hour by hour, dollar by dollar it rivals any of the best global projects. Secondly, its founder, Selene Biffi. Simply put, Selene gets things done. She is one of Europe’s most innovative and successful young social entrepreneurs, with several projects already under her accomplished belt.
Dr. Francesco Galtieri
Francesco Galtieri works as Portfolio Manager for UN Volunteers, managing the agency’s operations in Sudan and Chad. He also serves as policy advisor in the area of volunteerism for fragile States’s capacity development.
Previously, Dr. Galtieri was Policy Advisor on the reform of UN development operations in the UN Development Operations Coordination Office (New York). He also has eight years of professional experience in international development, mainly in Western Africa. Additionally he works as a teaching assistant in International Law, International Trade Law and International Organisations at the University of Trieste; is a regular visiting lecturer at ESSEC- Business School in Paris and University of Naples “L’Orientale”.
Dr. Galtieri is a Member of the Transatlantic Network TN2020 of the British Council, Fellow of the Royal Society for the encouragement of Arts (RSA) and founding member of Rete per l’Eccellenza Nazionale – RENA (Italian Network for the promotion of Excellence).
He holds a Ph.D. in African Studies from the University of Naples “L’Orientale”.
I support Plain Ink because… I fell in love with Plain Ink’s mission of reaffirming books, and even comics, as an instrument of education. I also strongly believe in the social enterprise model which Plain Ink uses to deliver social value and create a sustainable, entrepreneurial approach to business. In these challenging economic times this type of approach is needed now more than ever. It is a form of independence and gives freedom to act.
Dr. Harsha V. Singh
Harsha Vardhana Singh is Deputy Director-General at the World Trade Organisation (WTO). He has worked as consultant with the Bureau of Industrial Costs and Prices (Government of India) in New Delhi, and ILO and UNCTAD in Geneva before joining the GATT Secretariat where he worked for 12 years.
In 1997 Dr. Singh joined the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) as Economic Advisor. Since 2001 Dr. Singh has been the Secretary cum Principal Advisor of the TRAI. He has recently become an Honorary Professor at the Indian Council for Research on International Economic Relations (ICRIER), and a member of the visiting faculty at the TERI School of Advanced Studies for their Masters programme in Regulatory Studies.
Dr. Singh completed his Masters in Economics from Delhi in 1979 and went to the University of Oxford (U.K.) as a Rhodes Scholar to obtain his M.Phil. and Ph.D. in Economics.
I support Plain Ink because… Plain Ink takes a practical approach. It is strongly committed to effectively make a difference by reaching out to local populations directly so that together they can improve their education, health and other life skills to progress.
Mr. Luca Magnoni
Luca Magnoni is a designer, musician, journalist and digital artist. He is the founder and creative director of Hydrogen, and Creative & Design Director at Ninja Group.
In 2004 he became the National Director of both Computer Arts and Computer Arts Special magazines. Under his leadership the publications became leading magazines for the Italian creative industry. Luca’s deep knowledge of technology and his approach to communication were acknowledged when he was invited to become a member of IADAS (International Academy of Digital Arts and Sciences), a prestigious organisation gathering the brightest creative minds from around the world.
I support Plain Ink because… in today’s complex world, communication is one of the most important and challenging things. We often experience information overload and can quickly lose sight of what is truly meaningful to us. Thanks to Plain Ink it is possible to communicate positive values and enable meaningful projects to happen. It is like building a small but fundamental bridge between different countries while promoting respect and integration.
Dr. Raffaele Mauro
Raffaele Mauro is senior associate at Annapurna Ventures, a venture capital firm focused on early stage investments in web services, mobile applications and digital technology. Dr. Mauro also operates as strategic advisor for the American Chamber of Commerce in Italy.
Previously he worked at Bocconi University, Collegio di Milano, Harvard Business Review-Italian Edition and various branches of Confindustria, developing projects related to innovation, entrepreneurship and corporate finance. He was selected to attend the McKinsey EuroAcademy, the Accade Domani competition and the Global Village Campus, where he won the Microsoft prize.
He is co-founder of Lo Spazio della Politica and was selected for the “Young European Leaders – 40 under 40” cohort of 2011. Dr. Mauro holds a PhD from Università Bocconi and attended the Singularity University Graduate Studies Program at NASA Ames in 2011.
Mr. Paolo Petrocelli
Paolo Petrocelli is a cultural enterprises manager, musicologist, violinist, researcher and lecturer.
Working as music expert at the Italian Commission of UNESCO, he is also Associate Director at the national branch of IMG Artists and Vice President of the Italian Movie Orchestra. Member of the Global Shapers community at the World Economic Forum, he works as a musicology researcher at Yale University, Oxford University, Cambridge University and the Royal College of Music in London. He teaches courses in music and culture management at institutions such as the LASALLE College of Arts (Singapore), New York University, LUISS University in Rome and several others.
Dr. Veena Jha
Veena Jha is a Visiting Professorial Fellow at the Institute of Advanced Studies, University of Warwick, UK, and a Research Fellow at the International Development Research Centre, Canada. She has worked extensively on trade, development and environment issues for almost 30 years.
Dr. Jha has worked with the United Nations in various capacities for more than two decades. She has published twelve books on trade and development issues, many articles in journals and newspapers, and was a member of various consensus building initiatives on trade and environment issues over the last decade.
Dr. Jha has also served as a member of several national and international Advisory Boards, including the United Nations Secretary General’s Task Force on Trade for Meeting the Millennium Development Goals., and has worked with international organizations such as UNEP, ADB, World Bank and ILO, and with bilateral aid agencies including DANIDA, DFID, FES, and IDRC.
She holds a Ph.D. in Economics from the London University, U.K.