Who we are

started his career as a human rights activist under the supervision and mentorship of Nicolae Gheorghe, using innovative tools to address the stereotypes and prejudices against Roma.
He has been a journalist, a leader of public campaigns, a promoter of social-economic projects, a political analyst, co-founder of a social enterprise, the leader of a Roma NGO, a consultant for international organizations, and a debater in public media. In addition, he has served as State Secretary in the Romanian Ministry of European Funds and is the founding member of the Roma civic platform, Aresel. Mr. Necula holds a PhD in Sociology and teaches ethnicity and masculinity at SNSPA University in Bucharest, coordinating the first European Master programme on Romani Studies.

is an art historian and contemporary art curator. She started in the position of Executive Director of the European Roma Institute for Arts and Culture in September 2017. Previously, Junghaus was a Research Fellow of the Working Group for Critical Theories at the Institute for Art History at the Hungarian Academy of Sciences (2010-2017). She is completing her Ph.D. studies in Cultural Theory at the Eötvös Lóránd University in Budapest, Hungary. She is the curator of the Visual Arts Section for RomArchive – Digital Archive of the Roma, funded by Kulturstiftung des Bundes (2015-2018). Junghaus was the founding director of Gallery8 – Roma Contemporary Art Space (www.gallery8.org) in Budapest (2013-2017), the winner of the 2014 Catalyst Contemporary Art Award (of Tranzit Hungary) and the 2014 Otto Pankok Prize awarded by the Roma Foundation of German writer and Literary Nobel Laureate, Günter Grass.

served at the European Commission 1981-2013, first on trade relations with “emerging” countries, then on the EU’s fifth enlargement (1990-2004) and on EU relations with Croatia and Turkey (2004-2006). He was Director for the Western Balkans until he retired from the EC at the end of 2013. He is a lecturer at Sciences Politiques-Paris on EU enlargement and neighborhood policies. His most recent publication on these themes is Géopolitique de la Démocratisation: l’Europe et ses ‘voisinages’ (Presses de Sciences Po, Paris, 2014).

also serving as a member of the Board of REF Hungary, Romania, Slovakia, and Serbia in addition to being Chair on the REF Switzerland Board.

is an art historian and contemporary art curator. She started in the position of Executive Director of the European Roma Institute for Arts and Culture in September 2017. Previously, Junghaus was a Research Fellow of the Working Group for Critical Theories at the Institute for Art History at the Hungarian Academy of Sciences (2010-2017). She is completing her Ph.D. studies in Cultural Theory at the Eötvös Lóránd University in Budapest, Hungary. She is the curator of the Visual Arts Section for RomArchive – Digital Archive of the Roma, funded by Kulturstiftung des Bundes (2015-2018). Junghaus was the founding director of Gallery8 – Roma Contemporary Art Space (www.gallery8.org) in Budapest (2013-2017), the winner of the 2014 Catalyst Contemporary Art Award (of Tranzit Hungary) and the 2014 Otto Pankok Prize awarded by the Roma Foundation of German writer and Literary Nobel Laureate, Günter Grass.

also serving as a member of the Board of REF Hungary, Romania, Slovakia, and Serbia in addition to being Chair on the REF Switzerland Board.

also serving as a member of the Board of REF Hungary and Switzerland.

is the President of the BFPE for a Responsible Society. Between 1991 and 2003 she was the Executive Director and President of the Fund for an Open Society (Soros Foundation) in Yugoslavia (later Serbia). As a civic activist, she was the co-chair of the international Helsinki Citizens’ Assembly and numerous other national and international organizations and initiatives. She was the head of the Task Force of the Bratislava Process 1999-2002, that supported the broad coalition of democratic opposition forces in Serbia. In 2010 she participated in the Council of Europe’s Group of Eminent Persons that prepared the report: Living Together: Combining Freedom and Diversity in Europe of 21st Century. Sonja is the laureate of numerous awards including the Star of Italian Solidarity, the French Legion of Honor and the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany. She is a Richard von Weizsacker Fellow of the Robert Bosch Academy for 2015.

is Deputy Director at the Open Society Foundations, Roma Initiatives Office. She holds an MA in sociology and social anthropology from Central European University in Budapest, Hungary. She has studied and lived in the United States and South Korea and has attended executive courses at Harvard’s Kennedy School and INSEAD. She is a certified coach, accredited by the International Coaching Federation.

is a Roma rights activist, advocate, researcher and trainer from Slovakia. Being member of the community himself, his abilities combine first-hand experience with the theoretical knowledge he gained through both formal and non-formal education. His previous work experience includes the Roma Education Fund, Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights at the OSCE, European Roma Rights Centre and the Open Society Foundations in Bratislava. After a variety of research and advocacy activities on education, but also housing, freedom of movement, health, and state response to racially motivated violence, he worked with the International Step by Step Association, specifically promoting access to quality early childhood services for Roma children. Currently, he works with Porticus as grant manager responsible for education initiatives in Central and Eastern Europe. He also co-chairs the board of the European Roma Grassroots Organizations (ERGO) Network in Brussels.

also serving as a member of the Board of REF Hungary, Romania, Serbia, in addition of being Chair on the REF Switzerland Board.

is currently an Associate Professor at Eötvös Loránd University Budapest and is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts. From 1990 to 2001 Andrew worked as a teacher in state schools and with the British Council and taught Roma children in the UK, Hungary, and Portugal. From 2002 until 2006, Andrew was the policy officer for the Gypsy and Traveller Law Reform Coalition (GTLRC), which lobbied for more caravan sites and social justice for Gypsies and Travellers. The GTLRC was awarded the Liberty Human Rights Award in 2004. Andrew was the researcher for the Westminster All-Party Parliamentary Group for Roma and Travellers from 2002 to 2007. Between 2006 and 2009 Andrew was the National Policy Officer for the Traveller Movement. His interests focus on Roma Travellers/marginalised groups, social justice; community groups/social movements, and participatory action research. Andrew has published books on Roma, Brexit, and academic freedom.

also serving as a member of the Board of REF Romania.