Meet the team leading our Data Journalism for Disaster Preparedness project

7th March 2025

We are pleased to announce our partner, HEI-DA, and the facilitating team for our Data Journalism for Caribbean Disaster Preparedness project. The project is scheduled to take place throughout 2025.

Meet the facilitating team of the Data Journalism for Caribbean Disaster Risk Preparedness project. Clockwise from top left: Desilon Daniels, Sarah Toporoff, Claudia Baez, and Marianne Bouchart.

Disaster risk reduction (DRR) in the Caribbean is a critical concern, with persistent natural disasters posing significant and growing threats. Acknowledging media’s pivotal role in disaster response, there’s a pressing need to enhance journalists’ capabilities, especially in data journalism. This project is addressing this by pioneering a focused approach on data journalism, equipping journalists with the skills to produce informed and data-driven content before, during, and after disasters. The project will immediately put these skills into action by supporting teams of journalists as they develop and implement a data-driven DRR media project.

The upcoming project, benefiting journalists from Barbados, Grenada, and Trinidad & Tobago, is supported by the UNESCO Office for the Caribbean and UNESCO’s International Programme for the Development of Communication (IPDC).

This initiative will equip 12 journalists with the skills to harness data for impactful disaster preparedness reporting. The project kicks off with a three-day hackathon in May, where journalists will be introduced to data journalism techniques tailored to disaster preparedness. This will be followed by virtual training sessions on storytelling, verification, and ethical data use. Journalists will then develop and pilot their projects over the course of several months, benefiting from ongoing mentorship and culminating in a regional showcase to present their work to key stakeholders.

Central to this project is the collaboration with HEI-DA, a non-profit organisation renowned for its expertise in media development and data journalism. Founded in 2015, HEI-DA is based in France and operates throughout Africa, Southeast Asia, and Europe. HEI-DA specialises in data journalism and interactive storytelling projects with social, economic, or environmental impact in collaboration with media organisations, NGOs, nonprofits, local communities, and others.

MEET THE FACILITATING TEAM!

Project Lead

DESILON DANIELS

Desilon Daniels is a media and communications professional with more than a decade of experience in journalism, public relations, and advocacy. Her years in the Guyanese media landscape as a journalist and editor have resulted in several awards, such as PAHO/WHO and United Nations media awards. Desilon is also a 2019/2020 Chevening alumnus and graduated from the University of East Anglia with a Master of Arts in Media and International Development. She is currently employed as the Project & Advocacy Coordinator with the Public Media Alliance, the largest global association of public service media organisations, where she leads on the non-profit’s externally funded projects. Her interests span media development and the representation of minority groups in both media and development.

As the Project Lead, Desilon Daniels is responsible for overseeing the implementation and management of the project, ensuring that all activities run smoothly and meet their intended objectives. Her leadership ensures the effective coordination of all project components, from planning to execution.

Lead Facilitator

SARAH TOPOROFF

Sarah Toporoff is an independent consultant at the intersection of audio, journalism, and tech products. She develops strategies to solve the “podcast discovery problem” and reach new audiences, focusing on growth for news organisations as well as branded podcasts. Prior to focusing on audio products, Sarah spent five years at Global Editors Network organising 25+ journalism hackathons in 20+ cities on four continents.

In this project, Sarah will lead the development and recruitment for the hackathon, oversee its delivery, and coordinate the virtual training sessions.

Trainer & Mentor

MARIANNE BOUCHART

Marianne Bouchart is the founder and director of HEI-DA, a media development nonprofit building data journalism, fact-checking, AI, and innovative news projects around the world. She is also the executive director of the Sigma Awards data journalism competition.

Before launching HEI-DA, Marianne spent 10 years in London where she worked as a web producer, data journalism and graphics editor for Bloomberg News, amongst others. She created the Data Journalism Blog in 2011 and gives lectures at journalism schools, in the UK and in France.

As a trainer and mentor, Marianne will support the hackathon programme and training curriculum, deliver training at the hackathon, provide all mentorship sessions, and support the development and implementation of the final projects showcase.

Trainer

CLAUDIA BÁEZ

Claudia Báez is a digital and AI innovator, as well as an executive and strategic entrepreneur. She is the creator of the Odin Project and the cofounder and former director of the Colombian media outlet Cuestión Pública. As an award-winning investigative data journalist and media entrepreneur, Claudia specialised in exposing abuses of power and corruption in Colombia. She is certified by Harvard University in public narrative and leadership and holds a Master’s degree in Economic and Social Development Studies from Sorbonne University in Paris. The U.S. State Department awarded her the Professional Fellows Alumni Impact Award.

She has received numerous international journalism awards, including the King of Spain International Journalism Award, Sigma Awards, WAN-IFRA LATAM World Association of Newspapers and News Publishers, Inter-American Press Association, and Trace Investigative Reporting, among others. She has contributed to the National Center of Historical Memory by helping create the most comprehensive database on the Colombian armed conflict. Additionally, Claudia has experience in sales and financial operation analysis for multinational companies in France, the United States, and Mexico. Claudia has taught data-driven journalism at universities in Colombia and Equator since 2017.

As a trainer, Claudia will help develop the hackathon programme, deliver training at the hackathon, and contribute to the development and delivery of the training curriculum.

Project partners

The project is being implemented by the Public Media Alliance in collaboration with HEI-DA, a media development non-profit specialising in data journalism. It is supported by the UNESCO Office for the Caribbean and UNESCO’s International Programme for the Development of Communication (IPDC).