Dr. Cosmas Luckyson Zavazava, Director of the Telecommunication Development Bureau, ITU
Dr Cosmas Luckyson Zavazava took office as Director of the Telecommunication Development Bureau (BDT) at the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) on 1 January 2023.
With more than 30 years in telecommunications, including over 20 years in ITU's Development Sector, Dr Zavazava has promoted and implemented impactful information and communication technology projects around the world.
Prior to his election as BDT Director, he served as ITU's Chief of Partnerships for Digital Development, overseeing development-related projects, strategic partnerships, and resource mobilization between 2019 and 2022, while launching new initiatives that have boosted the engagement of industry, private-sector and academia members in ITU's work.
Ms. Vanessa Gray, Head, Climate Change and Emergency Telecommunications Division, BDT, ITU
Vanessa Gray is the Head of the ITU Telecommunication Development Bureau's (BDT) Division on Climate Change and Emergency Telecommunications. She is responsible for developing and overseeing projects and technical assistance on disaster preparedness, mitigation, response, and recovery. This includes the development of national emergency telecommunication plans (NETPs) and the organization of regional and national workshops and capacity building exercises for disaster management. In the area of disaster response, Ms Gray leads the work on the Disaster Connectivity Maps (DCM) and the deployment of emergency telecommunication equipment to countries hit by disasters. Ms Gray is the ITU focal point for the UN's Early Warning for All (EW4all) initiative and coordinates the initiative's pillar on Warning Dissemination and Communication, to ensure that alerts reach people at risk. She is also responsible for the organization of the Global Forum on Emergency Telecommunication (GET) and specific ICT for disaster management tools and publications, for example in the area of disruptive technologies, gender, and ICT drills.
In the area of the environment, Ms Gray coordinates the BDT's work on the circular economy and green digital transformation, which includes monitoring industry emissions, energy use and climate commitments from tech companies, and supporting countries in tracking ICT sector GHG emissions. In the area of circular economy, Ms Gray manages the work on e-waste policies and data, which includes the publication of the Global and Regional E-waste Monitors. Her role is to build public-private partnerships, develop projects and strengthen the role of the BDT in terms of e-waste coordination, for example with the E-waste Coalition, the Global E-waste Statistics Partnership, and with the private sector.
Prior to this position, Ms Gray was part of the ITU's Data and Statistics Division and contributed to the design and preparation of the Division's analytical publications, including the Measuring the Information Society Report (MISR). She also contributed to and coordinated the analysis of information society developments, organized ICT-related meetings, and delivered national and regional trainings and workshops on ICT statistics to ITU member states. Ms Gray holds a Master's degree in Political Science and Economics from the Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies in Geneva, Switzerland.
Ms. Lourdes Montenegro, Research and Digitalisation Director, World Benchmarking Alliance
Lourdes O. Montenegro is Director of Research and Digitisation at the World Benchmarking Alliance (WBA). In this role, she leads on the research and digitisation strategy for the organisation, to deliver globally inclusive frameworks, quality data, and impactful insights across all benchmarks from climate to finance. Previously, Lourdes led the strategy for WBA's digital sector transformation work since inception, including the development of a framework for the Digital Inclusion Benchmark which now assesses 200 of the world's most influential digital technology companies. Before joining WBA, she worked as an economist at the Statistics Division of the UN's International Telecommunication Union (ITU). Lourdes was trained and working as an academic environmental economist before shifting focus towards technology and telecommunications policy. She has almost two decades of experience delivering data-driven and policy-oriented projects for industry clients, UN agencies and governments. Lourdes hails from the island of Cebu in the Philippines.
Dr. Rosie McDonald, Climate Change Officer, BDT, ITU
Rosie McDonald is a Climate Change Officer within the ITU's Telecommunication Development Bureau. She supports ITU's efforts in green digital transformation by providing research, tools and capacity building to address environmental challenges related to climate change and e-waste. Her work focuses on monitoring greenhouse gas emissions and climate commitments of the ICT industry, and e-waste data and statistics capacity building under the Global E-waste Statistics Partnership (GESP). Prior to ITU, she worked in the science and technical branch of the Secretariat of the Basel, Rotterdam and Stockholm (BRS) Conventions, and was also a modeller for the land use, land use change and forestry (LULUCF) sector of the UK national greenhouse gas inventory. Within a higher education setting, she has experience of working in STEM outreach and teaching environmental statistics and GIS. She holds a PhD in Environment Sciences from the UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology and an MSc in Environmental Protection and Management from The University of Edinburgh (UK).
Anne Delaporte, Digital Transformation Research Lead, World Benchmarking Alliance
Anne is the Digital Transformation Research Lead. In this role, she is responsible for the delivery of actionable insights and research pieces, including the Digital Inclusion Benchmark. Anne is passionate about applying system thinking and behavioural economics concepts to improve digital inclusion. Prior to joining WBA, Anne worked at the GSMA where she led insights on the barriers to digital inclusion, with a focus on gender equality. She also spent many years as consultant and associate conducting qualitative and quantitative research as well as monitoring, evaluation and learning projects in fisheries & aquaculture, agriculture, food security, climate adaptation and gender. Anne worked in various countries across Sub-Sahara and South Asia. She holds a Master’s Degree in Agricultural Economics and Sustainable Development from Université Montpellier I and a Bachelor in International Economics from Université Paris-Nanterre.
Maria Patricia Gonzalez Research Specialist, World Benchmarking Alliance
Maria joined WBA in 2022 as a Research Analyst for the Digital Inclusion Benchmark and has since moved to the Climate and Energy Benchmark team. She is passionate about the effects of digital technologies on people and society and believes that companies should do their fair share to reduce the digital divide. Prior to joining WBA, she worked as a consultant for the research department at the Inter-American Development Bank researching topics related to the digitization of health care. Maria holds an MSc. in Economics and Public Policy from Universidad Adolfo Ibáñez in Santiago, Chile and a BA in Economics from the University of Rochester, NY. Born and raised in Nicaragua, she is currently based in the Netherlands.
