Benjamin Ignac is a Romani activist and researcher from Croatia, currently working as a policy analyst for the Open Society Foundations' Roma Initiatives Office in Berlin. His current research focuses on the impact that emerging data-based technologies can have on Roma people who still largely suffer from socio-economic and digital exclusion. Prior to this, he worked at the European Roma Rights Centre in the field of advocacy and communication.
Besides human rights, he is also passionate about technology and geosciences. While studying in the US he worked at the Climate Science Centre in Oklahoma and for NASA, where he learned how to use technologies such as satellite remote sensing and machine learning for environmental protection. He is, however, concerned how this type of tech also has the potential to threaten fundamental rights and exacerbate discrimination against vulnerable groups of people.
Benjamin holds a Master of Public Policy degree from the University of Oxford and a BA in Geography from the University of Oklahoma.