IHEU’s Executive Committee took a decision two years ago to focus on the development of organised Humanism across the world. This led to a change of staffing within the organisation, and the decision was taken that, given the distributed, multi-national activities of IHEU, IHEU would appoint Consultants in different parts of the world to help strengthen IHEU’s member organisations in the region, and thereby build a stronger International Humanist movement with active links with IHEU.

The key roles of the International Director and two International Representatives are to promote Humanism, Humanist principles and values, activism and awareness, to support IHEU’s member organisations and alliances, and to recruit new member organisations.

Babu Gogineni

Babu is well known to IHEU’s Member Organisations. Based in India, he works primarily across South Asia. As part of his activities he offers professional advice to IHEU and to IHEU Member Organisations in the region; he represents IHEU at the UN in Geneva, and supports IHEU’s Growth and Development Committee, in which capacity he works with IHEU groups around the world.

Babu is stimulating activism within IHEU, leading international campaigns against Untouchability, and supporting programs for the popularisation of Science, and for fighting ignorance. Babu runs Humanist leadership training workshops and youth training programmes to expose supposed miracles, and to combat superstition. Similar training programs will be rolled out to Africa this year. Babu Gogineni also works with potential IHEU partners to develop fund raising applications to the IHEU’s funding program as well as with potential donors to IHEU. He also monitors and reports to the IHEU’s EC when required on the implementation of projects funded by IHEU.

Leo Igwe
Leo is IHEU’s Representative for West Africa, working out of Nigeria. He is prioritising and coordinating the development of Humanism in francophone Africa as well as a network of Humanist groups in Southern Africa. He will also be participating in IHEU’s campaign against untouchability, by organising a conference in Nigeria on Osu and Untouchability. He represents IHEU at the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights, to which IHEU is currently applying for Observer status.

Deo Ssekitooleko
Deo has recently been appointed IHEU’s Representative for East Africa, working out of Uganda. He is working to develop contacts in groups across his area and is planning to get them together at the beginning of next year.

Ana Lita
Ana is Director of the IHEU/ Appignani Center for Bioethics in New York. The Center was set up in 2004 with a grant from the Louis Appiganni Foundations. It has existed to: defend a human centered approach to questions of bioethics in the public arena and at the UN; stimulate and assist IHEU MOs to evolve positions on bioethics; and create a network of Humanist bioethics academics and activists. The centre’s funding is now coming to an end and Ana is working hard to secure its future by linking it to a university.

Sangeeta Mall
Sangeeta is the new Editor of IHN, based in India. She will be developing the magazine, with a thematic look to each issue by geography and subject, giving equal weight to human rights and religious threats.

In addition, there is a small administrative team, with a range of skills, each working part time from London in the UK.

In the next issue of IHN, the members of the Executive Committee will be profiled.
Robbi Robson