Nanjala Nyabola, a Kenyan writer and researcher, has joined Global Voices as the Director of the Advox project. In her new role at Advox, Nyabola will guide the editorial reporting, research, activism and advocacy on online freedom of expression and digital rights.
Nanjala’s work focuses on the relationship between technology, media, and society. She holds a Bachelor of Arts Degree in African Studies and Political Science from the University of Birmingham, an MSc in African Studies, an MSc in Forced Migration from the University of Oxford, and a JD from Harvard Law School.
Throughout her career she has held numerous research associate positions, including with the Overseas Development Institute (ODI), the Oxford Internet Institute (OII), and other institutions. She has also worked as an independent research lead for several projects on human rights broadly, and digital rights specifically, around the world.
She is also a fellow in different educational firms. These include the Stanford Digital Civil Society Lab, Centre for International Governance Innovation (CIGI), the Digital Forensic Lab at the Atlantic Council, The Centre for Intellectual Property and Information Technology (CIPIT) at Strathmore University, and the Centre for International Cooperation (CIC) at NYU.
As part of her writing venture, Nanjala has published in several academic journals including the African Security Review and The Women’s Studies Quarterly and contributed to numerous edited collections. She also writes commentary for publications like The Nation, Al Jazeera, The Boston Review, and others.
Nanjala is the author of two books, Digital Democracy, Analogue Politics: How the Internet Era is Transforming Politics in Kenya (Zed Books, 2018) and Travelling While Black: Essays Inspired by a Life on the Move (Hurst Books, 2020).