Series of open lectures with external specialists | role of financing, philanthropy, private and civil involvement within the UN system and in regional contexts

The Department of Diplomacy and International Institutions invites for a series of open lectures (March – April) with external specialists working on the role of financing, philanthropy, private and civil involvement within the UN system and in regional contexts.  

Lectures are part of course: Philanthropy and International Organisations in Global and Regional Perspective: Reinventing Social Leaderships and Global Governance, conducted  at the Faculty of Political Science and International Studies, University of Warsaw in Summer Semester 2025/2026. 

Lectures will be held in person, but it will also be possible to join via the ZOOM platform. In such cases, participants are asked to contact the course coordinator, Dr. Anita Budziszewska, in advance by email (anita.budziszewska@uw.edu.pl).

The meetings are scheduled regularly on Mondays from 15:00 to 16:30.

Due to the very limited number of places, registration is open only to partner universities of the 4EU+ Alliance, including Heidelberg University, Paris-Panthéon-Assas University, Sorbonne University, the University of Copenhagen, and the University of Geneva.To register for the event, please send an email to: dyplomacja.wnpism@uw.edu.pl.After registration, participants will receive information about the location where the lectures will take place.

The meetings will be chaired by Dr. Anita Budziszewska.

Below you will find detailed information about the guests participating in the lecture series:

Aleksandra Lasota, Responsible Business Conduct & Migration Expert

16.03.2026  The role of private funding in the UN and NGO sector. Opportunities and challenges 

Biography:

Aleksandra Lasota is an expert with over a decade of experience within the United Nations system across the Middle East, Asia and the Pacific, and Europe. She has worked for the International Organization for Migration (IOM) and briefly for the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), managing multi-million-dollar programmes on migration—both labour and forced migration—as well as human rights and responsible business.

She specializes in building partnerships with governments, the private sector—including multinational companies such as IKEA and Nissan—and civil society, as well as in policy advisory. She holds two master’s degrees (Arabic Studies from Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznań and an MBA in Circular Economy from the University of Bradford). She currently works as an independent consultant on migration, public-private partnerships and sustainable business, advising both IOM and private-sector partners.

Magda Janiszewska, International Projects Expert and Project Coordinator at Caritas Poland | Former UN Analyst, MENA Region Specialist

23.03.2026: The United Nations and NGOs: Structural, Operational, and Cultural Differences 

30.03.2026: UN Programming at Regional and Country Levels: Similarities and Differences through Youth Engagement in MENA and Migrant Support in Poland 

Biography:

An expert in international cooperation, humanitarian aid, and development, with experience in the UN system and international NGOs. She has worked on economic inclusion and political participation of youth in the Arab Region and currently coordinates humanitarian projects in Palestine, focusing on program development, donor relations, reporting, and impact monitoring. She specializes in MEAL, project management, and partnership building in complex humanitarian contexts, combining a strategic perspective with operational practice. Magda holds a master’s degree in Migration, Mobility and Development from SOAS, University of London and Bachelor (BSc) of Psychology from University of East London. She currently works at Caritas Poland as International Projects Expert with the Middle East team.

 Oluwayemisi Ojo,  Universidade Católica Portuguesa | Visiting Fellow, Geneva Graduate Institute

13.04.2026: New Philanthropy and Sociotechnical Imaginaries of AI in Education Policy in Africa: The Cases of the Gates Foundation and the Mastercard Foundation

Biography:

She holds a Master’s in African studies. She is currently a  PhD researcher at the Universidade Católica Portuguesa, Porto and a Junior Visiting Fellow at the Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies (IHEID), Geneva. Her research critically examines how Education technology and Artificial Intelligence solutions are mobilized to address social problems in Africa, with a particular focus on policy discourse, and the political economy of digital education reforms. Over the past five years, she has conducted research on philanthropy and its involvement in governance in postcolonial contexts, first in the field of peacebuilding and more recently in technology and education governance. Alongside her research, Yemisi has contributed to the development and implementation of international development programmes within the UN,  the Centre for Humanitarian Dialogue and elsewhere, working with governments, civil society and international organizations across multiple regions. 

Michael Prendergast, Humanitarian Coordination and External Relations Expert

20.04.2026: Humanitarian financing in a world moving away from multilateralism

Biography:

Michael Prendergast is a humanitarian coordination and external relations specialist with fifteen years of experience across the United Nations system. For the past ten years he has worked with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and before that with the United Nations Interregional Crime and Justice Research Institute (UNICRI), supporting major humanitarian and policy initiatives across the Middle East and North Africa, Asia and the Pacific, and Europe. 

He specializes in interagency coordination, resource mobilization, and strategic engagement with governments, donors, and UN and civil society partners, and has contributed to responses to major crises including Syria, Iraq, Afghanistan, Myanmar, and Sudan. 

He holds a Master of Laws (LL.M.) in International Law with International Relations from the University of Kent and a Bachelor of Laws (BCL) from University College Cork