About us | Who We are
Global Partners & Associates (GPA) was established in 2005 by Andrew Puddephatt and Greg Power to promote effective good governance and effective democratic practice in countries around the world.
Greg Power, Director
Greg Power is a director of Global Partners & Associates. His specific expertise lies in parliamentary strengthening, political parties and public engagement with the political process. He has worked with parliamentarians and parties in the Middle East, southern Africa and the Balkans, including an ongoing project with the Council of Representatives in Baghdad.
His current research interests include the design of a political framework for legislative strengthening programmes, an analysis of parliamentary systems in the Middle East, developing codes of conduct for parliamentarians and he is currently writing a book on MPs and constituency work in the UK entitled Pavement Politics. He has written for a variety of publications including the Guardian and Independent newspapers, Prospect magazine, as well as a variety of academic journals.
Greg was previously a special adviser in the UK government to Rt Hon Robin Cook MP and Rt Hon Peter Hain MP where he worked with both Ministers on parliamentary reform strategies, constitutional change and the wider democratic agenda, working also with the Prime Minister's Strategy Unit and Downing Street policy staff on these themes. Prior to this Greg directed the Parliament and Government Programme at the Hansard Society, the UK's leading think tank on parliament and parliamentary reform, where he also ran their Commission on Parliamentary Accountability.
Andrew Puddephatt, Director
Andrew Puddephatt is a Director of Global Partners & Associates (GPA). He has worked to promote human rights for twenty years and has specific expertise in programme development and evaluation with a focus upon transparency, the role of media in society, and implementing human rights.
Andrew has led human rights organisations in the not-for-profit sector for more than fifteen years. He was Executive Director of ARTICLE 19, a pioneering organisation working on freedom of expression from 1999 to 2004; Director of Charter88, the UK's leading constitutional reform organization, between 1995 and 1999; and General Secretary of Liberty, the principal domestic human rights organisation in the UK, between 1989 and 1995. Andrew has played a leading role in securing a Bill of Rights for the UK and in January 2003 was awarded an OBE for services to human rights.
He is an expert representative of the Council of Europe, the EU and the Commonwealth Expert working groups on freedom of information and freedom of expression. Andrew holds several Board positions in the non-profit and public sector: he is Vice-Chair of Danish-based International Media Support, a Danish based NGO that provides emergency support to journalists in conflict areas; a trustee of the Sigrid Rausing Trust; chair of UK organization Coordinated Action Against Domestic Abuse; chair of the Audit Committee for the UK's Parliamentary Ombudsman; and he is on the board of the European Council for Foreign Relations.
Oliver Coleman, Researcher, Political Party and Parliaments
Oliver Coleman is a researcher for Global Partners & Associates' Political Party and Parliaments programme. He is currently working on the integration of donor support to parliaments and parties, exploring potential innovations to improve effectiveness in strategy and practice. Building on this work, he is also developing new evaluation methodologies for political party strengthening programmes.
Oliver's expertise lies in political systems and international relations. He previously worked in the UK House of Commons managing the office of Mark Oaten MP, and gaining direct experience of the political process. Oliver has also worked for the Institute for Regional Studies in Islamabad, Pakistan, researching and drafting academic publications. It was during his time here that he witnessed the fraught return to democracy in 2008.
Oliver has an MLitt in Middle East and Central Asian Security Studies from the University of St Andrews, and a BA in Arabic with Persian from the University of Durham. He speaks Arabic, intermediate Persian and German, and basic Turkish. He is currently learning Japanese.
Bryon Gillespie, Head of Evaluation and Analysis
Bryon Gillespie is the acting Head of Evaluation and Analysis at Global Partners & Associates. His work engagements involve him at variety of levels, ranging from assessing strategies at the programme and organisational levels to evaluating the effectiveness of projects on the ground.
Bryon is currently leading several projects, including an evaluation of a Danish anti-censorship organisation that has been funded by SIDA since 1998 and an on-going project with UNESCO to develop media development indicators. He has also been providing technical evaluation assistance to the IWPR programme in Iraq, which has been funded by the US State Department to strengthen capacities for the emergence of more independent news and media throughout the country. Bryon will conduct final evaluations for three of IWPR’s projects in the summer of 2010.
Bryon previously worked as an Evaluation Associate at Canada’s International Development Research Centre in Ottawa where, among other things, he conducted the Annual Corporate Evaluation Report for the Centre’s senior executives and its Parliamentary-appointed Board of Governors. In Britain, he has led research and evaluation functions in, and provided research and evaluation services to, major British charities and quangos.
Bryon has an MBA from HEC-Paris, France and an MSc in International Development from the University of Guelph, Canada.
Dixie Hawtin, Researcher, Freedom of Expression and Communications
Dixie Hawtin is developing Global Partners & Associates’ Freedom of Expression programme. She focuses on examining the relationship between human rights and the digital communications environment, to ensure that it remains an open and free public interest space. Dixie believes that the rise in digital communications is the most exciting and important development in recent history and that it brings opportunities to improve human rights standards everywhere. Recent research areas have included analysis of the roles of internet intermediaries in upholding the right to freedom of expression, and examination of appropriate regulatory frameworks for protecting human rights online. She has written, and contributed to, a number of publications including “Information and Communication Technologies and Human Rights” - an extensive report commissioned by the European Parliament.
Dixie’s background is in human rights. She has an MA in Understanding and Securing Human Rights and has carried out original field research for grassroots human rights organizations in India and Colombia. Dixie also has an LLB in Law from the University of Warwick. She speaks intermediate French and Italian, and is learning Spanish.
Lisa Horner, Head of Research and Policy
Lisa Horner leads on Research and Policy at Global Partners & Associates, focusing on human rights, communications and political development. Lisa is currently coordinating the Freedom of Expression Project: a major international research and advocacy project which is examining and addressing the impact that digital communications are having on human rights. Funded by the Ford Foundation, the project is now into its third year, producing original research and convening expert workshops in the UK, Argentina, Kenya and Indonesia.
Lisa's expertise lies in governance and human rights from an international development perspective, and she has a particular interest in sub-Saharan Africa and international politics. Prior to working with GPA, Lisa worked for the international development organisation Oxfam where she led on a number of initiatives to raise awareness about development issues such as fair trade and the Millennium Development Goals. She also contributed background research for Oxfam's 2008 Poverty Report, From Poverty to Power. Lisa has also worked for the international charity Students Partnership Worldwide, running an HIV/AIDS awareness project in rural Tanzania and conducting research into sexual risk taking by young men in developing countries.
Lisa holds a MSc degree in Development Studies from the School of Oriental and African Studies and a BA degree in Geography from Oxford University. She speaks basic Kiswahili and French.
Faten Hussein, Project Coordinator - Middle East
Faten Hussein coordinates Global Partners & Associates work related to Middle Eastern Countries.
She is mainly working on the Parliamentary Support Project for the Iraqi Council of Representatives (CoR) at Global Partners & Associates. Her work is focused on working with Committees to improve their internal organization and oversight function. The project has recently developed to include CoR senior staff and Research Directorate in order to harness support resources available to MPs. Faten is also building an international network of support for Iraqi parliamentarians; as well as developing a bilingual Arabic-English database of resources to support the development of the CoR.
Faten has worked in translation, interpreting, intercultural communication, and research for several years. She trained community interpreters at the Forced Migration and Refugee Studies department at the American University in Cairo, where she also conducted research for a project focused on refugees in Cairo. Faten also worked for the Euro-Mediterranean Parliamentary Assembly at the European Parliament. Her areas of research at the Parliament included the implementation of the Millennium Development Goals in Mediterranean countries, and European neighbourhood policies.
Faten previously worked on an educational reform project in the United Arab Emirates. She provided project support through facilitating communication, advising on cultural issues, and working closely with the project manager to ensure the implementation of the project goals.
Faten is bilingual Arabic/English, and speaks basic French and Italian.
Niamh McClean, Chief Operating Officer
Niamh McClean manages Global Partners & Associates, supporting directors, staff and associates to successfully deliver projects and client-solutions; respond to new business opportunities; manage all business functions including finance, HR and facilities; and coordinate projects and special events.
Niamh has worked in project management for several years: for the London School of Economics and Political Science she managed an international high-level conference, the 'Africa Climate Change Forum,' in Kigali, Rwanda, which examined the impact of climate change on development and human rights in Africa; at LSE she also developed a new project offering visiting fellowships to academics threatened in their home countries as part of the Scholars at Risk network; she coordinated a London-based refugee centre; and worked for several years in campaign and logistical management at Comic Relief, a UK-based fundraising charity. Niamh was also a volunteer worker on the National Domestic Violence Helpline for several years.
Niamh is currently studying for a MBA with the Open University. She also holds an MA in the Theory and Practice of Human Rights from the Human Rights Centre at the University of Essex and a BA in Geography and Politics from University College Dublin. Niamh speaks English, French and basic Spanish.
Rebecca Zausmer, Researcher, Evaluation and Analysis
Rebecca Zausmer is a researcher in the Evaluation and Analysis department at Global Partners & Associates. Her current work includes an evaluation of a Dutch-funded programme of Press Now-RNTC, a media and development consortium working to strengthen media in conflict and transition countries. She is also assisting in the design of a training programme for IREX in Iraq on monitoring and evaluation methods.
Rebecca's thematic expertise lies in the social justice and development arenas. Her previous work for Fahamu/Pambazuka News, gave her direct experience in using media and ICTs to empower and promote the voices of the poor to bring about political and social change. She has also worked for the Kaloko Trust - a grassroots NGO in the Zambian Copperbelt region - as a project manager and researcher. Rebecca was born and lived in Zimbabwe for 17 years and has a strong interest in development, governance and rights.
Rebecca has an MSc in Development Studies from the School of Oriental and African Studies and a BA degree in Politics, Economics and Middle Eastern Studies from Durham University.
Rebecca Horsewell, Head of Evaluation and Analysis (Maternity leave until December 2010)
Rebecca Horsewell runs the Evaluation and Analysis unit at Global Partners & Associates, which conducts evaluation work on a broad spectrum, from the strategic level to assessing projects on the ground. Rebecca is currently leading several projects, including three project evaluations in Iraq for the Institute of War and Peace Reporting funded by the US State Department over two years. She is also conducting a study for the Co-ordinated Development of Media and Democracy Indicators Project, which convenes a stakeholder group made up of UN agencies, donors and international NGOs with a declared interest in assessing the impact of their activities.
Rebecca's past projects at GPA include an impact assessment of International Media Support (IMS), which developed a set of general indicators based on the various programmes and activities of IMS; the Transparency and Accountability Project for the British Council Latin America for which Rebecca wrote the project report on Freedom of Information legislation and practice in the UK; and a Transparency Benchmarking and Evaluation Report for Nirex.
Rebecca previously worked as a Research Fellow at Chatham House (The Royal Institute of International Affairs) leading the Non-state Actors Project which centred upon the involvement of civil society, business and other actors in international relations and as a Management Consultant for the European Group of Infosys Consulting.
Rebecca has an MA in International Relations from the University of Nottingham, and LLB from Nottingham. Originally from Denmark, Rebecca is bilingual English/Danish, speaks Swedish and Norwegian, good French, basic German and is currently trying to teach herself Arabic.