TODD LESTER
Project Leader, Africa 

Expertise Africa; Conflict Prevention; Human Rights; Immigration and Asylum; Media; Natural Disaster Response; Southern Caucasus; Middle East; Art & Culture; Refugee Services; Humanitarian Response

Experience Todd Lester is the Executive Director of freeDimensional and in that role worked with Reporters Without Borders to establish its New York City communications desk over the course of 2006 and early 2007. In late 2005, he served as Katrina Relief Project Manager for FilmAid International, for which he designed and implemented the organization’s first domestic and natural disaster response intervention. Before that, Todd was Information & Advocacy Manager for the International Rescue Committee in Sudan.

As an independent consultant, he designs film, media and cultural events for national ministries, cities, universities and community-based organizations, such as the 2005 Rwanda Film Festival. From 2002-04, he served as project manager for Conflict Prevention and Effective Communication in the Southern Caucasus and conducted research for the Vera List Center for Art and Politics.

Todd is an adjunct instructor at the New School, New York University and John Jay College of Criminal Justice. Todd received career training as an assistant at the United Nations and working for various international agencies including the Carter Center, CARE and Population Services International.

Todd is currently working with a group of volunteer professionals to launch a non-profit organization known as freeDimensional with the purpose of building a bridge between the human rights advocacy sector and independent artist residency initiatives in order that the accommodation dilemma experienced by the former can be resolved by the accommodation capacity of the latter. The first step is to organize an international network of artist residency initiatives to provide safe haven for artists, activists and human rights defenders during crucial periods when they are censored in – and ultimately exiled from – their own countries.

Honors & Affiliations

Member, 21st Century Trust and Think Tank 30 of the Club of Rome

Education 
Film Production Diploma, The New School for Social Research

Masters of Public Administration, Rutgers University

PhD in Public and Urban Policy, candidate, The New School for Social     Research

Contact Contact Mr. Lester via his Web site at www.freedimensional.org
 

Bio Summary