VITA ACTIVA
The Team Behind Vita Activa
We are an interdisciplinary team supporting journalists, activists, and human rights defenders.We bring together expertise in mental health, communications, digital rights, and organizational development to build sustainable systems of care.
Some collaborators choose to remain anonymous for privacy and digital security reasons.
Executive Leadership
Strategic coordination and organizational development.
Luisa Ortiz Pérez
Executive Director
Creative strategist with more than 20 years of experience in mental health, digital rights, and emotional support for media professionals. Author of A Human Condition: A Work About Journalism and a JSK Journalism Fellow at Stanford University. She also leads MDRnet.org, Vita Activa's program and support line dedicated specifically to U.S.-based journalists.
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Giovanna Salazar
Partnerships Strategist & Executive Advisor
Communications specialist and feminist activist with more than ten years of experience advancing women's rights, the rights of diverse communities, digital rights, and support for human rights defenders and journalists. At Vita Activa and MDRnet.org, she develops partnerships and strategic collaborations that strengthen care systems and sustainable support networks.
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Product & Community
Designing spaces for connection that strengthen sustainable systems of care.
Ana Arriagada Schulz
Director of Product & Community
Journalist with more than 25 years of experience in digital media, product development, and innovation strategy. At Vita Activa, she transforms years of experience supporting journalists and human rights defenders into tools, processes, and care infrastructure. She also leads initiatives that strengthen direct collaboration with civil society organizations and local networks through spaces for connection and collective action. She is a Non-Resident Fellow at the Atlantic Council's DFRLab and co-founder of ElSoberano.org.
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Operations & Research
Operational coordination and knowledge generation to strengthen Vita Activa's systems of care.
Dagmar Thiel
Director of Operations & Research
Ecuadorian-German journalist with extensive experience in freedom of expression, journalist support, and organizational development. At Vita Activa and MDRnet, she oversees operational and financial processes while leading research initiatives that help understand the evolving needs of journalists, activists, and human rights communities across diverse linguistic and cultural contexts. She also serves as Chair of Vita Activa's Advisory Board
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Communications & Narratives
Building narratives and resources that strengthen communities and amplify Vita Activa's work.
Gisel Sánchez
Communications & Narratives Lead
Communications specialist and university lecturer focused on human rights, digital literacy, and narrative change. She joined Vita Activa in 2022 as a support companion on the organization's Psychological First Aid-certified helpline. Her work centers on creating narratives, resources, and spaces for dialogue that strengthen communities and make the impact of collective care more visible.
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Julia Foti
Designer
Graphic designer and art director with more than ten years of experience in branding, visual identity, and digital projects. She has developed campaigns, publications, and visual systems for organizations and initiatives across multiple sectors. At Vita Activa and MDRnet, she contributes to the development of resources, materials, and visual experiences grounded in the organization's principles of care, accessibility, and well-being.
Helpline & Care Team
An interdisciplinary team supporting journalists, activists, and human rights defenders across different contexts and regions.
Lu An Méndez Tapia
Community Care & Support Coordinator
Psychologist specializing in holistic digital security, technology-facilitated violence, and psychosocial support, with extensive experience in Psychological First Aid (PFA), training, and culturally relevant educational resources. As founder of Centro S.O.S. Digital, she has led multidisciplinary teams focused on preventing, responding to, and addressing digital violence. At Vita Activa, she contributes to the development of care and safety practices.
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César Montesano
Head of Psychological Support
Humanistic counselor, Gestalt psychotherapist, and trainer with more than 25 years of experience in trauma, post-traumatic stress, and emotional well-being. He has worked extensively with therapeutic groups, somatic processes, adults, children, and adolescents, while also bringing decades of experience as a yoga teacher. Since the early days of Vita Activa, he has supported journalists facing crisis, trauma, and burnout, while helping train coaches and journalists in crisis support.
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Support Team
Stephanie Pita
Responder
Psychologist, activist, and researcher focused on human rights, particularly LGBTQI+ communities. She is part of Vita Activa and MDRnet as a member of the helpline support team.
Ana Velasquez
Responder
Communications and marketing strategist and journalist with more than ten years of experience leading campaigns, community engagement initiatives, and media and nonprofit projects.
Omar Rábago Vital
Responder
More than 25 years of experience in human rights, international development, and social impact. Specializes in public policy advocacy, strategic communications, and risk assessment.
Nohely Guzmán
Responder
Geographer specializing in community and territorial psychology. Researcher, activist, and practitioner working on digital autonomy, data sovereignty, and technologies centered on care, community, and life.