(9 February 2023; Colombo and Germany)

The FACTS – Foundation for Advancing Critical Thinking in South Asia and the Facts for friends – a Germany based Fact-checking organization are happy to announce the launch of  the South Asian Fellowship on Gender-Based Disinformation The virtual fellowship is to begin on 25 February with an inauguration and a keynote address by Dr. Maria Giovanna Sessa, Senior Researcher at EU DisinfoLab and disinformation Expert.

Dr. Maria Giovanna Sessa is Senior Researcher at EU DisinfoLab, where she coordinates research activities. She holds a PhD in Political Science and has previously worked as a consultant for European projects at Fondazione Brodolini, as a researcher at Fondazione Feltrinelli, and as a teaching assistant at the Universities of Siena and Florence. Her research interests focus on the use of disinformation in political communication, in gender-based attacks, and around international crises.

The South Asian Fellowship for countering gender-based disinformation seeks to empower identified individuals as potential change-makers and advocates for the significance of the all-too-often overlooked issue of gender-based disinformation.

The virtual fellowship will include five sessions on different themes such as Understanding the Basics of Media Literacy and Gendered Disinformation; Technology and Gender; Why and how Gendered Disinformation is Produced and Shared; Gendered Disinformation as Propaganda Tool: Tackling online abuse and disinformation targeting women in politics; and Strategies and tools to counter gender-based disinformation.

This fellowship is designed to empower young girls and women concerned about increasing gendered disinformation and digital misogyny and are interested in being the champions of debunking and demystifying all forms of disinformation and misogynistic expressions targeted towards women.

Specific objectives of this fellowship are:

To enhance the Media Literacy skills of identified young girls and women in the South Asian region; provide necessary knowledge, skills and aptitudes for selected young girls and women in detecting and dealing successfully with all forms of gendered disinformation; Create a network of media literacy champions specialized in dealing with gendered disinformation and cyber  misogyny and create a robust learning platform for young girls and women interested in media literacy, learn from each other, build each other, share experience and best practices and collectively promote critical thinking

Globally recognized experts in the field of Media and Information Literacy, such as Dr. Maria Giovanna Sessa (Senior Researcher at EU DisinfoLab), Prof. Aparna Sharma (UCLA Department of World Arts and Cultures/Dance), Dr. Nuurrianti Jalli (Northern State University in South Dakota), Dr. Bhavna Pathak (Prestige Institute of Management) and and Prof. Claire Wardle (Co-founder and Co-director of the Information Futures Lab, Professor of the Practice at the Brown School of Public Health) will share their expertise and knowledge in this timely fellowship.

After a call for the application process, 20 potential candidates have been selected for this fellowship program. They are:

1. Abdul Sattar, Independent Urdu/ Tribal News Network, Pakistan
2. Alisha Poudyal, Tribhuvan University, Nepal
3. Anjali Singh, English and Foreign Languages University, India
4. Anutharsi Gabilan, Department of Media Studies, University of Jaffna, Sri Lanka
5. Chamodi Kaluarchchi, Sri Lanka Development Journalists Forum, Sri Lanka
6. Denejaplai Snijnaglih Shrestha, GiZ; Tribhuvan University, Nepal
7. Devaka K.C, Center for Dalit Women Nepal, Nepal
8. Fayaz Ud Din AH Group of Companies, Pakistan
9. Keshayinie Edmund, Freelance Journalist - Local and Foreign Media, Sri Lanka
10. Kritika Kaushik, Jawaharlal Nehru University, Delhi, India
11. Laxmi Maharjan, Human Rights Journalists' Association (HURJA) Nepal
12. Lubna Jerar, Naqvi Freelance Journalist/IFJ-AP, Pakistan
13. Mahera Imam, Department of Women's Studies, Khajamalai Campus, Bharathidasan University, Tiruchirappalli, Tamil-Nadu, India.
14. Manish Saini, Jagriti Sansthan, India
15. Poongulaly Srisangeerthanan, Department of Media Studies, University of Jaffna, Sri Lanka
16. Pranita Rai, Tribhuvan University, Nepal
17. Salman Shah, Tribal News Network (TNN).
18. Sigy Ghosh, Kirori Mal College, University of Delhi, India
19. Simran Dhingra, Youth Waging Peace Ambassador with UNESCO MGIEP, India
20. Ahallya David, Trincomalee Campus, Eastern University of Sri Lanka, Sri Lanka

Commenting with regards to the fellowship, FACTS Director Begum Moni stated that “Gender-based disinformation is a human rights concern and a threat to democracy. It is extremely important to mentor young champions to counter it successfully.”

Similarly, Valerie Scholz, Founder of Facts for Friends, highlighted that "Understanding the mechanisms of and methods against gender-based disinformation will empower individuals to raise their voices and step outside the shadows."

Click here for the fellowship booklet : https://rb.gy/d3cdww