She is a research fellow at the Institute for Balkan Studies of the Serbian Academy of Sciences and Arts (Belgrade, Serbia). She studied philology at the University of Belgrade and received her Master’s Degree in political sciences (2008). Aleksandra earned her PhD in ethnology and anthropology (2012) from the University of Belgrade, Faculty of Philosophy. Her academic research has been primarily focused on the anthropology of religion, Church history, religion and migration, and contemporary evangelical movements in Serbia and Romania. Since 2007, she has conducted extensive ethnographic and archival research in Serbia, Romania, and in the United States. She has published academic papers in various languages, edited volumes, and participated in numerous programs, workshops, and international conferences worldwide. In 2017, she was awarded the position of Visiting Fellow at the University College Cork – Study of Religions (Ireland). Her book Double Minorities in Serbia: Distinctive Aspects of the Religion and Ethnicity of the Romanians in Vojvodina was published in 2015 by the Institute for Balkan Studies SASA (Belgrade, Serbia). Aleksandra has several years' experience working and researching in multiethnic, multiconfessional, and multilingual Christian communities in the Balkans. Recently, she co-edited the volume Orthodox Christian Renewal Movements in Eastern and Southeastern Europe (Palgrave Macmillan, 2017). Aleksandra is particularly interested in the promotion of tolerance, interreligious dialogue, minority rights and student education.

External Engagement Sr. Advisor, Child Protection & Participation Amanda Rives is the Senior Advisor on Child Protection and Participation Global Sector for World Vision International specializing in child protection and participation and based in Amman. She represents World Vision globally in selected networks, associations, and boards; ensuring the organization effectively collaborates with partners, influences decision-makers, and mobilizes resources to contribute to Agenda 2030. In recent years, Amanda also served as Regional Advocacy and Mobilization Director for Latin America and the Caribbean. Her responsibilities have included the development and implementation of the regional advocacy agenda, including campaigns and public engagement, as well as child protection, child and youth participation, and volunteer programs. Originally from the US, Amanda began her career as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Honduras and has spent most of her life working on social justice issues and Latin America, seeking to mobilize civil society, children and youth, governments and policy makers, as well as the media and private sector.