Aspen Staff

Ciprian Stanescu has been working for the Aspen Institute Romania since October 2007, having as responsibilities the workings and development of the Leadership Programs Department: Young Leaders Program, Aspen Fellows Network, the Aspen Seminar, the Regional Seminars and the Justice and Administration Leadership Program. He holds an MA in Political Science from the Central European University in Budapest, Hungary and a BA in International Relations and European Studies in Bucharest. He previously worked with the European Institute of Romania and the European Commission Delegation in Romania.

Ada completed her BA in Social Psychology at the Faculty of Sociology at the Bucharest University and she concentrated on inter-ethnic relations, minorities and social exclusion problem. She has significant multicultural experience and gained valuable knowledge while working between 2005 and 2008 in the United States. She joined Aspen in December 2008 and her diverse background benefits the Institute where she is in charge of the Administration, Corporate Affairs and Events Department. She enjoys cycling, hiking and photography

Sorina developed her interest in public policies during her undergraduate studies at Bucharest Academy of Economic Studies, where she was specializing in International Relations. She then moved to Barcelona to pursue a MRes in Political and Social Sciences at Pompeu Fabra University. Her specialties are public policies, international relations and research methods and techniques in political and social sciences. She has also developed an interest for immigration related issues and multiculturalism. She previously worked for General Electric as well as with several NGOs and is a member of the European Youth Parliament and Pro-Democracy Association. She is fond of travelling, longboarding, reading and music.

A former Aspen Institute intern, Ina has recently completed a traineeship with the Council of Europe, where she worked on local and regional democracy. She received an MSc in International Public Policy from University College London and has a diverse academic background and experience. Ina holds a BEng in Economic Engineering from the University "Politehnica" Bucharest and a BA in Political Science from the University of Bucharest. She previously interned with the British Embassy Bucharest, the Romanian Cultural Institute, and worked for IBM Global Delivery Centre Eastern Europe.

Gheorghe Ionita is Logistics Assistant with Aspen Romania since 2008 and deals with various issues connected with pre-accounting, office administration, supplies and courier and transportation.

Mihaela is in her second year of the master program in Public Policy and Management in Public Administration at the Faculty of Sociology and Social Care (Bucharest University) and holds a University degree in Communication and Public Relations from the Faculty of Letters. Ever since she started volunteering for the Community Support Foundation back in 2004, she has become interested in the social sector and pursued it through her academic projects and through several volunteering opportunities and collaborations. She was also an intern at Ogilvy & Mather which allowed her to further develop her knowledge and experience by working on internal communication projects and CSR projects. She is creative and enthusiastic and enjoys writing, watching movies and tv series.

Laura Peneş is a recent graduate of Tilburg University (The Netherlands) where she pursued an LLM in International Public Law and Human Rights Law. She previously received an LLB from Sorbonne University (France) and University of Bucharest. Her fields of interest are human rights protection, international relations in the context of globalization and social entrepreneurship. She is also passionate about social activism, having volunteered in several NGOs.  Laura previously interned with the Romanian Council for Refugees and the Romanian Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Her hobbies are traveling, reading and swimming.

Loredana Urzica has recently graduated the Political Science Faculty, University of Bucharest and currently is a Master student at Romanian and European Politics.  She has previously interned at UNDP Romania and German Marshall Fund of Unites States and gained an academic background in the fields of media, conflicts and international relations at University of Bologna, during her staying as an Erasmus student. Loredana is a member of Romanian Students' Union Executive Committee, where she coordinates several projects and works with students all around the country. She enjoys travelling, debating, music, cinematography.

Horia Petrescu is currently in his second year of his Masters degree at the University of Bucharest, the department of Arabic language and literature and has been an intern at the Aspen Institute Romania since the beginning of 2012. After his first year as a student, Horia moved to Egypt where he studied at the University of Cairo and the Dar al-'Ulum Faculty, in addition to being granted a study scholarship in Istanbul. He is  highly motivated towards social and charitable activities and worked in Iraq where he improved and deepened his Arabic language and cultural skills. Horia is also an authorized translator to and from Arabic and throughout the time he has worked with several notable non-governmental and governmental institutions.