Panel XI – 24 June 2025, 12:00

Moderation

Anjali Bhardwaj,  Founder, SNS (Satark Nagrik Sangathan- Citizens Vigilance Initiative) & Co-Convenor, National Campaign for Peoples’ Right to Information

Short Biography

Anjali Bhardwaj has been closely associated with the Right to Information (RTI) movement in India since the year 2000 and is a Co-Convenor of the National Campaign for Peoples’ Right to Information (NCPRI). NCPRI played a pivotal role in campaigning for a strong RTI Act in India and since the passage of the law in 2005, has been working to ensure its effective implementation. NCPRI has been advocating for a series of anti-corruption and grievance redress laws, including the Whistleblowers Protection Act. It works closely with other movements and campaigns in the country, on the use of the RTI Act to seek accountability.

Anjali is the founder of Satark Nagrik Sangathan (SNS), a citizens’ group working in the slum settlements of Delhi, with a mandate to promote transparency in government functioning and to assist people in using the RTI Act to access information of relevance to them. She has been leading efforts to monitor the implementation of the RTI Act in India and has co-authored several national reports.

She is associated with various rights-based struggles in India and is a member of the Steering Committee of the National Right to Food Campaign and the Campaign for Judicial Accountability and Reforms.

Amrita Johri, Information and Research Co-ordinator, SNS (Satark Nagrik Sangathan- Citizens Vigilance Initiative) & member, National Campaign for Peoples’ Right to Information

Short Biography

Amrita Johri, has been leading the research and information initiatives at SNS (Satark Nagrik Sangathan- Citizens Vigilance Initiative) for the last 15 years. SNS is a citizens’ group with a mandate to promote transparency and accountability in government functioning. SNS seeks to empower people, especially the poor and marginalized, to use the Right to Information (RTI) Act to hold the government accountable for delivery of basic rights, entitlements and services like ration, pensions, health, sanitation, education.

Amrita is a member of the working committee of the National Campaign for Peoples’ Right to Information (NCPRI), which plays a pivotal role in campaigning for effective implementation of the RTI Act in India. As part of the NCPRI, she has been actively involved in conceptualising and implementing campaigns for the enactment of anti-corruption, whistleblower protection and grievance redress legislations. Amrita has been involved with initiatives to carry out people led assessments and research on the RTI law. She has co-authored several national reports on its implementation, including an annual assessment of information commissions in India. She has been closely involved in litigation in the Indian courts to ensure proper functioning of information commissions, which are the apex appellate authority under the RTI Act.

Panelists

María Baron, Global Executive Director, Directorio Legislativo (Argentina)

Short Biography

María Baron is the Global Executive Director of Directorio Legislativo in Argentina. She is a journalist, has received a Masters Degree in International Relations from the University of Bologna, Italy, and is a PhD candidate in Political Science at Universidad Nacional de San Martín, Argentina. She is also a Fulbright-APSA Congressional Fellow and holder of the 2013 NDI’s Civic Innovator Prize. She has worked for civil society nonprofit organizations in Argentina and abroad with the aim of reducing unethical practices of lawmakers and public officials. María initiated and currently chairs the Latin American Network for Legislative Transparency composed of 24 organizations in 12 countries of the region.

She has published 12 editions of Directorio Legislativo. Quiénes son nuestros legisladores y cómo nos representan. María served as a civil society member on the Open Government Partnership Steering Committee from 2016 – 2021. She also was civil society Lead Co-Chair from 2020 – 2021 with the Government of Korea and was Chair of the OGP Board of Directors from 2021 through March 2025.

Rachel Hanna, Executive Director, Access Info Europe

Short Biography

Rachel Hanna is the Director of Access Info, a leading organisation dedicated to advancing the right of access to information, open government, and transparency across Europe. Rachel oversees the organisation's legal research and policy analysis projects, translating findings into strategic advocacy and impactful campaigns for legislative and institutional reform.

In addition to her role at Access Info, Rachel also serves as Director of the Northern Ireland Open Government Network, where she provides strategic leadership to drive the organisation's mission of fostering a more transparent, participatory, and accountable government in Northern Ireland.

Rachel holds a degree in Civil and Common Law with Spanish Studies and a Master's in International Human Rights Law from Queen's University Belfast, where she specialised in the rights of unaccompanied refugee minors.

Caroline Maynard, Information Commissioner of Canada

Short Biography

Since her appointment as Information Commissioner of Canada in 2018, Caroline Maynard has advocated for an efficient and responsive access to information system while investigating thousands of complaints and pursuing litigation to enforce the law and uphold the right of access. Prior to her appointment, Commissioner Maynard worked as a lawyer and senior executive. She was the Interim Chairperson and Chief Executive Officer of the Military Grievances External Review Committee, where she also served as Director General of Operations and General Counsel for 11 years. Earlier in her career, she was Legal Counsel in the Office of the Judge Advocate General at National Defence and with the Royal Canadian Mounted Police External Review Committee. She also worked with the Canada Revenue Agency and in private practice.

She holds a Bachelor of Laws from the Université de Sherbrooke and has been a member of the Quebec Bar since 1994. A native of Saint-Hyacinthe, Quebec, she lives in the National Capital Region with her family.

Marie Whelan, Policy Analyst, Open Governance Unit, Innovative, Digital and Open Government (INDIGO) Division, Public Governance Directorate, OECD

Short Biography

Marie Whelan is a Policy Analyst within the Innovative, Digital and Open Governance (INDIGO) Division of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD).

Her work within the Public Governance Directorate focuses on how governments can better inform, engage, and empower citizens, civil society organisations, and other stakeholders to participate in public decision-making.

Over recent years, she has gained extensive expertise in the role of transparency and access to information to foster more inclusive, effective, and sustainable policymaking and service design and delivery, working across a variety of country contexts.

Marie has an M.Sc. from the London School of Economics and a B.A. from University College Dublin.