Meet the co-founders

Innovating justice means bridging sectors and disciplines, which is why the Fénix founding team is made up of trailblazers with a combined 30 years of experience working at the intersection of digital evidence, data, and peacebuilding. 

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  • Sabrina Rewald is an international lawyer specialized in digital evidence and gender justice. While serving as Research Associate at the Kalshoven-Gieskes Forum on International Humanitarian Law (‘KGF’) at Leiden University, Sabrina supervised the KGF’s Digitally Derived Evidence Project and advises on and disseminates the Leiden Guidelines on the Use of Digitally Derived Evidence in International Criminal Courts and Tribunals. Sabrina is additionally part of a pool of consultants for the Council of Europe regarding the collection, preservation, and use of electronic evidence related to violations in the context of armed conflict, as well as with Hala Systems Inc. in the development of the ‘Hala Protocol on the Collection, Preservation and Transfer of Audio Data’. Prior to shifting to international law Sabrina worked in civil litigation and as a solicitor in Ontario, as well as in reproductive health, rights, and justice advocacy in Washington, D.C. and Atlanta, Georgia. Sabrina earned her advanced LL.M. in European and International Human Rights Law cum laude from Leiden University, and her law degrees from the University of Windsor and University of Detroit Mercy Dual J.D. Program. She holds an Honours Bachelor of Arts degree in history and political science from the University of Toronto. Sabrina is a licensed attorney in Michigan, U.S. and Ontario, Canada.

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  • Johanna Trittenbach is an international humanitarian lawyer pursuing a doctoral degree at Leiden University. Her research focuses on arms transfer controls and disarmament, as well as on access to justice for victims of violations of international humanitarian law and international human rights law. In addition, Johanna supervises impact-oriented research projects of the Leiden International Humanitarian Law Clinic, coordinated by the Kalshoven-Gieskes Forum on International Humanitarian Law. In the framework of the IHL Clinic, Johanna guides master students’ research that is conducted in cooperation with humanitarian organisations working in practice. In the past, Johanna has worked on issues of disarmament, arms control, and non-proliferation as a civil society representative, in think tanks, and the United Nations system. She holds a LL.M. degree in public international law with a specialization on international humanitarian law from Leiden University, the Netherlands, and a B.A. degree in political science from Ludwig Maximilians University Munich, Germany.

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  • Kate Keator is a data analyst, digital peacebuilder, and problem-solver who has consistently worked at the intersection of peace, technology, & data. She helped build and eventually lead The Carter Center’s Syria Conflict Mapping Project from 2013-2021, leveraging OSINT and machine learning to inform and strengthen the work of her team, the UN, and other international actors in ending the violence in Syria and mapping areas of unexploded ordnances. Kate has also served as a Director of Data & Data Strategy in a community-building organization and currently supports various nonprofits with IT, operations, and strategy. She holds a M.A. with distinction in Conflict Resolution from the University of Bradford as an alumna of the Rotary Peace Fellowship, and a B.A. cum laude in Political Science from the University of Florida. Additionally, Kate holds certificates in mediation, social network analysis, and machine learning.

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  • Emma Irving is an international lawyer specialized in international criminal justice and technology, with a particular focus on digital evidence. Emma is part of a pool of consultants for the Council of Europe regarding the collection, preservation, and use of electronic evidence related to violations in the context of armed conflict, as well as a consultant with Hala Systems Inc. in the development of the ‘Hala Protocol on the Collection, Preservation and Transfer of Audio Data’. Until 2020 Emma was an Assistant Professor of Public International Law at the Grotius Centre of Leiden University, where she was a member of the Kalshoven-Gieskes Forum on International Humanitarian Law (‘KGF’). In 2019 Emma co-founded the KGF’s Digitally Derived Evidence Project and advises on and disseminates the Leiden Guidelines on the Use of Digitally Derived Evidence in International Criminal Courts and Tribunals. Emma holds an M.A. in Law from Cambridge University, an LL.M in Public International Law from Leiden University, and a PhD from the University of Amsterdam.

Meet the fellows

At Fénix, we are fortunate to be joined by our highly talented Fénix Fellows, who support the Foundation’s work in research, dissemination, and fundraising.

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  • Jana van Megeren is an international lawyer specializing in international security law, humanitarian law, and accountability mechanisms for addressing violations of international law. She is passionate about leveraging innovative methods and technology to advance accountability, strengthen humanitarian law, and address civilian harm mitigation. Jana has worked on civilian harm assessment and incident reporting at Airwars, where she evaluated the impact of military actions in conflict zones and contributed to documenting civilian casualties. At Utrecht University’s Public International Law and Human Rights Honours Clinic, she contributed to projects on the use of open-source methods for strategic litigation cases, focusing on the prosecution of war crimes and crimes against humanity. Jana is set to begin a Blue Book Traineeship at the European Commission in March 2025. She holds an LL.M. in Public International Law from Utrecht University, graduating cum laude with a specialization in international security and humanitarian law. She also earned a B.A. in European Studies from Maastricht University, graduating cum laude, and completed the Certificate of Social Sciences and Humanities at Sciences Po Paris.

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  • Inshira Faliq is a Legal Fellow at Fénix Foundation and is a licensed attorney in Sri Lanka. She is also currently a Programme Intern at the Mukwege Foundation in The Hague, where she supports survivor-led initiatives to address conflict-related sexual violence. Previously, Inshira worked as the Programme Manager at Legal Action Worldwide (LAW), where she led the Sri Lanka country programme and oversaw initiatives providing technical assistance to justice institutions. Additionally, she worked as a Legal Researcher and Junior Counsel at the Centre for Policy Alternatives (CPA), a Colombo-based think tank, where she contributed to research papers, commentaries, and policy statements, on various human rights issues. Her work at CPA also involved supporting strategic litigation cases on fundamental rights. Inshira also worked as a legal researcher for a Special Committee on Criminal Justice Reform, appointed by the Sri Lankan government and chaired by a Supreme Court judge, where she supported efforts to reform the country’s criminal law. Along with that, she worked as a Legal Researcher at Sri Lanka’s first-ever Right to Information Commission, co-authoring three publications that documented the commission's important work in promoting transparency and accountability. Inshira holds an Advanced LL.M. in European and International Human Rights Law from Leiden University, graduating cum laude, and an LL.B. (Hons) from the University of Colombo.