Evelina is an accomplished professional in sustainable rural development, with over 20 years of experience in programming and management. She currently serves as the National Coordinator of the Albanian Network for Rural Development, where she leads capacity building, networking, and advocacy initiatives to improve the well-being of rural communities in Albania. Evelina has graduated on Social Sciences and holds a master’s degree in administration by Andrews University, U.S. In addition, she is also a qualified project manager and holds the PRINCE2 Practitioner level qualification.
She is highly involved in evidence-based and bottom-up advocacy initiatives that seek to advance the priorities of local communities. In particular, she serves as the Coordinator of the first nation-wide and bottom-up advocacy platform – the Albanian Rural Parliament. Additionally, she has initiated the Pro-Rural Women event and the creation of Rural Youth Hub, consolidating ANRD’s thematic work with women and youth in rural areas.
Evelina is a passionate advocate for sustainable and integrated local development. As ANRD’s Coordinator, she contributes to policy discussions about the promotion of Community-Led Local Development (CLLD)/LEADER, empowerment of women in rural areas, sustainable agriculture, and rural development.
Publications:
- (Co-authored with I.Korçari, R.Shehu) (2020) The Civil Society Organisations Sustainability Index (CSOSI) for Central and Eastern Europe and Eurasia. 2020 Albania Report. (Assessment Report). USAID and FHI 360
- (Co-authored with E.Dashi, L.Totoni) (September 2020) The dynamic of the Leader approach implementation in Albania and the way forward. Policy Document
- (Co-authored with R.Shehu) (2019) The Civil Society Organisations Sustainability Index (CSOSI) for Central and Eastern Europe and Eurasia. 2019 Albania Report. (Assessment Report). USAID and FHI 360
- (Co-authored with G.Imeraj, D.Grymshi) (April 2020) Impact of Covid-19 pandemic in rural areas from the perspective of rural youth. Briefing paper
- (Author) (March 2019) On (rural) social distancing. Editorial
- (Author) (November 2019) A reflection on the rural exodus in Albania. This article was originally published in German in Info EuropaMagazine (Institute of the Danube Region and Central Europe) on 26 November 2019. Info Europa is distributed as a supplement of the Austrian newspaper “Die Presse”, reaching a broad audience. The November 2019 thematic issue deals with strategies against rural exodus in the Danube Region.
- (Co-authored with E. Bezhani, K. Gega) (December 2019) Integrity Plan for Municipality of Mat 2020- Strategic document
- (Author) (July 2019) Inside the Travelling Workshop “Partnerships for Sustainable Rural Development”. Activity report