Lara has 7 years of experience in communications with a particular focus on nonprofit work, and earned a Master’s degree in Multimedia Communication from the University of Milan in Italy. She demonstrates strong skills of a Media Relations specialist. After obtaining her masters degree, she traveled to Cote d’Ivoire, where she was the Manager of a marketing company that specialized in events and advertising. Lara previously worked as External Relations Officer for the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) in Abidjan. She was a Public Information Officer for the United Nations Mission in South Sudan where she started up the office in the Warrap State; prior to this she was the Media Relations Officer for the Spokesperson of the United Nations Mission in Sudan. She was immediately entrusted with important assignments during active hostilities in Cote d’Ivoire and Sudan, and her performance during several UN high signor visits was praised. She was also a Web and Communication Assistant for an Italian American nonprofit with a mission to provide educational programs primarily to the Italian immigrant community in New York. While working as Media Relations Officer for the Italian NGO COOPI, apart from being in charge of designing communications plans and Media Relations strategies, she was responsible for various country-specific and institutional communications and advocacy campaigns; specifically taking the lead for communication for the 2010 Haiti earthquake, by acting as a liaison to other international organizations. In addition to being a native Italian, she is fluent in English and French, and she is proficient in Spanish.
Host Organization: UN Foundation
Role at Host Organization: Lara will join United Nations Foundation in Washington DC. She will serve in the Media and Communication Department, where she will plan and execute digital diplomacy events with the diplomatic community, manage online campaigns, support in writing projects, press releases, outreach, translating and event planning and production.