Meet our Team
JAVIER RIVAS
President
I am Javi, I am 40 years old and I have been working with people and groups in situations of vulnerability or risk of it for more than 20 years. Currently I coordinate intervention teams and social programs. From the first day I have been accompanied by the same illusion and desire to contribute to creating a better society, with honesty and emotion; that is the goal of Opening Borders. This association is a commitment to rigor, equanimity and the conviction that a supportive and participatory community can face any challenge.
CRISTINA SANCHEZ
Vice President
My name is Cristina and I am 39 years old. I am a pedagogue and family counselor. I am very excited to start this project that I hope you also feel like yours; because it is through citizen participation and the conviction that if you believe in something you have to try it, that changes happen. Welcome to Opening Borders
LAURA CERROLAZA
Secretary
Hi, I'm Laura and I'm 39 years old. Philologist and Spanish teacher. I cannot conceive of my life without classes, without those students who teach us so much by sharing their own learning. Since my work began to have a more social factor, thanks to teaching in various Refugee Reception Centers, I have not been able to conceive of it differently. Being part of this beautiful and necessary project, Opening Borders, gives me the opportunity to unite my profession with the most social. Humanity without charity! I love learning from variety, from what is different. Exploring new worlds and continents. Building bridges between people.
ANTONELLO RONGA
Treasurer
Hello! I am Antonella. Political scientist and social educator, I have worked for four years in a reception and integration program for asylum seekers and in a personalized employment program of an occupational center. Currently, I am part of a multidisciplinary team in the LAMBDA ORIENTA service, where we offer comprehensive care to people from the LGBTIQ+ community. In love with good cooking (vegetarian), my cat and technology, I have dedicated and invested my time in finding a way to contribute my grain of sand to this crazy world in which we live. Opening borders is just this: madness, the commitment of a group of friends and colleagues to restore hope, motivation and the desire to move forward to those who have seen their dreams taken away. Have you ever stopped to think: How much is a smile worth?
MERCEDES FORNER
Communication Manager
I believe in journalism as a tool for social transformation that serves to raise awareness, denounce and make visible realities that should not go unnoticed. Being a speaker for those who need to be heard is my vocation. As a journalist I have had the opportunity to travel to other countries and be in contact with the crudeness and richness of cultures that only leave me with lessons learned. I join Opening Borders with the aim of keeping them alive. I come to tell stories, those of migrants who fight every day for their dignity. Thank you for letting us be.
.jpg)
SONIA DE MIER
employment technician
I'm Sonia, a journalist, dedicated to corporate communication. My walks have always been directed to social movements, to the education of a critical view, and to the construction of the common, to, among all, create community sewing. Being part of this urgent and necessary project connects with my Zapatista spirit, with that deep-rooted belief that we need all people and that only all people are enough to build a world where many worlds fit.