Ory Okolloh
Encyclopedia
Ory Okolloh is a Kenyan activist, lawyer, and blogger. She currently holds the position of Policy Manager for Africa with Google. In 2006 she co-founded the parliamentary watchdog site Mzalendo (Swahili: "Patriot"). The site sought to increase government accountability by systematically recording bills, speeches, MPs, standing orders, etc. When Kenya was engulfed in violence following a disputed presidential election
in 2007, Okolloh helped create Ushahidi
(Swahili: "Witness"), a website that collected and recorded eyewitness reports of violence using text messages and Google Maps
. The technology has since been adapted for other purposes (including monitoring elections and tracking pharmaceutical availability) and used in a number of other countries. Okolloh also has a personal blog, Kenyan Pundit, which was featured on Global Voices Online
. She also works as a legal consultant for NGOs and has worked at Covington and Burling, the Kenya National Commission on Human Rights
, and the World Bank
in the past.
Okolloh was born into a relatively poor family. She has said that her parents sent her to a private elementary school that they could "barely afford," which "set the foundation for what ended up being my career." She earned an undergraduate degree in Political Science from the University of Pittsburgh
and graduated from Harvard Law School
in 2005. Her father died of AIDS in 1999. Okolloh lives in Johannesburg
, South Africa
, with her partner and two children.
2007–2008 Kenyan crisis
The 2007–2008 Kenyan crisis refers to a political, economic, and humanitarian crisis that erupted in Kenya after incumbent President Mwai Kibaki was declared the winner of the presidential election held on December 27, 2007. Supporters of Kibaki's opponent, Raila Odinga of the Orange Democratic...
in 2007, Okolloh helped create Ushahidi
Ushahidi
Ushahidi, Inc. is a non-profit software company that develops free and open source software for information collection, visualization and interactive mapping....
(Swahili: "Witness"), a website that collected and recorded eyewitness reports of violence using text messages and Google Maps
Google Maps
Google Maps is a web mapping service application and technology provided by Google, free , that powers many map-based services, including the Google Maps website, Google Ride Finder, Google Transit, and maps embedded on third-party websites via the Google Maps API...
. The technology has since been adapted for other purposes (including monitoring elections and tracking pharmaceutical availability) and used in a number of other countries. Okolloh also has a personal blog, Kenyan Pundit, which was featured on Global Voices Online
Global Voices Online
Global Voices Online is an international network of bloggers and citizen journalists that follow, report, and summarizes what is going on in the blogosphere in every corner of the world...
. She also works as a legal consultant for NGOs and has worked at Covington and Burling, the Kenya National Commission on Human Rights
Kenya National Commission on Human Rights
The Kenya National Commission on Human Rights is an autonomous national human rights institution established by a Kenyan Act of Parliament in 2002. KNCHR became operational in July 2003...
, and the World Bank
World Bank
The World Bank is an international financial institution that provides loans to developing countries for capital programmes.The World Bank's official goal is the reduction of poverty...
in the past.
Okolloh was born into a relatively poor family. She has said that her parents sent her to a private elementary school that they could "barely afford," which "set the foundation for what ended up being my career." She earned an undergraduate degree in Political Science from the University of Pittsburgh
University of Pittsburgh
The University of Pittsburgh, commonly referred to as Pitt, is a state-related research university located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States. Founded as Pittsburgh Academy in 1787 on what was then the American frontier, Pitt is one of the oldest continuously chartered institutions of...
and graduated from Harvard Law School
Harvard Law School
Harvard Law School is one of the professional graduate schools of Harvard University. Located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, it is the oldest continually-operating law school in the United States and is home to the largest academic law library in the world. The school is routinely ranked by the U.S...
in 2005. Her father died of AIDS in 1999. Okolloh lives in Johannesburg
Johannesburg
Johannesburg also known as Jozi, Jo'burg or Egoli, is the largest city in South Africa, by population. Johannesburg is the provincial capital of Gauteng, the wealthiest province in South Africa, having the largest economy of any metropolitan region in Sub-Saharan Africa...
, South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
, with her partner and two children.