I am the Principal of Fighting Fake, dedicated to countering disinformation. I set up Powerful Information (PI) in 1990 following a fact-finding visit to west Africa to explore how low-income countries might respond to environmental crises and climate change.

My Fellowship in 1991 investigated the information needs of environmental NGOs in central and eastern Europe. It enabled me to visit dozens of environmental NGOs across eastern Europe. Environmental groups were some of the few civil-society organisations that were permitted to exist under Soviet Communism, and were where many would-be politicians developed their skills.

While there, my aim was to develop close links with a number of the groups, and together we went on to raise over £1.5 million in grants and set up and carry out over 100 joint grassroots education and information projects in Albania, Moldova, Lithuania and Romania (and also Ghana and Sierra Leone).

I subsequently set up Fighting Fake in 2017 to provide a 'one-stop shop' for NGOs, teachers, students and local activists concerned about the threat to democracy posed by 'fake news' and disinformation. The information management, database and website skills that I developed and honed at PI have proved invaluable for this new endeavour.