As a research affiliate at the Data + Feminism Lab at MIT, I co-lead the participatory action research project “Data Against Feminicide,” which aims to (1) understand the data-gathering practices and technological challenges faced by activists who monitor feminicides and other forms of gender-related violence, particularly in the Americas, and (2) work with activists to co-design and develop digital tools that facilitate their monitoring labor. Through this work our team has co-developed a data highlighter browser extension and a tailored email alert system that uses machine learning (a form of AI) to identify news articles that are highly likely to concern a feminicide. Both tools are freely accessible in English, Spanish, and Portuguese. Supporting materials and tutorials can be accessed here, and a research report on our work to date here. The report is available in English, Portuguese, and Spanish.

In 2025, our work was awarded an Honorary Mention from the European Commission’s S+T+ARTS Prize, which honors innovation in technology, society and the arts.

The project was originally co-created by Catherine D’Ignazio (Data + Feminism Lab), Silvana Fumega, and Helena Suárez Val (Feminicidio Uruguay), in partnership with the Latin American Open Data Initiative (ILDA). I joined the project in 2020 as a researcher and the leadership team in 2023. I have led the project’s qualitative research and data analysis and contributed to our collaborative work with activists across contexts, including leading our work in Brazil alongside Alessandra Jungs de Almeida.