Team

Team

Team

The organization's action group consists of experienced young people who have been active for years in the field of youth. It is a small family, which is planning with you a better future for all of us.

Come and get to know them!

President and Founder
Aris Paraschou

Aris Paraschou has done a master in Intercultural Dialogue and Education and has been involved in more than 100 youth or other projects. He is a youth trainer and part of the pool of trainers of the Council of Europe and of the Hellenic National Agency, responsible for the Erasmus+ Youth Programme. He is the head of the Greek National Network of the Anna-Lindh Foundation. 

info@usbngo.gr
Director
Yannis Tsilsou

Yannis Tsilsou has studied in the department of International and European Studies and finished his master in European Policies on Youth, Education and Culture. Since 2012 he has been involved in various organisations as an activist, member or volunteer and took part in various Training Courses about intercultural dialogue, human rights and European policies.

yannis.tsilsou@usbngo.gr
Head of Finance Department
Ermioni Triantafyllou

Ermioni Triantafillou has completed her studies at the Department of Accounting and Finance  at University of Macedonia, Thessaloniki. She has been working in the Economics Department of U.S.B. since 2016 and her main role is the financial management of European projects.

finance@usbngo.gr
Volunteers' Coordinator
Christian Cibba

Christian Cibba has studied International Relations in University of La Sapienza in Rome with focus on Cooperation and Development. He is a journalist and has been working the last five years for newspapers and non profit organisations involved with social issues and he has worked in Spain and Italy as project manager and trainer in youth organisations.

volunteer@usbngo.gr
Project Manager
Foteini Vakitsidou

Foteini Vakitsidou holds a degree in Arts and Culture from Maastricht University in the Netherlands. Her master's thesis was on cultural perspectives on biodiversity. She has worked for several years for international environmental and refugee organizations in the areas of project management, communication, public awareness, environmental education, youth empowerment, sustainable development and integration.

fotinivakits@usbngo.gr
Finance Manager
Christina Tourlakidou
Christina Tourlakidou comes from and lives in Thessaloniki. She has completed her studies at the Department of Economics and her postgraduate studies in Business Administration and Information Systems at the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki. She has been working in the Economics Department of U.S.B. since 2019 and her main role is the financial management of European projects.
finance@usbngo.gr
Head of the Project Management Department
Elina Azopoulou

Elina Azopoulou is a graduate of the Department of Political Science and International Relations with a master's degree in Global Political Economy. She has extensive experience in the refugee field working for the International Organization for Migration and the European Asylum Support Service. From January 2022, she works at USB in the European project implementation department.

networks@usbngo.gr
Project Manager Assistant
Dimitris Gavridis

Born in Thessaloniki shortly before the turn of the millennium, Dimitris Gavridis started actively volunteering in 2018 and currently works as a manager of European programs. He is majoring in computer science and has a passion for basketball and lifelong learning.

dimitris.g@usbngo.gr
Mobility Officer
Kiriaki Pelagou

Kyriaki Pelagou is a graduate student of Political Science and a postgraduate student with a degree on European Youth Policies, Education and Culture. She has participated in Youth Exchanges as a youth leader and in several training courses. She has been involved in the coordination of local actions in groups of volunteers and the design and implementation of educational activities. Areas of interest and involvement include active citizenship, human rights and intercultural dialogue.

placements@usbngo.gr
Press Officer
Panos Skepadianos

Panos Skepadianos is a graduate student of the Department of Business Administration. Since 2011 he has participated in various organizations as a volunteer, trainer and in recent years has been a coordinator of volunteers in the organization Thessaloniki Pride.

press@usbngo.gr
Volunteer Coordinator Assistant
Christos Leivaditis

Christos Leivaditis is a graduate of the Department of Balkan, Slavic and Oriental Studies, University of Macedonia and he's pursuing a Master's in Economic in the same University. He has participated in numerous Erasmus+ trainings and Exchange projects. Some of his other interests are journalism and economic research.

balkanhotspot.usb@gmail.com
ESC Mentor
Urania Rapti
Ourania Rapti was born and raised in Thessaloniki. She is a Psychologist (graduate of the Department 
of Psychology of the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki), Experiential Instructor at H.R. with training
focused on anti-Gypsy culture but also experiential and psychodynamic methods, and Mentor of Roma
women, young people and volunteers (Greeks and foreigners). From 2018 until today she supports
as a mentor of the EVS & ESC volunteers of thessDiktyo as a partner of USB.
ESC house manager
Dionisis Tonas

Dionysis Tonas has been working for United Societies of Balkans since June 2015. He is responsible of the house where the volunteers live, for their accommodation, food and whatever other issues arise from their coexistence.

Assistant Finance Manager
Sia Eleftheriou

Sia Eleftheriou studies at the Department of Economics of the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki. She has been working in the finance department of USB since 2022 and is involved in the financial management of European projects.  She has been involved as a volunteer in several local organizations in the city since 2018. 

finance@usbngo.gr
Volunteer Coordinator
Mariami Gatenashvili
Mariami Gatenashvili is Georgian but she was born and raised in Thessaloniki. She has studied Journalism and Mass Media communication in the university of Aristotle. She speaks Greek, Georgian, English, Spanish and Italian. She is the Coordinator of the Balkan Hotspot Media Lab.
balkanhotspot@usbngo.gr
Project Officer
Nafsika Karakomninou-Tsigkopoulou

Nafsika Karakomninou-Tsigkopoulou has studied "Politics and International Relations" at the B.S.O.S. Department at University of Macedonia. She holds an MSc in "War & Psychiatry", from the Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, of King's College London. She has many years of experience working with refugees at the International Organization for Migration, in the field of community engagement. Since October 2023 she has been working for the European Project Management Department at USB. She has also started her 4-year traineeship in Dramatherapy.

nafsika.kar@usbngo.gr

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