Anna Chernyakhovskaya

Anna has had a very varied career combining her professional interests in journalism, PR, and international aid which has given her opportunities to display her many talents and creativity as a communicator and innovator. She has worked in banks, charities, radio and television, for Russian and international organisations. Her wide experience reflects her remarkable flexibility and leadership skills.

From 2007-2011 Anna worked at UNAIDS Regional Support Team for Europe and Central Asia, as Strategic Communications, Partnership and Advocacy Adviser for the Russian Federation. Anna was responsible for developing an information and communication strategy for HIV/AIDS response in the Russian Federation. She organized media outreach/press conferences at Eurovision 2008, 2009, 2010 and initiated and organised All-Russian mass media conferences on ethical coverage of HIV ( 2009, 2010) and worked with Russian and Western celebrities from artistic, sports, media backgrounds to raise awareness among decision makers and the public at large to questions of stigma and discrimination and to increase tolerance in society. Anna organized fundraising and advocacy events in Russia - the photographic and art exhibitions ‘Stars against AIDS’ and ‘Art against AIDS’ (2009 - 2010). She also targeted individual fundraising for abandoned children living with HIV and for the families of people living with HIV (PLHIV) and with adopted children with HIV. Anna worked to engage the business and artistic communities in fundraising and advocacy activities for PLHIV and for HIV prevention, and she managed funds, monitored spending and reported to donors. All of this happened in a very challenging atmosphere because HIV AIDS was virtually a taboo subject in Russia.

Anna’s long connection with the UN and working in international aid programmes began in 1999 when she was appointed United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), Assistant Communications Officer where she was required to provide Information and communication support for UNICEF projects and activities in Russia, to develop communication and information strategies for the programmes, organise special public events such as press conferences at international and national level, round tables, media tours for Russian and Western journalists. It was important to develop partnership and cooperation with government institutions at federal and regional levels. Anna worked in close collaboration with UNICEF partners from the NGO community.

Anna developed and launched the UNICEF website in Russia and at UNAIDS she managed and developed the website www.unaids.ru and wrote features for www.unaids.org. Her career in journalism began when Anna was in the first year of her degree at Moscow State University in 1977 when she began working for the popular Russian daily newspaper ‘Moskovsky Komsomolets’as a Correspondent for Youth Issues. From 1989 - 1993 Anna was Head of the International Department, and member of the Editorial Board at ‘Pioneer Magazine’ (the largest magazine for young children with a monthly distribution of 2, 5 million). At the same time Anna wrote features for the English language ‘Moscow Times’ and produced radio programmes for children on the nationwide broadcaster ‘Radio Rossiya’. Anna was Associate Producer on a 12 part TV series with the famous British/Russian actor-comedian Peter Ustinov called  ‘Russia Now’ while she was working at Reuters Television, as Producer, Executive Producer and in the Programming Department between 1993 and 1998. There she produced regular programmes on news and current affairs, fashion and finance. Ever the innovator, Anna worked on developing and managing new TV projects leading the team of producers and videotape editors. In 1996 Anna produced a documentary about international adoption in Russia and the USA. The project was supported by USAID. The documentary was broadcast on the Russian NTV Channel and Culture TV channel. In 2007 Anna was Chief Coordinator for Russia on American journalist and writer Steve LeVine’s Book project Putin’s Labyrinth: Spies, Murder, and the Dark Heart of the New Russia (published by Random House 2008)

In 2006-2007 Anna was Head of the Corporate Communications Department at 'Vozrozhdenie' bank where she organised and ran their public relations, introducing a new understanding of the role of PR in the bank and a wide usage of new PR instruments. Anna got the bank into the top 20 Russian banks covered by the media on a monthly basis. Her responsibilities included:

• Development and implementation of a corporate communication strategy for the bank
• Development and supervision of a sponsorship strategy for the bank
• Preparation and publishing of the bank’s Annual Report
• Development of the concept of a corporate newspaper for the bank and publishing it
• Development and filming of a corporate video for the bank

Supervision of the banks external and internal PR, including internet and intranet web sites, organization and conducting press conferences, briefings, arranging exclusive interviews for top management in the media, regular comments for representatives of the bank in the media, writing speeches for the Chairman and his deputies

Establishment and supervision of PR activities of 60 branches of the bank in 20 regions of the Russian Federation, including interaction with the media at federal and local levels, development and implementation of information support to the marketing events, new services and products, opening of the new bank branches, leading the team of communication and call center staff.

Prior to working at the bank, in 2006 Anna was ACNielsen, Communications Country Manager where her job was to develop and implement external and internal communication strategies for ACNielsen in Russia. In 1998-99 Anna was Media Link international PR agency, account manager where she developed and implemented PR campaigns in the West for TNK oil company and WWF in Russia. She arranged CNN and Financial Times interviews and coverage, and organised media tours and B-rolls production.

Through her work Anna has developed considerable experience of working in the field of Human Rights. While she was a UNICEF she supported the establishment and close collaboration with an All Russian Union of Non-Governmental Organizations 'Civil Society for the Children of Russia' ( 2002) and participated in its activities. She organised communications and supported fundraising for IDPs (internally displaced people) women and children from Chechnya in the North Caucasus in 1999 -2005, including the Beslan school siege tragedy (2004). In 2011, while she was at UNAIDS, Anna   attended Training in Human Rights Advocacy at Human Rights Education Associates and Training in Moscow School of Human Rights. Since 1986 Anna has been involved and supports the NGO ‘Maria’s Children’ working with children from orphanages through art therapy and clown’s therapy. She is a Member of the All Russian Union of Journalists.