Arina is a lawyer by training and a human rights defender from Russia.  

She holds Bachelor's Degree in Jurisprudence from St. Petersburg State University of Economics and Finance (2018) and an LL.M. Degree in Human Rights from Central European University (2021).   

Before fully concentrating her activities on human rights protection, Arina worked as an Assistant Attorney-at-Law engaging in a range of private and administrative law cases in Russia. During her tenure as a Human Rights Lawyer at Team 29, a Russian NGO, she represented clients in the cases on digital rights, freedom of expression and access to information before domestic courts and in the European Court of Human Rights. In the course of her graduate studies, Arina also supported the teams of the Hungarian Civil Liberties Union and French Centre de la Protection Internationale. In 2021 she joined the Office of the Secretary General of the OSCE as an intern, assisting senior officers in their work on EU and NATO portfolios, supporting tech-centred initiatives and emergency response activities in Eastern Europe and Central Asia.   

Her primary research focus is on digital rights, freedom of expression and responsible use of emerging technologies in the context of the international and European human rights protection systems. She also explores the intersection between security and human rights.