Nina Shengelia, Dr.

Dr. Nina Shengelia, a UK-qualified lawyer based in Tbilisi, Georgia, studied law at King’s College London and has completed a Master’s Degree at BPP University in the framework of her scholarship from a leading London based law firm, Herbert Smith Freehills. In July 2021 she was a visiting researcher at HIIG in the framework of DAAD Scholarship of Research Grants for PHD students. Nina combines her expertise in academics, legal practice, and media literacy with a strong focus on combating disinformation and Foreign Information Manipulation and Interference (FIMI). With over a decade of experience in non-governmental organizations and governmental roles, including at the media regulator Communications Commission and the Ministry of Education and Science of Georgia, Dr. Shengelia has worked extensively on media literacy and policy solutions for digital challenges.

Her research spans critical areas such as  digital constitutionalism, regulation, co-regulation and self-regulation of tech platforms, digital rights, human rights, social media councils, platform governance, data privacy, content moderation, platform liability, AI Governance, Ethical AI, the Digital Services Act (DSA), hate speech, disinformation, FIMI and media literacy. As the founder of the Social Media Council Georgia (SMCG), she has created a platform that addresses FIMI risks and promotes media literacy, bringing together respected legal scholars to influence policy conversations and advance solutions in the digital age. This initiative reflects her commitment to fostering resilience in vulnerable communities, particularly in regions exposed to FIMI and propaganda. SMCG addresses critical challenges such as disinformation, FIMI, hate speech, and the lack of media literacy, which have polarized society in Georgia. 

Since 2020, Nina has been a lecturer in Disinformation, Fake News, and Media Law at Tbilisi State University, teaching undergraduate and master’s students in the Faculty of Journalism. 

Nina alongside former HIIG fellow and professor Edoardo Celeste is also a co-organizer of a scientific conference “Human Rights in the Digital Age Regulating Online Disinformation: European Perspectives” Additionally, Nina has worked in leading law firms in London, Herbert Smith Freehills and Stephenson Harwood. 

Publications

Shengelia, N. (2020). Constitutionalizing Role of Terms of Service of Social Media Platforms and Proposed Social Media User Bills of Rights, International Journal of Innovative Technologies in Social Science. Available at: https://doi.org/10.31435/rsglobal_ijitss/30122020/7292 (Accessed: 3 January 2021). 

Shengelia, N. (2018). ‘Legal Normative Regulations of Social Media’, Abstracts, the Sixth International Conference for Bacherlor’s Master’s and PHD Students of Caucasus International University,  p.151.

Shengelia, N. (2020). ‘Contemporary Challenges of Social Media and Digital Constitutionalism’, Media Lab, 3 August.  Available at: https://medialab.ge/en/news/sotsialuri-mediis-tanamedrove-gamotsvevebi-da-tsipruli-konstitutsionaliz-1 (Accessed: 20 October 2020).