ABOUT

Billie is at the heart of the geospatial and open-source investigation world. Having worked with NASA Lifelines to assess how humanitarians could better access geospatial technology and satellite imagery, she has also worked with historic maps for the Mass Department of Conservation and Recreation and has produced hundreds of maps for companies and NGOs.

Billie specializes in using open-source investigations to reveal war crimes and human rights abuses, working and collaborating with journalists, human rights specialists and well-known non-governmental organizations (NGOs) worldwide on high-profile conflicts and situations, most notably on Ukraine and Cameroon. She continues as the Co-Director of the Cameroon Database of Atrocities at the University of Toronto, where she trains teams of graduate students to investigate abuses every year with meaningful success. Past participants have excelled in elite graduate programs, prestigious governmental roles in the US, Canada and UK, and for household-name non-profits.

She is also a skilled writer, being published in the likes of Foreign Policy, Opinio Juris, Bellingcat, African Arguments and more.

She holds a Bachelors in Geography from the University of Exeter in the UK and a Master’s in Law and Diplomacy from the Fletcher School at Tufts University, where she took classes at Harvard Law School and Harvard Kennedy School. Billie is constantly looking to grow and improve, ensuring her knowledge remains at the cutting-edge of the field. Through her work, Billie has access to a wide range of experts that will contribute to future courses and concepts.

Billie is passionate about the Melrose area she calls home, and she has strong opinions on the best pizza and wing spots nearby. She loves to eat at the Rising Eagle and Mexico Lindo, and she can sometimes be found birding at Ell Pond. She also runs a support group for the local trans community in the Melrose - Stoneham - Woburn area.