Nadia Shabani is a Director of the Bulgarian Center for Not-for-Profit Law (BCNL). She has worked in the organization since its establishment in 2001 until 2009, and came back to BCNL in 2012. Within BCNL she works on issues such as establishment of NGOs, public-private partnerships, good governance and social contracting. She provides assistance to public officials on central and local level, lawyers, professional groups, parental organizations and social service providers for developing policies, strategic documents, drafting legislation changes and impact assessments in social area.

In 2009, Nadia became the chair of the National Agency for Child Protection in Bulgaria, responsible for the enforcement of children rights and coordination of all government policies in the area. As the head of this agency she was in charge of the coordination of all measures and programs in the plan for the deinstitutionalization of children in Bulgaria, accepted in 2010 and funded by the EU (100,000,000 euro for the first 4 years).

Nadia has an M.A. degree from the Law Faculty in Sofia University and specialization in International Law and international organizations.

Aylin is a jurist, graduated in Law at the Faculty of Law of St. Kliment Ohridski Law School in 2015. She is part of the team of the Bulgarian Center for Not-for-Profit Law (BCNL) since 2013, when she started working at the organization as an intern, after which she was legal consultant, and currently – program director. She has over 10 years of experience in providing legal support to civil organizations in Bulgaria. She manages BCNL’s capacity development programs for non-profit organizations and their financial sustainability, including – Summer School for NGOs, fundraising trainings, Vivacom Regional Grant. For the past 4 years, Aylin has coordinated BCNL’s philanthropic campaigns focusing on on individual giving. She is a member of the Fundraiser’s Club, initiated by BCNL. Aylin believes in the power of art to engage to action and provoke social change. Sharing this mission, she leads the initiative to promote civic activism – Civic Alarm Clock.

Elena Kalinova is CFO of the Bulgarian Center for Not-for-Profit Law. She has a Master’s degree in Finance from the University of National and World Economy. She has many years of professional experience in working with non-governmental organizations, knows closely the specifics of their activities and especially – how to properly keep their financial and accounting documents, how to prepare and optimize their budgets and account for expenditures in accordance with donor requirements. In her daily work, she often supports NGOs in tax and accounting cases and disputes with government institutions.

Plamen Todorov is the Administrative Director of the Bulgarian Center for Not-for-Profit Law. He has been in the non-governmental sector since 2000 and has many years of experience in strategic planning, administrative and financial management of NGOs, preparation, management and reporting of projects funded by European, American programs, national funding, etc. His expertise also includes evaluation, monitoring and negotiation of projects funded by the EU, as well as organizing and conducting tender procedures according to the requirements of the EU and national legislation.

Zahari Iankov is a legal consultant in BCNL where he works since October 2019. Zahari has LLM from the University of Sofia “st. Kliment Ohridski” and a master in Democracy and Human Rights in Southeast Europe (ERMA) with a double degree from the University of Sarajevo and University of Bologna.
In his daily work, Zahari supports citizens and civic organizations through consultations on the
legal framework and procedures for the initial registration, re-registration and registration of
changes of non-profit legal entities, prepares legal documents and opinions. Zahari is also
responsible for the weekly monitoring of the Bulgarian legislat

Radina Banova-Stoeva is a lawyer, registered with the Sofia Bar Association since 2019. She graduated
from Sofia University in Sofia in 2016 with a Master’s degree in Law. In 2020 she graduated from the
Master’s degree program “Organizational Behavior and Counseling” at the Faculty of Philosophy of Sofia
University “St. Kliment Kliment”. She is also a graduate of the Faculty of Philosophy and Sociology at the
University of Sofia.

She has been working as a legal consultant at the Bulgarian Center for Not-for-Profit Law since
September 2018. Her interests fall in the field of human rights, supported decision-making and justice.
She has previous experience in the field of volunteering and youth policy in delivering peer-led
programmes and trainings. Provides legal advice to non-profits and individuals, prepares legal analyses
and opinions, conducts training, and monitors legislation.

Uses English and German.

Alexander Kirov is a Master of Business administration and Digital marketing as well as Public Relations specialist, francophone with degrees from Sofia University “St. Kliment Ohridski”. His professional career began with an internship as an editor in the American issue for street culture – Vice magazine. He entered the non-profit sector in 2014, over the years working on topics related to children’s rights, fighting human trafficking, short cinema, cultural events and more. His strengths are creating social awareness campaigns, digital marketing campaigns, photography, and visual arts. He also has interests in the arts of crafts, graphic design, and music as a means of communication. Currently Alexander is Digital Media Director and oversees all digital communications, design and marketing initiatives in Bulgarian Center for Not-for-Profit Law and Shtrak social enterprise.

Iveta is a journalist by profession, with experience in leading TV media. She holds a BA in Public Relations
and an MA in Political Management from Sofia University. Iveta started her career at the Bulgarian
National Television, and then worked as a reporter in News and Current Affairs at NOVA TV. She
developed her career as a Digital Marketing Specialist in Retail, but her true passion for working for the
benefit of society brought her back to working with a cause. Video and audio content editing and writing
have been a part of her entire career path, and she later started to dabble in design. She joined the BCNL
team in November 2022 and holds the position of Communications Expert.

Nikolay Yordanov graduated from the Faculty of Law at Sofia University in 2023 with a Master of Laws degree. He has been working as a legal consultant at the Bulgarian Center for Not-for-Profit Law since March 2026. His interests lie in the areas of human rights and the right of association. He provides legal advice to nonprofit organizations and citizens, prepares legal analyses and opinions, and monitors legislation.

Georgi Ruskov is a project manager and coordinator with experience in the fields of investment, construction, and architecture, as well as in private enterprise and startups. He has worked on projects across various sectors, bringing a comprehensive perspective to the process—from pre-project and pre-investment studies to the successful implementation and completion of projects and initiatives. He is the founder and former managing partner of Business Adviser Ltd., where he provides consulting services focused on supporting businesses and investment projects. For seven years, he served as director of a private publishing house in Sofia, where he gained experience in team management, content, and communications. He is a member of the Union of Bulgarian Journalists. Since March 2026, he is now the coordinator of the Let’s Go social entrepreneurship program at the Bulgarian Center for Not-for-Profit Law, where he works to develop and support social entrepreneurs in Bulgaria.

Marieta Dimitrova graduated with a law degree from Sofia University in 1990 and has been a lawyer and a member of the Sofia Bar Association ever since.

She has 35 years of experience as a lawyer in the field of civil law, with a focus on family law, children’s rights, the rights of people with disabilities, legal representation, and ensuring access to justice for vulnerable parties in legal proceedings, as well as legal representation, defense, and assistance in cases involving civil and commercial law.

She works as a consultant for the Bulgarian Center for Non-for-Profit Law (BCNL) and the “Global Initiative in Psychiatry” Foundation. She also has experience as an international consultant on projects related to the social sector, the development of social services, protection against discrimination, and the rights of people with disabilities. She served as a consultant to the Committee on Labor and Social Policy of the 41st National Assembly of the Republic of Bulgaria.

At the national level, she has participated in the development of draft laws, concepts, and policy documents concerning the reform of Bulgarian legislation in accordance with the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. She has experience in the areas of protection against discrimination, including gender-based discrimination, and the development and design of a social services system based on a human rights-based approach.

As part of the BCNL team, she participated in the design and implementation of pilot projects for supported decision-making in Bulgaria and the drafting of the Bill on Natural Persons and Support Measures.

As an international expert, she has participated in the assessment of legislation and the development of approaches to harmonize the national legislation of Moldova, Kyrgyzstan, Mongolia, Turkmenistan, and Kazakhstan in accordance with the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.

Her experience regarding the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities includes participation in training sessions, seminars, and workshops dedicated to the legal capacity of persons with disabilities and the practical application of Article 12 of the Convention, the preparation of a number of analyses and studies in the field of human rights, as well as legal representation of persons with disabilities.

In her capacity as a representative of the BCNL, Attorney Dimitrova participated as a panelist at the Tenth Conference of the Parties to the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities in June 2017 at the UN in New York – Roundtable 1, dedicated to addressing the impact of multiple discrimination against persons with disabilities, promoting their participation, and supporting various partnerships to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals in accordance with the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.

Attorney Dimitrova has also participated in the development of tools to support access to justice for persons with disabilities.