Mona Chalabi

Mona Chalabi is a journalist who really loves numbers. She is the Data Editor of The Guardian where she writes articles, produces documentaries, and illustrates, as well as animates, data.

After analysing statistics for the United Nations, Mona Chalabi saw how important data was, but also how easily it could be used by people with their own specific agendas. Since then, her work for organisations like Transparency International and The Guardian has had one goal: to make sure as many people as possible can find and question the data they need to make informed decisions about their lives. She gives speeches and teaches courses on data journalism, and when she can, she illustrates data. Her illustrations have been exhibited by the Design Museum and were commended by the Royal Statistical Society, of which they said, “Her deceptively simple graphs are fun and accessible.”

Mona helped create the Emmy-nominated four-part video series “Vagina Dispatches” which explores the physical, social, and sometimes political dynamics that surround women’s bodies. She also executive produced and hosted Strange Bird, a podcast about things that we’re not great at talking about. Mona has a master’s degree in International Security from the Paris Institute of Political Studies and has worked for FiveThirtyEight, the Banks of England, the Economist Intelligence Unit, and the International Organization for Migration.

Mona lives in New York City. The only thing you need to know about her personal life is that she loves Peter Falk.