Our People

Maria Elena Costa Sa

Council Member

Maria-Elena Costa Sa has worked in the Public Health, Disability and Equality sectors for over thirty years, both in the U.K. and in Ireland. She is a human rights activist and community development worker, prioritising work with the most marginalised and disenfranchised communities, in peer led initiatives to bring about equitable outcomes. She joined the Terrence Higgins Trust in the late 80’s and remained working with people with HIV and AIDS until moving to Ireland in 2000. She worked with local and national Traveller Projects including Pavee Point, and Clondalkin Travellers Development Group for 18 years and then with people with disabilities at the CRC. She now works with Irish Network Against Racism as their Human Rights and Community Development Lead, capacity building minority ethnic leaders, into leadership roles, or to provide EDI and anti-racism training, or to identify and take cases of institutional racism. She has degree level qualifications in Human Rights and Equality Law, Addiction Studies and Economics and Public Policy and has completed a Masters of Economic Science in Policy Analysis on Ireland’s 2023 National Action Plan Against Racism with the IPA.  She sits on the Council of the Free Legal Advice Centre.