Francesco Zanardi has spent the past 12 years documenting sexual abuse of minors by Catholic priests in Italy, filling a vacuum he says is caused by the refusal of the country's Church thus far to launch a major investigation.
When Italian bishops meet next week to elect a new president, Zanardi is hoping to see the start of a long-overdue reckoning for the Church, whose leaders will discuss whether to commission an independent investigation of abuse similar to those carried out in France and Germany.
From his apartment in the center of Savona in northern Italy, Zanardi, 51, runs Rete l'Abuso (The Abuse Network), which has one of the largest digital archives on clerical sexual abuse in the country.
He spends much of his time seeking court documents, tracking the whereabouts of suspected abusers, talking to lawyers who help him with cases, and vetting tips from victims.
"The common thread I have found among victims is that they don't want it to happen to others because only a victim knows what it does to you inside, even if on the outside they are smiling and look normal," Zanardi said.
In February, Zanardi and eight other groups formed a consortium called "Beyond the Great Silence" and launched the hashtag #ItalyChurchToo to put pressure on Italy's Church to agree to an impartial investigation.
The choice of its next president for a five-year term is crucial because bishops are divided over whether an eventual full-scale investigation should be internal, using existing resources such as diocesan anti-abuse committees, or by an outside group, potentially comprising academics, lawyers and abuse experts.
They are also divided over whether it should be confined to the recent past or go back decades.
A spokesman for the Italian bishops' conference said they would discuss how to proceed when they meet.
The worldwide sexual abuse crisis has done the Roman Catholic Church massive damage to its credibility and cost hundreds of millions of dollars in settlements, with some dioceses declaring bankruptcy.
Italy's Church, as a group, has not issued a sweeping formal apology for abuse although individual bishops have.