It’s been more than a year since Ferdinand Marcos, Jr. was inaugurated as the President of the Philippines, after winning an election mired with fraud, according to election watchdogs. In his two State of the Nation Addresses so far, he has used the term “digital transformation” to describe a campaign that promises efficiency of services and better management for his government.
Mekebib Tadesse received his Engineering degree in 2017 from Addis Ababa University and is advancing his education at the Sant'Anna School of Advanced Studies to receive his Master's degree in Electoral Policy and Administration. He taught cybersecurity awareness at the African Girls Can Code Initiative (AGCCI) through United Nations Women and placed as a top five innovator at the African Innovation Week hosted by the African Union.
Obioma Okonkwo is a human rights lawyer and she is passionate about creating an enabling and safer environment for digital rights, freedom of expression, media freedom and freedom of information.
Nompilo Simanje works on the intersection of technology and the law and technology and human rights in Southern Africa. She currently works the Legal and ICT Policy Officer for the Media Institute of Southern Africa, a non-governmental organization aimed at promoting the right to privacy, free expression, media freedom and access to information both online and offline.
Marko Paloski is a system engineer at Netcetera, and is a cyber security enthusiast and an active contributor to the internet governance challenges across Southeast Europe. Marko is a part of the National Internet Governance forum (IGF) in North Macedonia, the ITU Generation Connect Europe Youth Envoy, the Youth Coalition on Internet Governance, and the Internet Society Alumni Network. He also serves as a mentor as part of the Internet Society IGF Youth Ambassador Program.
Sapni G K is a lawyer and policy researcher. She is currently a Climate Policy Manager at Youth Ki Awaaz. She has been an active part of the tech and policy space in India, and has worked with leading Indian think tanks. She has written for various leading Indian and international media on public interest concerns around technology.
Mac Andre Arboleda has helped establish projects and organizations interested in digital rights campaigns and critical engagement with information and communications technologies. He is the Founding President of the UP Internet Freedom Network, a youth-led alliance based in the University of the Philippines Los Baños, and Project Lead of the Artists for Digital Rights Network, an alliance composed of artists, writers, and cultural workers from Asia-Pacific.