Adelin Cai, Debora Diniz, and Julie Owono join WITNESS’ Board of Directors

WITNESS is pleased to announce three new members of its Board of Directors: Adelin Cai, Debora Diniz, and Julie Owono. Ms. Cai also serves on the Board’s Governance and Nominations Committee. 

Ms. Cai has over a decade of experience working with and leading teams responsible for creating and maintaining policies that define acceptable behavior and content in online communities and platforms. As a trust and safety expert, Ms. Cai helps tech companies think about how to develop effective content moderation while also supporting employee well-being, and educating the public about why such practices are valuable to a healthy internet. 

Ms. Diniz is an award-winning academic, filmmaker, and activist who has expertise in using video and research for evidence-based advocacy, policy change, and strategic litigation for human rights. She is internationally recognized for her longstanding commitment to reproductive rights and health and efforts to combat violence against women and girls in Latin America and the Caribbean. She is an active presence on social media platforms where she engages in dialog with thousands of followers and community members. In 2020, Ms. Diniz won the prestigious Dan David prize, a lifetime achievement recognition for her contributions to gender justice.

Ms. Owono is the executive director of Internet Sans Frontieres, an affiliate of the Berkman Klein Center for Internet and Society at Harvard University, and an inaugural member of the Meta Oversight Board. She founded the Content Policy and Society Lab at Stanford University, which prototyped a novel approach to multi stakeholder collaborations on major content policy challenges. With expertise leading academic and non-governmental organizations, she regularly convenes representatives from companies, governments, civil society, with content moderators and researchers to exchange ideas and collaborate on the creation of rights-based policies and regulations to support a truly global internet. She recently published an analysis of Content Governance in the Metaverse. 

“We welcome Adelin’s and Julie’s deep, global experience and practical expertise on how to make the internet a more equitable space for participation and free expression,” said WITNESS Executive Director, Yvette Alberdingk Thijm. “Debora’s knowledge on gender equality and her leadership in video advocacy as a tool to realize rights will bring essential insights to our global team. As members of our Board of Directors, we look forward to drawing on their valuable guidance as we embark on our new “Fortifying the Truth” Strategic Vision, continuing to support the most vulnerable and marginalized communities turning to video and technology to create human rights change.”

Read more about Adelin Cai here, Debora Diniz here, and about Julie Owono here.

And read more about our full Board of Directors here.