Speakers

Laura joined the OTF team in 2019. As OTF's President, Laura is responsible for OTF's strategic development, long-term planning, and day-to-day operations to enable OTF to fulfill its mission to support internet freedom worldwide.

Laura has over a decade of experience working on Internet freedom across a variety of donor, non-profit, and government organizations. Prior to joining OTF, Laura was the Senior Advisor for Internet Freedom in the U.S. State Department’s Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor, where she led the Department’s Internet freedom programs focused on technology development, digital security, Internet policy advocacy, and research.

Prior to joining the State Department, Laura was Program Manager of ICT Policy and Programs at Internews, where she designed and launched Internews’ global internet policy and research initiative to support and enhance local internet policy advocacy worldwide. She also helped to launch and oversee Internews’ technology development and digital security programs.

Previously, Laura worked as a Digital Coordinator at the Center for International Media Assistance at the National Endowment for Democracy, and helped to launch the Liberation Technology Program at Stanford University's Center for Democracy, Development and the Rule of Law. Laura holds an M.A. in comparative politics and a B.A. in political science, with a minor in computer science, from Stanford University.

All times are presented in the host university’s local time zone.