Council Election 2025/Candidates

Candidate information for Council / Board election 2025

Joe Catapano

Joe Catapano is the Director of Stakeholder Engagement for the North America region at the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN); he also oversees ICANN’s academic engagement at the global level. In this capacity, Joe connects members of the private sector, civil society, government, academia, the technical community, and end users with ICANN’s work in the global Internet governance space, as well as its policy development processes. Prior to ICANN, Joe was a Communications Officer at the United Nations Foundation where he worked on US-UN relations, peacekeeping, and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). He has extensive experience in the nonprofit and private sectors, previously holding strategic communications roles at Pfizer, Inc. and the American Association of Pharmaceutical Scientists. Joe obtained his MA in Political Science from American University in Washington, DC, and his BA in Communications from Quinnipiac University. He is based in the Washington, DC Metro Area.

Joe Catapano

Jon Conradt (Treasurer)

Jon Conradt is an AI researcher, recently at Amazon AWS and currently working on a startup. He has volunteered as the ISOC-DC treasurer for the last year, which included attending and participating in council meetings. As the treasurer Jon has organized the Chapter's bank accounts, paid invoices, and completed grant paperwork. Jon wants to see the ISOC-DC chapter have an enlarged and reinvigorated impact on this area and via the Chapter's interactions with the U.S. federal government staff on US and global access.

Jon Conradt

Ron da Silva (incumbent, co-Chair)

Ron da Silva, current co-Chair of the Chapter, is an executive leader, international board member and internet technology expert with years of proven business experience, culminating in senior executive leadership. He is experienced leading internet engineering, architecture, and operations; building internet infrastructures and data centers; and advancing corporate and internet governance; providing management consulting and investment advice. He is an NACD certified Board Director with experience on the Boards of Chartway Credit Union, The Data Center Center Coalition, ICANN, CertifiedTrue and other non-profit Boards. He is a regular participant in The Internet Society for more than twenty (20+) years. He brings financial, technical, governance and policy experience to the ISOC-DC Board and has been instrumental in its turn around.

He would like to return to the Board to continue to push the Chapter make an impact in the greater Washington DC area. He thanks you in advance for his support.

Ron da Silva

Mike Godwin (incumbent)

Mike Godwin has been working in internet law and policy since the beginning of his career as a lawyer. He was the first employee at the Electronic Frontier Foundation as a staff counsel, and later served as a staff attorney for the Center for Democracy and Technology. At CDT, then later as Senior Technology Counsel and as legal director of Public Knowledge, Mike developed testimony, met with regulators and staff, and supervised strategic litigation related to copyright and technological protection measures. He leveraged his experience as a supervisory technology counsel in his role as general counsel at the Wikimedia Foundation (which operates Wikipedia). In his roles at Public Knowledge, at the Wikimedia Foundation, and at Internews, Mike also provided legal research, insight, and support regarding human-resources, employment, and labor law. Mike is a frequently published author on technology-law matters, with a full range of articles written both for legal accuracy and for accessibility for non-law-trained audiences. More recently Mike have expanded his work into Trust & Safety best practices and support, and has founded the government-relations function at a Privacy-Enhancing-Technology (PET) startup, Anonym Inc. The common theme of all his professional work has been a focus on advancing empowerment and protections both for all individuals and for non-profit organizations and for-profit companies whose mission goals include advancement of ISOC's vision of an open internet.

Mike Godwin

Judith Hellerstein

Judith Hellerstein is excited to run for a seat on the 2025 ISOC DC Board because she is passionate and deeply committed to ensuring that the Internet remains open, accessible, and available to all. Her goal is to help ISOC DC rebuild its institutional knowledge and restore its role as a leader in policy and technology issues in Washington, DC. She asks for your support in this effort.

Judith holds a Master of Public Administration (MPA) in International Management and runs a research consultancy specializing in expanding ICT and digital economy opportunities worldwide. As a passionate advocate for digital inclusion, Judith has dedicated her career to improving connectivity, shaping digital economy policies, and advancing digital infrastructure.

With Judith's long-standing commitment to ISOC DC and her experience in internet policy and accessibility, she is eager to continue strengthening the chapter and expanding its impact. She looks forward to the opportunity to serve on the 2025 Board and contribute to ISOC DC’s future. She thanks you for your consideration and support.

Judith Hellerstein

Chelsea Horne (incumbent, co-Chair)

Chelsea Horne is interested in continuing to serve on the Board of ISOC DC and working to advance the goals of the chapter. The chapter has made significant progress in the last year, and she looks forward to helping carry on the Chapter's forward trajectory. Chelsea would continue to work on hosting events that address the critical and urgent internet policy questions of the moment, engaging both the local and global internet communities.

Chelsea is a Senior Professorial Lecturer at American University, where she is also a faculty fellow at the Internet Governance Lab and affiliate faculty at the Khan Cyber Institute. Chelsea holds a Ph.D. in Communication with a focus area on media, technology, and democracy. Her areas of research encompass communication, privacy, internet governance, AI policy, digital culture, and information integrity.

Chelsea Horne

Courtney Radsch

Courtney C. Radsch, PhD, brings more than two decades of experience advancing Internet governance, digital rights, and technology policy focused on keeping the Internet open, globally-connected, secure, and trustworthy. As Director of the Center for Journalism and Liberty at the Open Markets Institute, she leads cutting-edge research on AI governance, data ecosystems, and technology policy while actively shaping practical solutions through engagement with policymakers, technologists, and civil society.

Her deep commitment to multistakeholder Internet governance is evidenced by her service on the UN Internet Governance Forum's Multistakeholder Advisory Group (2021-2023) and her long-standing membership with the Internet Society in Washington DC and Paris (2012-present). She has been an active participant in the DC internet policy community and consistently worked to advance Internet infrastructure and standards that serve the public interest, from  her roles on the Global Internet Forum to Counter Terrorism's International Advisory Committee and the OECD's working group on transparency frameworks to her work at UNESCO and several leading human rights organizations. As a scholar-practitioner, Dr. Radsch has demonstrated her ability to support communities that make the Internet work and help improve their participation in key internet fora. Her expertise spans crucial Internet policy issues including critical internet infrastructure, platform governance, digital safety, and information integrity is complimented by her commitment to empirical research, policy development, and coalition-building.

Courtney Radsch

Nii Simmonds

The Internet Society DC Chapter (ISOC-DC) plays a vital role in shaping internet policy and governance discussions in the nation’s capital, bringing together policymakers, technologists, and industry leaders to promote an open, secure, and inclusive internet. As a candidate for the ISOC-DC Board, Nii Simmonds brings a deep commitment to advancing digital development and responsible tech policy, particularly in emerging markets. His experience spans working with international organizations, engaging diaspora professionals in digital transformation, and advocating for digital public infrastructure. Nii aims to strengthen ISOC-DC’s impact by fostering cross-sector partnerships, expanding engagement with global internet governance initiatives, and ensuring that diverse voices contribute to shaping the internet’s future. With ISOC-DC’s strategic role in the broader internet ecosystem, he looks forward to supporting its mission by leveraging his policy expertise and network to drive meaningful discussions and initiatives that uphold an open and accessible internet for all.

Nii Simmonds

Steven Williams (incumbent)

Stevem Williams is interested to continue to serve on the ISOC DC Board. He has been an ISOC member since 1997. Steve is a network engineer and activist that wants to help ISOC DC influence policy with its proximity to Capitol Hill. As the primary advocate for the National Juneteenth Holiday Bill, Steve is dedicated to the principle of open and equal access to technology and the Internet.

Steven Williams