Jaroslaw K. Ponder, Head of the Office for Europe at the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) (Geneva, Switzerland), representing ITU in Europe and directing actions, projects, initiatives and experts groups targeting 46 countries of the Europe Region. His portfolio includes set of Regional Initiatives for Europe, designed by the European Member States and focusing on the ICT Infrastructure, Digitization, Digital Inclusion, Accessibility, Innovation and Cybersecurity. Along the professional career, Mr. Ponder held official positions in the public sector and was a contributor to the legislative projects having the impact on the public policy. Since 2014, Mr. Ponder has been working for ITU holding diverse positions in the General Secretariat, Telecommunication Development Bureau, and Regional Presence, addressing complexity of information society development and digital transformation at national, regional and international levels, including the United Nations level. For several years he has managed ITU's work on the United Nations World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) process, leading towards the establishment of the annual WSIS Forum, WSIS Prizes, WSIS Stocktaking, others.
Gwi-Yeop Son
Regional Director for Europe and Central Asia in United Nations
Development Coordination Office (UNDCO). Gwi-Yeop Son began her career in Haiti, assisting HIV/AIDS patients with the non-governmental
organization. She then worked with the Country Women’s Association of Nigeria, focusing on
microfinance schemes.
In 1994, Ms. Son was posted to Somalia as a Programme Officer with the United Nations (UN)
Development Programme (UNDP), marking the beginning of an 18-year period with UNDP. After two
years in Somalia, she worked in various other locations including Lao PDR, Timor-Leste during the pre-independence period, Indonesia during the first democratic elections and Tsunami 2004 period. She was
also posted in New York to serve as a Programme Adviser on Afghanistan and as OCHA’s Director of
Corporate Programmes. In OCHA, she was responsible for organizing the World Humanitarian Summit
and provided direct oversight over work on communications, information services, policy development
and humanitarian financing including the CERF and the country based pooled funds. Ms. Son took up her
assignment as the United Nations Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator in August 2018 until August
2020. Subsequently, she assumed the Regional Director for Europe and Central Asia with the
Development Coordination Office.
Delivery of trainings session
Prof. Dr. Marco Gercke is an international expert in the field of Cybersecurity, Cybercrime and Data Protection and he for more than fifteen years advises governments, international organizations and large enterprises on those matters. He is director of the Cybercrime Research Institute - an independent global think tank. The institute is responsible for research related to data protection in various EU-funded projects. Holding a PhD in criminal law with a focus on Cybercrime he is for several years teaching law related to Cybercrime, International Criminal Law and European Criminal Law at the University of Cologne. He was and is working as an expert for several international organizations among them the Council of Europe, the European Union, the United Nations and the International Telecommunication Union (ITU). Marco was member of the High Level Expert Group that advised the Secretary General of ITU within the process of developing the Global Cybersecurity Agenda (GCA) and is scientific advisor to Europol. With more than 1000 speeches in over 100 countries and over 100 scientific publications, Prof. Gercke is one of the world's leading experts in the field of Digitalization, Cybersecurity and Data Protection. He advises governments, organizations and large enterprises around the world on strategic, political and legal issues related to all three topics. Over the past 15 years, he has worked in over 100 countries across Europe, Asia, Africa, the Pacific and Latin America. He drafted policies, strategies and legislation for various governments – very oft as a consultant for the United Nations/ITU. Marco was especially involved in developing model legislation in ITU/EU co-funded projects in the Caribbean, Pacific and Africa.
Special interventions
Karolina Mojzesowicz is the Deputy Head of Unit of the unit responsible for data protection at the European Commission (DG Justice and Consumers). She was one of the Commission's representatives in the interinstitutional negotiations with Parliament and Council on the General data Protection Regulation (GDPR). She is now responsible for its implementation in the EU. Mrs Mojzesowicz previously served as a member of the European Commission's Legal Service, focusing on EU Competition law and International Trade law. In that capacity, she represented the Commission in numerous cases before the European Courts and before the WTO panels and Appellate Body. Mrs Mojzesowicz studied law in Poland, the Netherlands and Germany where she obtained her PhD in 2001.
Isabelle Servoz-Gallucci took up her functions of Head of the Data Protection Unit of the Council of Europe in June 2021. She is a lawyer by academic background, specializing in public international law and international relations. She graduated in Slavic Studies from Paris-Sorbonne University, as well as in International Administration and Politics from Panthéon-Assas University, Paris. After working as a researcher at the Center for Research and Studies on Strategies and Technologies-CREST, Ecole Polytechnique (1995), she joined the intergovernmental and multilateral sector and held various positions within the OSCE and the United Nations, and the Council of Europe. She has worked in Bosnia and Herzegovina for the OSCE (1996), at the Directorate General for Research at the European Parliament (1997), at the Directorate General of Political Affairs of the Council of Europe (1997-2000), and at the United Nations Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo (2001-2002). From 2003, she joined the Council of Europe where she worked successively at the Directorate of External Relations, then at the Directorate of Political Affairs and Democracy, at the European Committee for the Prevention of Torture and Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, and at the Office of the General Directorate of Programs. She headed the Council of Europe Office in Pristina from 2015 to 2019 before joining the French Ministry of Europe and Foreign Affairs to serve as French Ambassador to Uzbekistan.
Moderation and overall support during the training sessions
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Sarah Delporte, Project Officer in charge of UN Affairs and UN Partnerships at ITU Office for Europe. Prior to joining the ITU, she had several experiences in the communication and marketing sectors. She holds a double master's degree in Public Policy and Human Development from the UNU-MERIT, specialized in social entrepreneurship and public policy, as well as a bachelor's degree in communication and marketing. She has also followed journalism training. She is passionate about applying innovative and integrative solutions to create a sustainable and inclusive future for all.
