Today the New America Foundation's Open Technology Initiative is pleased to announced James Vasile as the director of the Open Internet Tools Project.
James is a recognized expert on Free and Open Source Software and has long experience challenging the structural, security and privacy barriers that hinder free communication between people. He also directs the FreedomBox Foundation, a project devoted to building small, low-cost computers that protect people's privacy, security and anonymity while they use the Internet. His FreedomBox work has been recognized by an Innovation Award at Contact Summit 2011, as well as an Ashoka ChangeMaker's award for Citizen's Media. James co-founded Open Source Matters, the non-profit behind the Joomla CMS package that each day helps tens of millions of people talk to each other all over the world. James is a partner at Open Tech Strategies, a consultancy that advises organizations and businesses as they navigate the open source world. He is a Senior Fellow at the Software Freedom Law Center, where he advises free software projects on a wide range of strategic issues. James holds a JD from Columbia Law School and a BA from Fordham College. He has contributed code and documentation to several free software projects.
"James brings the technical acumen and legal knowledge that an incubator project like the Open Internet Tools Project needs," explained Sascha Meinrath, Director of the Open Technology Initiative. "Together, we look forward to supporting and developing innovating tools to support freedom of expression online."
"OpenITP is unique in that it can improve entire ecosystems, nurture ambitious projects, and still prioritize end users at every step along the way," said Vasile. "Right now, we have an urgent need and opportunity to help people talk directly to each other without restriction, surveillance or censorship."
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