About 5Rights, the global voice for child rights online

Beeban Kidron is the Founder and Chair of 5Rights, a leading voice on children’s rights in the digital environment and has established global standards for online safety and privacy. A Crossbench Peer in the UK House of Lords, Kidron is an advisor to the University of Oxford’s Institute for Ethics in AI, an expert advisor for the UN Secretary-General’s Advisory Body on Artificial Intelligence and Chair of the Digital Futures for Children Research Centre. She was previously an award-winning film director.

Ansgar Koene is the Global AI Ethics and Regulatory Leader at Ernst & Young. He has worked extensively on issues ranging from AI ethics & standards to bio-inspired robotics. Dr. Koene chaired the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers Working Group on Algorithmic Bias Considerations and co-convenes the CEN-CENELEC committee on AI standards for the EU AI Act. He is also a member of the OECD Network of Experts on AI and contributes to the OECD AI Governance Working Party.

Mie Oehlenschläger is an independent researcher and advisor specialising in tech, ethics and policy. She is currently serving as a member of Denmark’s Ethical Council, Big Tech Expert Group, and Children and Youth Well-Being Commission. She is a co-founder of Tech & Childhood and a part-time lecturer in ‘AI, Ethics & Public Policy’ and ‘New Media Studies’ at DIS Copenhagen. Her publications include “Big Tech – Soft Power” and reports on children’s online safety. Mie was previously a writing member of Danish DJØF’s TechDK Commission.

Manuel Costescu co-heads JPMorgan’s EMEA Innovation Economy Group. With over 20 years of experience across Europe, the U.S., and Canada, he has a diverse background in banking, consultancy, and public service. He previously served as Secretary of State for Trade & Investment in Romania and was a Member of Parliament. Costescu has also held leadership roles at McKinsey & Co., and the Open Society Foundation.

Amani Abou-Zeid is the former African Union Commissioner for Infrastructure & Energy, with over 38 years of experience in global organisations, such as the African Development Bank, UNDP, and USAID. She holds advanced degrees in Engineering and business and a PhD in Social and Economic Development. Recognised among Africa’s most Influential Women, serving on the global commissions for energy, digitalisation and sustainable development and honoured by King Mohamed VI of Morocco, and by HE President of Senegal.

Anna Maria Corazza Bildt is an advocate for children’s rights with a background in policy-making, humanitarian work, and entrepreneurship. She relaunched the Child Dignity Alliance and was a Member of the European Parliament, co-founding the Intergroup on Children’s Rights. She served as a Digital Leader at the World Economic Forum, sits on the board of the International Center for Missing and Exploited Children after her presidency, and is a member of the Advisory Council of the European Forum Alpbach. 

Elizabeth Denham is an esteemed expert in data protection and digital governance, serving as the UK Information Commissioner from 2016 to 2021. With over 15 years of regulatory experience across four jurisdictions, she was pivotal in implementing the GDPR into UK law. Denham chaired the Global Privacy Assembly, tackling issues like political data use and AI ethics, and currently chairs the Jersey Data Protection Authority. Honoured with a CBE in 2019, she continues to influence responsible data practices as an International Consultant at Baker McKenzie.

Konstantinos Karachalios is the Strategic Advisor for IEEE Executive Director (US) and, formerly, the Managing Director of IEEE Standards Association. He led IEEE’s crusade toward a paradigm change within techno-scientific communities to assume responsibility for the societal and environmental outcome of their work, with the Cambrian explosion around “AI Ethics” being a marker of the ongoing transformation. Prior, Konstantinos coordinated international cooperation on large-scale nuclear reactor research and acted as multiple UN envoys.

Diala Khlat is an advocate for child safety and an Angel Investor, focusing on innovative business models in retail, food, tech, and lifestyle sectors. She chairs the Child Safety Online Taskforce at the NSPCC, working to create a safer online environment for children. Previously she played a pivotal role in the NSPCC’s Rebuilding Childhoods Board. Khlat is a founding member of the British Fashion Trust, which supports emerging British designers, and a board member of the V&A Museum’s Advisory Council.

Mikiko Otani is an international human rights lawyer and leading advocate for women’s and children’s rights. With over 30 years of experience in family law in Japan, she’s a former member and Chair of the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child. Otani is a Commissioner of the International Commission of Jurists and Vice-President of the Asian Society of International Law. Her work focuses on human rights education, child participation, children and armed conflict, and the impact of technology on children.

Ursula Pachl is a consumer and digital rights expert and advocate. Until spring 2024 she was the Deputy Director General of BEUC, the European Consumer Organisation, overseeing work on the Digital Single Market, consumer rights, and enforcement. She contributed as an expert to several European Commission working groups, including, most recently, the REFIT platform and the High-Level Group for Artificial Intelligence. Before that, she worked for Austria’s Federal Ministry for Health and Consumer Protection.

Peter Wanless is the Chief Executive of the NSPCC. Under his leadership, the NSPCC has advanced its mission to prevent child abuse, protect children, and transform societal attitudes. Before this, he was Chief Executive of the Big Lottery Fund and was a Director at the UK Department for Education between 1998 and 2008. Knighted in 2021 for his services to children and the charitable sector, Sir Peter Wanless also contributed to the Royal Foundation Taskforce for the Prevention of Cyberbullying.

Leanda Barrington-Leach is the Executive Director at 5Rights. Leanda joined 5Rights from the European External Action Service where she was Adviser to the Secretary General focusing on Strategic Communications and the fight against Disinformation. She previously worked in EU advocacy as a consultant and for non-profits, always with a focus on human rights. Leanda volunteers as an Adviser to Plan International, supporting their work on children’s rights in EU foreign policy.

Manon Baert is the EU Advocacy and Policy Officer at 5Rights. She previously worked in EU affairs within a non-profit and a consultancy, with a focus on human rights and sustainability. Manon was also a legal trainee at the EU Delegation to the Council of Europe where she followed the negotiations for EU accession to the ECHR and for the Convention on Artificial Intelligence. She has a background in European Law and International Affairs and speaks fluent French, English and Spanish.

Marie-Ève Nadeau is the Head of International Advocacy at 5Rights. She joined the team in 2021 with her strong experience advocating for human rights at the FIDH, the International Federation for Human Rights, and volunteering at the UNDP’s environmental governance program. She has a background in human rights and European Union policy. Originally from Canada, Marie-Ève has lived in several countries and is fluent in English, Spanish, and French and she is currently learning Dutch.

Sami Jaber is the Junior International Policy Officer at 5Rights. He has previously worked and interned in various non-governmental organisations, research institutions, and activist movements, most recently at Human Rights Watch. He holds an LLM in Public International Law from Leiden University, as well as a BSc (Hons.) in International Relations and Organisations. Sami is a native speaker of English and French, is conversational in Dutch, and is currently learning Arabic.

Colette Collins-Walsh is the Head of UK Affairs at 5Rights Foundation and a public affairs and political communications specialist. She has experience building campaigns for major political and corporate institutions. Colette led children and education policy for the UK Labour Party in the 2017 general election and joined 5Rights from a top political advisory firm. She was previously a government spokesperson on children’s policy and holds a master’s in political communications from Cardiff University.

Reece Parslow is the UK Public Affairs Officer at 5Rights Foundation. He has previously worked in the UK Parliament, having worked for members of both the House of Commons and House of Lords as a Parliamentary Assistant. He has a background in parliamentary and legislative affairs, graduating from the University of Hull with a BA in British Politics and Legislative Studies.

Benedetta Riciputi is the Research Officer at 5Rights, supporting the Compliance team. She brings experience on Child Sexual Exploitation and Abuse (CSEA) and the intersection of online child safety and user privacy rights. She has also widely researched UK and international implementation of the UNCRC, with a focus on Child Rights Impact Assessments (CRIAs). Benedetta holds a Bachelor’s in Politics and International Relations and a Master of Laws in Human Rights from the University of Edinburgh.

Lisann (she/her pronouns) is the Youth Engagement Intern at 5Rights. She studied anthropology, educational sciences and global studies in Heidelberg, Paris, Gent and Roskilde. After being involved in several youth engagements on international cooperation, Lisann advised the German government on meaningful youth participation and recently contributed to youth policies in the EU’s external actions. She loves to design and facilitate participative workshops in English and German.  

Ray Tomlinson is the Junior Communications Officer at 5Rights Foundation. He’s previously worked as a Social Impact Researcher for Medialab UK, and as a writer for Release’s online news platform, TalkingDrugs. He holds a BSc Econ in Politics from Cardiff University and an MSc in International Development from the University of Manchester.

Sara Zimmermann is the Junior Monitoring, Evaluation & Learning Officer at 5Rights. She has previously worked and interned in the non-profit sector, as well as in German and European public sectors, gaining experience in Monitoring, Evaluation, and Learning. Sara holds an Erasmus Mundus Master’s (MSc) in Global Development Policy and a BSc in Management of International Social Challenges from Erasmus University Rotterdam.

Liz Rivers is the Office Manager at 5Rights. Liz joined the team in June 2023, coming from a large independent school where she led the Admissions team. Liz has a management background and many years of leading teams.

Jamie Bartram is the Operations Officer at 5Rights. Jamie joins with experience from a variety of causes and having most recently worked as a People Operations Assistant in an LGBTQ+ media company. He has a BA (Hons) in Business Management and MSc in International Human Resources Management.

Alexandra Evans joins the 5Rights Foundation as a Consultant having previously been its Chief of Strategy. She has worked at TikTok (Director of Safety Public Policy, Europe) and at the British Board of Film Classification (Policy Director). Before specialising in child online safety policy, Alexandra was a solicitor in Mishcon de Reya’s Public Advocacy team.

Sonia Livingstone is the Director of the Digital Futures for Children centre. As a Professor of Social Psychology in the Department of Media and Communications at the London School of Economics and Political Science, she has published more than twenty books on media audiences, media literacy, and media regulation, with a focus on the opportunities and risks of digital media for children and young people. Sonia was a member of the 5Rights-led Steering Group for the UNCRC General Comment No. 25.

Nicola White is the Executive Assistant to Baroness Kidron. She was a part of the production team for the film, Victoria & Abdul (produced by Kidron), and has been involved in 5Rights since its inception in 2014. Previously, she worked at Tiger Aspect Productions.