[Wikimedia-l] Re: Luis Bitencourt-Emilio Joins Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees

[eheidel]

To add to the conversation, I'm wondering several things. 

1. Was there actually an outreach strategy to recruit for this type of 
technologist profile? Was it communicated to the movement? We could have helped.

2. Why the decision on someone whose only relevant background as technologist 
is on US corporate technology companies? As several people have pointed out, 
Luis doesn't seem to have any relevant experience in enterprises that 
contribute to the larger social good; some of them are significantly 
controversial (Rappi, Loft); and all of them seem to be very much US-based.

3. Why a guy? It would have been significantly better to bring a woman into 
this position. If the problem is retention, I actually think that a woman would 
have been a way better fit to understand what's failing in terms of business 
culture that's creating challenges to make people stay. 

There are several other things that could be said about this decision but I 
think others have already said them -- like the whole NFT & blockchain thing 
and the "fintech for young people", which is already a huge, huge, huge red 
flag. 

cheers,
scann
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[Wikimedia-l] Re: Luis Bitencourt-Emilio Joins Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees

[The Cunctator]

He tweeted in praise of BAYC but has recently taken his tweets private
without explanation.

On Sun, Dec 11, 2022, 10:40 AM effe iets anders 
wrote:

> I'm probably missing some context. I've seen earlier references to this
> NFT in light of his appointment. What I somehow missed (sorry if I
> overlooked it) is a clear indication how he would have supported this NFT,
> and especially whether he supported problematic aspects of it specifically.
> Also: has he spoken out about it since, or contextualized it in any way?
>
> I hope those of us better informed can help to understand this
> conversation a bit better.
>
> Lodewijk
>
> On Sat, Dec 10, 2022 at 7:06 PM Lane Chance  wrote:
>
>> Just to remind you, Luis Bitencourt-Emilio is one of the Wikimedia
>> Foundation's unelected trustees. He publicly supported the infamous
>> "monkey" NFTs, widely thought to mirror racist tropes,* and used one as his
>> social media avatar when first appointed to the board.
>>
>> In the last 24 hours a class action lawsuit is in the news, suing
>> celebrities who were paid to promote the same Bored Ape Yacht Club NFTs now
>> considered "fraudulently misleading". It remains bizarre that the Wikimedia
>> Foundation, considered a technology-leading organization with a core
>> commitment to ethical behaviour, is publicly represented by someone who was
>> openly part of the BAYC fanbois with such bad judgement they helped this
>> alleged pyramid scheme. This background of lousy judgement does not meet
>> the requirement for anyone sitting in top-level governance over the
>> activities and massive funding for Wikimedia projects and operations.
>>
>> As was previously remarked in this email thread, "We should have looked
>> at that history and trod more carefully." More worryingly the defensively
>> circling the wagons at the beginning of the year to brush off the questions
>> this raises shows that the Wikimedia Foundation nor the governance
>> committee they rely on to "vet" unelected trustee appointments, failed.
>>
>> * A context here from an analysis by David Gerard "It does seem pretty
>> likely that the Ape bros are at least casually racist. For one thing, they
>> clearly feel at home in those corners of internet edgelord culture whose
>> syncretism includes the troll disposition that has characterised the
>> identitarian right since at least the eighties, the performative nihilism
>> that has come to characterise disaffected digital natives in the wake of
>> the Great Recession, and the ironic hipster racism that somehow always
>> stops being ironic after a while. For another, they are shilling crypto, a
>> project of the far right since day one." [3]
>>
>> Thanks,
>> Lane
>>
>> References
>> 1.
>> https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/business/business-news/celebrity-promoters-sued-over-bored-ape-nft-endorsements-1235279115
>> 2.
>> https://futurism.com/the-byte/celebrities-bored-apes-are-hilariously-worthless-now
>> 3.
>> https://davidgerard.co.uk/blockchain/2022/02/06/bored-ape-yacht-club-and-neo-nazis-so-much-reaching-for-just-four-bananas/
>>
>> On Thu, 13 Jan 2022 at 16:02, Lane Chance  wrote:
>>
>>> Dariusz, Chair of the BGC: "Cryptocurrency and blockchains were not a
>>> factor here – the Governance Committee, and then the Board, were
>>> considering other things..."
>>>
>>> This is so wrong it's painful to read. The fundamental job of the
>>> Governance Committee is to ensure that appointed trustees do not come with
>>> the potential to cause harm to the Wikimedia 'brand' and the community.
>>>
>>> A WMF trustee that promotes Bitcoin and NFTs? Compare with the WMF
>>> statement "We at the Wikimedia Foundation strive to ensure that our work
>>> and mission support a sustainable world" - now in the bin as it lacks any
>>> credibility from here on, as the governance committee and therefore the
>>> board of trustees does not believe in these values. This is not a
>>> successful appointment, Luis Bitencourt-Emilio is not welcome as they are a
>>> controversial and damaging addition to the board.
>>>
>>> Ref:
>>> https://wikimediafoundation.org/news/2019/09/19/how-the-wikimedia-foundation-is-making-efforts-to-go-green
>>>
>>> On Thu, 13 Jan 2022 at 13:40, Dariusz Jemielniak <
>>> dar...@kozminski.edu.pl> wrote:
>>>
 Dear Dan,

 Thank you for the feedback!

 The search for a trustee with an expertise in product and technology
 began a few months ago. One of the problems we identified was that the
 Wikimedia Foundation CTOs (Chief Technology Officer) are usually not
 staying for a long period of time, and then there was also a CPO (Chief
 Product Officer) transition. It was also important that the new CEO (Chief
 Executive Officer) would like to have a trustee with relevant experience
 and leadership in the tech world (as would the Board itself), but also with
 the understanding and experience of how technology and communities can work
 together, so, as you said, Reddit 

[Wikimedia-l] Re: Luis Bitencourt-Emilio Joins Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees

[effe iets anders]

I'm probably missing some context. I've seen earlier references to this NFT
in light of his appointment. What I somehow missed (sorry if I overlooked
it) is a clear indication how he would have supported this NFT, and
especially whether he supported problematic aspects of it specifically.
Also: has he spoken out about it since, or contextualized it in any way?

I hope those of us better informed can help to understand this conversation
a bit better.

Lodewijk

On Sat, Dec 10, 2022 at 7:06 PM Lane Chance  wrote:

> Just to remind you, Luis Bitencourt-Emilio is one of the Wikimedia
> Foundation's unelected trustees. He publicly supported the infamous
> "monkey" NFTs, widely thought to mirror racist tropes,* and used one as his
> social media avatar when first appointed to the board.
>
> In the last 24 hours a class action lawsuit is in the news, suing
> celebrities who were paid to promote the same Bored Ape Yacht Club NFTs now
> considered "fraudulently misleading". It remains bizarre that the Wikimedia
> Foundation, considered a technology-leading organization with a core
> commitment to ethical behaviour, is publicly represented by someone who was
> openly part of the BAYC fanbois with such bad judgement they helped this
> alleged pyramid scheme. This background of lousy judgement does not meet
> the requirement for anyone sitting in top-level governance over the
> activities and massive funding for Wikimedia projects and operations.
>
> As was previously remarked in this email thread, "We should have looked at
> that history and trod more carefully." More worryingly the defensively
> circling the wagons at the beginning of the year to brush off the questions
> this raises shows that the Wikimedia Foundation nor the governance
> committee they rely on to "vet" unelected trustee appointments, failed.
>
> * A context here from an analysis by David Gerard "It does seem pretty
> likely that the Ape bros are at least casually racist. For one thing, they
> clearly feel at home in those corners of internet edgelord culture whose
> syncretism includes the troll disposition that has characterised the
> identitarian right since at least the eighties, the performative nihilism
> that has come to characterise disaffected digital natives in the wake of
> the Great Recession, and the ironic hipster racism that somehow always
> stops being ironic after a while. For another, they are shilling crypto, a
> project of the far right since day one." [3]
>
> Thanks,
> Lane
>
> References
> 1.
> https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/business/business-news/celebrity-promoters-sued-over-bored-ape-nft-endorsements-1235279115
> 2.
> https://futurism.com/the-byte/celebrities-bored-apes-are-hilariously-worthless-now
> 3.
> https://davidgerard.co.uk/blockchain/2022/02/06/bored-ape-yacht-club-and-neo-nazis-so-much-reaching-for-just-four-bananas/
>
> On Thu, 13 Jan 2022 at 16:02, Lane Chance  wrote:
>
>> Dariusz, Chair of the BGC: "Cryptocurrency and blockchains were not a
>> factor here – the Governance Committee, and then the Board, were
>> considering other things..."
>>
>> This is so wrong it's painful to read. The fundamental job of the
>> Governance Committee is to ensure that appointed trustees do not come with
>> the potential to cause harm to the Wikimedia 'brand' and the community.
>>
>> A WMF trustee that promotes Bitcoin and NFTs? Compare with the WMF
>> statement "We at the Wikimedia Foundation strive to ensure that our work
>> and mission support a sustainable world" - now in the bin as it lacks any
>> credibility from here on, as the governance committee and therefore the
>> board of trustees does not believe in these values. This is not a
>> successful appointment, Luis Bitencourt-Emilio is not welcome as they are a
>> controversial and damaging addition to the board.
>>
>> Ref:
>> https://wikimediafoundation.org/news/2019/09/19/how-the-wikimedia-foundation-is-making-efforts-to-go-green
>>
>> On Thu, 13 Jan 2022 at 13:40, Dariusz Jemielniak 
>> wrote:
>>
>>> Dear Dan,
>>>
>>> Thank you for the feedback!
>>>
>>> The search for a trustee with an expertise in product and technology
>>> began a few months ago. One of the problems we identified was that the
>>> Wikimedia Foundation CTOs (Chief Technology Officer) are usually not
>>> staying for a long period of time, and then there was also a CPO (Chief
>>> Product Officer) transition. It was also important that the new CEO (Chief
>>> Executive Officer) would like to have a trustee with relevant experience
>>> and leadership in the tech world (as would the Board itself), but also with
>>> the understanding and experience of how technology and communities can work
>>> together, so, as you said, Reddit experience is very relevant.
>>>
>>> The other critical factor was diversity – the search was prioritizing
>>> candidates with experience outside of Silicon Valley, in non-English
>>> speaking countries, preferably from the Global South.
>>>
>>> And, of course, we also needed a 

[Wikimedia-l] Re: Luis Bitencourt-Emilio Joins Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees

[The Cunctator]

I would like to submit that I personally found SJ's characterizations of
other contributors' legitimate concerns and critiques as "light hazing" to
be offensively dismissive, but if SJ helps facilitate an honest and
respectful attempt by Luis and the board to answer those concerns I will
happily eat my words.

On Thu, Jan 13, 2022, 3:38 PM Samuel Klein  wrote:

>  Welcome, Luis :)  A light hazing is traditional. ✨
>
> I am delighted to see someone w/ not just a product and technical
> background, but specific experience maintaining a collaborative read-write
> platform w/ global audience.  Of course the board is responsible for
> higher-level governance.  But increasingly, advancing the mission [of the
> foundation and the movement as a whole] touches on technical details and
> their implications.  That's why experience with our sort of tech at scale
> has long been on the list of skills the Board seeks.
>
> Yair writes:
> > People are allowed to have outside interests. Being incidentally
> interested in blockchain tech is not
> > a disqualifying attribute. Having worked in large technology companies
> is not a disqualifying attribute.
> > Neither of these things should even be counted negatively.
>
> Indeed not.  (Steven, I don't see any meaningful parallel w/ AG!)
>
> We should discuss what place blockchain + nft communities, trends, and
> practices have with respect to our mission.  But ... in a separate thread
> perhaps?
>
> SJ
> w:user:sj
>
> [ Personally I see more substantive alternatives to the destructive trend
> towards copyright-maximalism than I have for some time. ]
>
> On Thu, Jan 13, 2022 at 8:40 AM Dariusz Jemielniak <
> dar...@kozminski.edu.pl> wrote:
>
>> Dear Dan,
>>
>> Thank you for the feedback!
>>
>> The search for a trustee with an expertise in product and technology
>> began a few months ago. One of the problems we identified was that the
>> Wikimedia Foundation CTOs (Chief Technology Officer) are usually not
>> staying for a long period of time, and then there was also a CPO (Chief
>> Product Officer) transition. It was also important that the new CEO (Chief
>> Executive Officer) would like to have a trustee with relevant experience
>> and leadership in the tech world (as would the Board itself), but also with
>> the understanding and experience of how technology and communities can work
>> together, so, as you said, Reddit experience is very relevant.
>>
>> The other critical factor was diversity – the search was prioritizing
>> candidates with experience outside of Silicon Valley, in non-English
>> speaking countries, preferably from the Global South.
>>
>> And, of course, we also needed a commitment to spend enough time on the
>> Board work – to be engaged and present. For example, Luis met online and
>> offline with Wikimedia volunteers from Spanish and Portuguese-speaking
>> communities, he is eager to help us with his knowledge and experience.
>> Cryptocurrency and blockchains were not a factor here – the Governance
>> Committee, and then the Board, were considering other things Luis brings to
>> the table, the needed expertise, diversity and commitment.
>>
>> I personally am not particularly fond of cryptocurrencies, even though I
>> appreciate blockchain as a technology, and support e.g. decentralized
>> science (https://decentralized.science/). We as a movement have not had
>> a uniform stand on this, and I’m not sure if we should, though.
>>
>> Best regards,
>> Dariusz (chair of the BGC)
>>
>> On Thu, Jan 13, 2022 at 1:40 PM Dan Garry (Deskana) 
>> wrote:
>>
>>> Thanks for the update, Nataliia. Knowledge and expertise in product and
>>> technology is a skill set that has been lacking on the Board, and it's
>>> great to see the Board addressing this by co-opting product and technology
>>> leaders. Luis's experience, such as his time at reddit, will likely be very
>>> applicable to our movement.
>>>
>>> However, I'm surprised that the Board chose to co-opt someone who seems
>>> to have such a public focus on technology like blockchains and
>>> cryptocurrency, and that this focus of his was omitted from this
>>> announcement.
>>>
>>> It would be helpful if we could hear from Luis how he intends to use his
>>> knowledge and expertise to contribute to the movement as a Board member,
>>> and to what extent he considers blockchain and cryptocurrency to factor
>>> into that.
>>>
>>> Thanks,
>>> Dan
>>>
>>> On Wed, 12 Jan 2022 at 17:20, Nataliia Tymkiv 
>>> wrote:
>>>
 Dear All,

 Please join me in welcoming Luis Bitencourt-Emilio to the Wikimedia
 Foundation Board of Trustees. Luis was unanimously appointed to a 3-year
 term and replaces a board-selected Trustee, Lisa Lewin, whose term ended in
 November 2021 [1].

 Currently based in São Paulo, Luis is the Chief Technology Officer at
 Loft, a technology startup in the real-estate industry. He brings product
 and technology experience from a globally diverse career that has spanned
 

[Wikimedia-l] Re: Luis Bitencourt-Emilio Joins Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees

[The Cunctator]

I am sincerely interested in your views on the open source movement, the
for-profit exploitation of Wikinedia, the role of the Foundation in
protecting the intellectual property interests of Wikimedia contributors,
and the role of influential technologists in promoting financially and
environmentally ruinous Ponzi schemes like cryptocurrency.

On Thu, Jan 13, 2022, 8:40 PM Luis Bitencourt-Emilio 
wrote:

> Hello everybody,
>
> Thank you Nataliia et al. for the warm welcome (and light hazing) and
> apologies to all for my late response.
>
> Years ago, a colleague from the Wikimedia Foundation staff reached out to
> talk about product & technology at the organization. I still remember how
> eye-opening that initial conversation was - discussing the challenges and
> opportunities behind Wikipedia, one of my favorite sites that I had used
> for over a decade at that time, left me with little doubt that this is a
> movement I would want to be part of in some capacity. I was still at Reddit
> at the time, learning what it was like to shift from using and contributing
> to open source software to working in a tech company built around open
> source and through active, committed, and vocal communities. My experience
> at Reddit was one of the most transformative periods in my career and one
> of the reasons that I was interested in volunteering for this role.
>
> I was born and grew up in Brazil, under vastly different circumstances
> than today. There was a critical moment in my life when my father placed
> me, at 8 years old, in a BASIC programming course which I would practice on
> our x286 hidden away in a laundry room. My passion for technology started
> then, and has only grown since. I believe in technology as a key path to
> the furthering of humanity, of knowledge, of quality of life, and of our
> collective future. I also believe that this will only happen with the
> guidance and efforts of active and inclusive communities that shepherd said
> technology to positive outcomes.
>
> So now, years later and after my return to Latin America, there was an
> opportunity to join the Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees. I spent the
> next several months in conversations with other board members, staff,
> community members and friends to try and internalize more about the
> challenges and opportunities ahead, and most importantly to learn whether I
> could indeed make a positive contribution. I join this movement deeply
> humbled and inspired by the passion of everyone I met, and with a strong
> drive to leverage my experiences as a product and engineering leader to
> build a world where every single human being can freely share in the sum of
> all knowledge.
>
> In this role, I can only be my authentic self, I will strive for
> understanding in my interactions with you, as well as do my absolute best
> to bring excellence to our product and technology. I will always be
> inclusive and welcoming of our differences, and engage in civil discourse,
> in service of a movement that is bigger than ourselves.
>
> Thank you for the opportunity to contribute. I hope to connect with many
> of you directly over the coming months.
>
> Cheers,
> Luis
>
> PS: I see a separate conversation has emerged relating to blockchains and
> my interests in that field. I want to clarify that I don’t work
> professionally in this field, and while I’m historically an early adopter
> of technology - in the same way I adopted the internet in the 90s - I share
> many of the same thoughts and questions about this new technology’s future
> that have been raised in this thread. As a new Trustee, first and foremost,
> I am here to learn and to hear more from all of you.
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[Wikimedia-l] Re: Luis Bitencourt-Emilio Joins Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees

[Lane Chance]

Just to remind you, Luis Bitencourt-Emilio is one of the Wikimedia
Foundation's unelected trustees. He publicly supported the infamous
"monkey" NFTs, widely thought to mirror racist tropes,* and used one as his
social media avatar when first appointed to the board.

In the last 24 hours a class action lawsuit is in the news, suing
celebrities who were paid to promote the same Bored Ape Yacht Club NFTs now
considered "fraudulently misleading". It remains bizarre that the Wikimedia
Foundation, considered a technology-leading organization with a core
commitment to ethical behaviour, is publicly represented by someone who was
openly part of the BAYC fanbois with such bad judgement they helped this
alleged pyramid scheme. This background of lousy judgement does not meet
the requirement for anyone sitting in top-level governance over the
activities and massive funding for Wikimedia projects and operations.

As was previously remarked in this email thread, "We should have looked at
that history and trod more carefully." More worryingly the defensively
circling the wagons at the beginning of the year to brush off the questions
this raises shows that the Wikimedia Foundation nor the governance
committee they rely on to "vet" unelected trustee appointments, failed.

* A context here from an analysis by David Gerard "It does seem pretty
likely that the Ape bros are at least casually racist. For one thing, they
clearly feel at home in those corners of internet edgelord culture whose
syncretism includes the troll disposition that has characterised the
identitarian right since at least the eighties, the performative nihilism
that has come to characterise disaffected digital natives in the wake of
the Great Recession, and the ironic hipster racism that somehow always
stops being ironic after a while. For another, they are shilling crypto, a
project of the far right since day one." [3]

Thanks,
Lane

References
1.
https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/business/business-news/celebrity-promoters-sued-over-bored-ape-nft-endorsements-1235279115
2.
https://futurism.com/the-byte/celebrities-bored-apes-are-hilariously-worthless-now
3.
https://davidgerard.co.uk/blockchain/2022/02/06/bored-ape-yacht-club-and-neo-nazis-so-much-reaching-for-just-four-bananas/

On Thu, 13 Jan 2022 at 16:02, Lane Chance  wrote:

> Dariusz, Chair of the BGC: "Cryptocurrency and blockchains were not a
> factor here – the Governance Committee, and then the Board, were
> considering other things..."
>
> This is so wrong it's painful to read. The fundamental job of the
> Governance Committee is to ensure that appointed trustees do not come with
> the potential to cause harm to the Wikimedia 'brand' and the community.
>
> A WMF trustee that promotes Bitcoin and NFTs? Compare with the WMF
> statement "We at the Wikimedia Foundation strive to ensure that our work
> and mission support a sustainable world" - now in the bin as it lacks any
> credibility from here on, as the governance committee and therefore the
> board of trustees does not believe in these values. This is not a
> successful appointment, Luis Bitencourt-Emilio is not welcome as they are a
> controversial and damaging addition to the board.
>
> Ref:
> https://wikimediafoundation.org/news/2019/09/19/how-the-wikimedia-foundation-is-making-efforts-to-go-green
>
> On Thu, 13 Jan 2022 at 13:40, Dariusz Jemielniak 
> wrote:
>
>> Dear Dan,
>>
>> Thank you for the feedback!
>>
>> The search for a trustee with an expertise in product and technology
>> began a few months ago. One of the problems we identified was that the
>> Wikimedia Foundation CTOs (Chief Technology Officer) are usually not
>> staying for a long period of time, and then there was also a CPO (Chief
>> Product Officer) transition. It was also important that the new CEO (Chief
>> Executive Officer) would like to have a trustee with relevant experience
>> and leadership in the tech world (as would the Board itself), but also with
>> the understanding and experience of how technology and communities can work
>> together, so, as you said, Reddit experience is very relevant.
>>
>> The other critical factor was diversity – the search was prioritizing
>> candidates with experience outside of Silicon Valley, in non-English
>> speaking countries, preferably from the Global South.
>>
>> And, of course, we also needed a commitment to spend enough time on the
>> Board work – to be engaged and present. For example, Luis met online and
>> offline with Wikimedia volunteers from Spanish and Portuguese-speaking
>> communities, he is eager to help us with his knowledge and experience.
>> Cryptocurrency and blockchains were not a factor here – the Governance
>> Committee, and then the Board, were considering other things Luis brings to
>> the table, the needed expertise, diversity and commitment.
>>
>> I personally am not particularly fond of cryptocurrencies, even though I
>> appreciate blockchain as a technology, and support e.g. decentralized
>> science 

[Wikimedia-l] Re: Luis Bitencourt-Emilio Joins Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees

[Joe Roe]

Dear all,

Apologies for resurrecting this old thread. The discussion about cryptocurrency 
is interesting, but it is not what caught my eye on (belatedly) reading this 
announcement.

I am more concerned about Bitencourt-Emilio's previous job as an executive at 
Rappi. Rappi is charitably—some might say euphemistically—described in the 
WMF's official announcement as a company "focused on serving consumers in Latin 
America". In reality, it is a courier service that relies on the exploitation 
of underpaid, precariously employed workers,[1][2] implicated in dangerously 
neglecting their employees health and safety,[3] profiteering from the 
Venezuelan refugee crisis,[4] and using child labour.[5] Our new trustee was 
one of the leaders of this organisation; is this really the kind of experience 
we want to bring to the movement?

And a question for Dariusz: you've said Bitencourt-Emilio's involvement in 
cryptocurrency was "not a factor" in his selection. Surely the committee 
considered not just what experience candidates had that the Board could use, 
but experience that might mean they're *not* a good fit? I.e., working for 
Reddit is all well and good, but I wouldn't immediately think of a career in 
real estate speculation, fintech, and the gig economy as good preparation for 
stewarding our movement for **free** knowledge. Am I just out of touch? Did the 
committee discuss these issues at all?

Best wishes,
Joe

[1] https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/10714839.2019.1650485
[2] 
https://www.solidaritycenter.org/colombia-gig-economy-workers-wage-country-wide-protest-for-rights/
[3] 
https://contxto.com/en/argentina/buenos-aires-suspends-rappi-glovo-and-pedidosya-for-safety-infractions/
[4] 
https://www.bbc.com/worklife/article/20190701-the-gig-economy-is-a-double-edged-sword-for-migrant-workers
[5] 
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-brazil-trafficking-apps-rappi-trfn-idUSKBN2A92RE
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[Wikimedia-l] Re: Luis Bitencourt-Emilio Joins Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees

[Luis Bitencourt-Emilio]

hi molly; certainly. 

while I don’t agree with Nicolas’ tweet verbatim - particularly the “need 
better critics” bit - what resonated with me personally was being unable to 
attribute human values, good vs. evil, to an underlying technology platform. 
note; I interpreted good/bad as value judgments here rather than quality 
ratings; from a quality perspective, there’s tons of bad tech out there!

in my experience, the communities that build on those platforms are 
overwhelmingly the most impactful force in its outcome being either positive or 
negative, and oftentimes the same underlying platform is used and misused to 
both outcomes by different communities (e.g. the internet).

a potential caveat here is how high or low in the stack one considers… I don’t 
think anyone would propose that SQL is inherently evil, but perhaps there’s 
specific use cases of higher level technology, particularly in the ai realm, 
that can make it harder to separate the technology’s potential from how it’s 
being used. in my interpretation of the tweet above, the “platform” wording 
made me consider broader, underlying technologies rather than this scenario.
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[Wikimedia-l] Re: Luis Bitencourt-Emilio Joins Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees

[GorillaWarfare]

Hi Luis,

I happened to notice you retweet a tweet today that said "A tech is
neutral. It can’t be good or bad per se."[1] I know this perspective
differs from my own, and I think a fair number of those in the
Wikimedia movement—would you be willing to expound on your thoughts there?

– Molly White (GorillaWarfare)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/User:GorillaWarfare
she/her

[1] https://twitter.com/ni2las/status/1486350744487923717

On Tue, Jan 18, 2022 at 11:37 AM Antoine Musso  wrote:

> On 14/01/2022 02:01, Luis Bitencourt-Emilio wrote:
> 
> > I was born and grew up in Brazil, under vastly different circumstances
> than today. There was a critical moment in my life when my father placed
> me, at 8 years old, in a BASIC programming course which I would practice on
> our x286 hidden away in a laundry room. My passion for technology started
> then, and has only grown since. I believe in technology as a key path to
> the furthering of humanity, of knowledge, of quality of life, and of our
> collective future. I also believe that this will only happen with the
> guidance and efforts of active and inclusive communities that shepherd said
> technology to positive outcomes.
> 
>
> Hello Luis,
>
> Welcome at the foundation, it is great to see someone joining the board
> having a large technical background.
>
> BASIC and x286 are definitely familiar among staff members around your
> age. If you ever join one of our tech meetings, I am sure you will feel
> at home :]
>
>
>
> 10 REM "-- "
> 20 PRINT "Antoine"
> 30 PRINT "hashar"
> 40 PRINT "Musso"
> 50 PRINT "Wikimedia > Release Engineering"
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[Wikimedia-l] Re: Luis Bitencourt-Emilio Joins Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees

[Antoine Musso]

On 14/01/2022 02:01, Luis Bitencourt-Emilio wrote:


I was born and grew up in Brazil, under vastly different circumstances than 
today. There was a critical moment in my life when my father placed me, at 8 
years old, in a BASIC programming course which I would practice on our x286 
hidden away in a laundry room. My passion for technology started then, and has 
only grown since. I believe in technology as a key path to the furthering of 
humanity, of knowledge, of quality of life, and of our collective future. I 
also believe that this will only happen with the guidance and efforts of active 
and inclusive communities that shepherd said technology to positive outcomes.



Hello Luis,

Welcome at the foundation, it is great to see someone joining the board 
having a large technical background.


BASIC and x286 are definitely familiar among staff members around your 
age. If you ever join one of our tech meetings, I am sure you will feel 
at home :]




10 REM "-- "
20 PRINT "Antoine"
30 PRINT "hashar"
40 PRINT "Musso"
50 PRINT "Wikimedia > Release Engineering"
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[Wikimedia-l] Re: Luis Bitencourt-Emilio Joins Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees

[Strainu]

Hello,

În vin., 14 ian. 2022 la 03:40, Luis Bitencourt-Emilio
 a scris:
>
> apologies to all for my late response.

Calling a next-day response "late" should gain you a goodwill or two
with some of us. :) Welcome and good luck in helping our CTOs!

>
> PS: I see a separate conversation has emerged relating to blockchains and my 
> interests in that field. I want to clarify that I don’t work professionally 
> in this field, and while I’m historically an early adopter of technology - in 
> the same way I adopted the internet in the 90s - I share many of the same 
> thoughts and questions about this new technology’s future that have been 
> raised in this thread. As a new Trustee, first and foremost, I am here to 
> learn and to hear more from all of you.

As always in our communities, negative feedback is far more visible.
But as Dariusz said, the community is divided on this. I personally
think, like Yair and Chris, that blockchains are not in opposition
with the movement values.

Strainu
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[Wikimedia-l] Re: Luis Bitencourt-Emilio Joins Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees

[Kunal Mehta]

On 1/13/22 08:50, Steven Walling wrote:
If we are having trouble retaining CTOs and CPOs, the first people for 
the Board and CEO to ask about why are *not* outside tech execs from 
venture-backed companies. It’s the tech employees of the Foundation 
(those past leaders in those roles and their entire reporting chain), 
community software contributors, other leaders of influential projects 
like Mozilla that have similar struggles, and potential candidates we 
liked for leadership roles who declined their offers. If we need 
advisors with tech skills for our incoming CEO, we have dozens of people 
(remember our long defunct advisory board? Or perhaps the long-tenured 
technical staff who have both expertise and Wikimedia values embedded in 
their bones?)


I entirely agree with you, except WMF upper management (and I guess the 
board, by their implicit approval) have made it clear that they do not 
want experienced technical staff in positions of power and decision 
making by abolishing TechCom and constantly rotating the new "technical 
decision making process" (which entirely excludes volunteers of course). 
That plus the intolerance for any dissent, whether public or private, 
mean that often technical staff are either unable to provide appropriate 
advice or are ignored.


The two CTO/VP of Engineering that had the longest tenures were Brion 
and Erik. And it's not even close, I don't think anyone else has made it 
a full 2 years. What sets those two apart from the others should be 
obvious :-)


-- Legoktm
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[Wikimedia-l] Re: Luis Bitencourt-Emilio Joins Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees

[Luis Bitencourt-Emilio]

Hello everybody,

Thank you Nataliia et al. for the warm welcome (and light hazing) and apologies 
to all for my late response.

Years ago, a colleague from the Wikimedia Foundation staff reached out to talk 
about product & technology at the organization. I still remember how 
eye-opening that initial conversation was - discussing the challenges and 
opportunities behind Wikipedia, one of my favorite sites that I had used for 
over a decade at that time, left me with little doubt that this is a movement I 
would want to be part of in some capacity. I was still at Reddit at the time, 
learning what it was like to shift from using and contributing to open source 
software to working in a tech company built around open source and through 
active, committed, and vocal communities. My experience at Reddit was one of 
the most transformative periods in my career and one of the reasons that I was 
interested in volunteering for this role.

I was born and grew up in Brazil, under vastly different circumstances than 
today. There was a critical moment in my life when my father placed me, at 8 
years old, in a BASIC programming course which I would practice on our x286 
hidden away in a laundry room. My passion for technology started then, and has 
only grown since. I believe in technology as a key path to the furthering of 
humanity, of knowledge, of quality of life, and of our collective future. I 
also believe that this will only happen with the guidance and efforts of active 
and inclusive communities that shepherd said technology to positive outcomes.

So now, years later and after my return to Latin America, there was an 
opportunity to join the Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees. I spent the 
next several months in conversations with other board members, staff, community 
members and friends to try and internalize more about the challenges and 
opportunities ahead, and most importantly to learn whether I could indeed make 
a positive contribution. I join this movement deeply humbled and inspired by 
the passion of everyone I met, and with a strong drive to leverage my 
experiences as a product and engineering leader to build a world where every 
single human being can freely share in the sum of all knowledge.

In this role, I can only be my authentic self, I will strive for understanding 
in my interactions with you, as well as do my absolute best to bring excellence 
to our product and technology. I will always be inclusive and welcoming of our 
differences, and engage in civil discourse, in service of a movement that is 
bigger than ourselves.

Thank you for the opportunity to contribute. I hope to connect with many of you 
directly over the coming months.

Cheers,
Luis

PS: I see a separate conversation has emerged relating to blockchains and my 
interests in that field. I want to clarify that I don’t work professionally in 
this field, and while I’m historically an early adopter of technology - in the 
same way I adopted the internet in the 90s - I share many of the same thoughts 
and questions about this new technology’s future that have been raised in this 
thread. As a new Trustee, first and foremost, I am here to learn and to hear 
more from all of you.
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[Wikimedia-l] Re: Luis Bitencourt-Emilio Joins Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees

[Benjamin Lees]

On Thu, Jan 13, 2022 at 4:31 PM Nathan  wrote:

>
> No, it isn't a messaging failure. There's no failure at all - the WMF, I'm
> sure, already recognizes there are pros and cons to a movement where every
> individual participant feels a sense of ownership. They work around that,
> sometimes they don't work around it well, but this is an example of where
> there's no dodging to be done. This "ownership" feeling leads to folks
> thinking that the WMF should be fully reflective of my values or your
> values - not just around the WMF's actual mission, but about anything that
> I happen to feel strongly about right now.
>
> The result is people constantly jerking the WMF in the direction of
> unrelated vogues. It leads to lots of friction and debate and drama, but
> that isn't the WMF's failure -  just how our history and structure
> interacts with human nature. This is probably familiar to anyone who lives
> in a jurisdiction that permits laws or regulations to be passed by popular
> referenda.
>

The WMF has made the conscious decision to select four (soon seven) of its
board members secretly and then announce them to the community after the
fact.  The board's only guide to whether a candidate is reflective of our
values is its own judgment, and the input of the staff or other persons it
decides to include in the process.[1]  Of course, in many cases that turns
out to be good enough.  But they won't know for sure whether they've made a
mistake until they draw back the curtains and let the sunshine in.

[1] In the past, the Governance Committee has included non-board, non-staff
advisory members; the most recent updates indicate that this is no longer
the case, though this may be an oversight:
https://meta.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?title=Wikimedia_Foundation_Board_Governance_Committee=22190668=22183445
Perhaps it is not a coincidence that the Governance Committee apparently
had no advisory members at the time AG was selected either:
https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia_Foundation_Board_Governance_Committee#2015-2016
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[Wikimedia-l] Re: Luis Bitencourt-Emilio Joins Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees

[Nathan]

On Thu, Jan 13, 2022 at 3:44 PM Guettarda  wrote:

>
> On Thu, Jan 13, 2022 at 3:02 PM Yair Rand  wrote:
>
>> I'm going to strongly disagree with this.
>>
>> People are allowed to have outside interests. Being incidentally
>> interested in blockchain tech is not a disqualifying attribute. Having
>> worked in large technology companies is not a disqualifying attribute.
>> Neither of these things should even be counted negatively.
>>
>
> It's not about outside interests. NFTs and crypto are widely viewed as
> inherently scammy (and, of course, environmentally destructive). And
> working for a tech start-up trying to disrupt housing - when the activities
> of tech companies like Zillow are already seen as making housing even more
> unaffordable for people - is really bad optics.
>
> Neither of these mean that he's a bad candidate. He might have an amazing
> background in non-profit governance that he will bring to the Board. He
> might be someone really dedicated to our mission. The problem is that these
> details haven't been shared. The diff posting [1] includes some kind
> platitudes, but that's it.
>
> It may just be a messaging failure. Coming so soon after the kerfuffle
> with Jimmy's proposed NFT sale, and just after Molly White opened an RFC on
> crypto, ans coming in the middle of a housing crisis, I find it worrying
> that the only message seems to be "trust us".
>
> Ian
>
> [1]
> https://diff.wikimedia.org/2022/01/12/luis-bitencourt-emilio-joins-wikimedia-foundation-board-of-trustees/
>

No, it isn't a messaging failure. There's no failure at all - the WMF, I'm
sure, already recognizes there are pros and cons to a movement where every
individual participant feels a sense of ownership. They work around that,
sometimes they don't work around it well, but this is an example of where
there's no dodging to be done. This "ownership" feeling leads to folks
thinking that the WMF should be fully reflective of my values or your
values - not just around the WMF's actual mission, but about anything that
I happen to feel strongly about right now.

The result is people constantly jerking the WMF in the direction of
unrelated vogues. It leads to lots of friction and debate and drama, but
that isn't the WMF's failure -  just how our history and structure
interacts with human nature. This is probably familiar to anyone who lives
in a jurisdiction that permits laws or regulations to be passed by popular
referenda.
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[Wikimedia-l] Re: Luis Bitencourt-Emilio Joins Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees

[Guettarda]

On Thu, Jan 13, 2022 at 3:02 PM Yair Rand  wrote:

> I'm going to strongly disagree with this.
>
> People are allowed to have outside interests. Being incidentally
> interested in blockchain tech is not a disqualifying attribute. Having
> worked in large technology companies is not a disqualifying attribute.
> Neither of these things should even be counted negatively.
>

It's not about outside interests. NFTs and crypto are widely viewed as
inherently scammy (and, of course, environmentally destructive). And
working for a tech start-up trying to disrupt housing - when the activities
of tech companies like Zillow are already seen as making housing even more
unaffordable for people - is really bad optics.

Neither of these mean that he's a bad candidate. He might have an amazing
background in non-profit governance that he will bring to the Board. He
might be someone really dedicated to our mission. The problem is that these
details haven't been shared. The diff posting [1] includes some kind
platitudes, but that's it.

It may just be a messaging failure. Coming so soon after the kerfuffle with
Jimmy's proposed NFT sale, and just after Molly White opened an RFC on
crypto, ans coming in the middle of a housing crisis, I find it worrying
that the only message seems to be "trust us".

Ian

[1]
https://diff.wikimedia.org/2022/01/12/luis-bitencourt-emilio-joins-wikimedia-foundation-board-of-trustees/



> If the Board has ascertained that the new trustee fits the relevant needs
> of expertise, experience, values, and level of commitment, as well as
> furthering the Board's goals of having a diverse set of backgrounds and
> competencies, then wonderful. The idea that a trustee's background interest
> in NFTs (which, if I may remind people, is something the general public has
> by-and-large never even *heard of*, let alone have strong opinions on) will
> affect Wikimedia's reputation is, frankly, beyond silly.
>
> Welcome to Wikimedia, Luis Bitencourt-Emilio. Apologies for the
> less-than-ideal reception.
>
> -- Yair Rand
>
> ‫בתאריך יום ה׳, 13 בינו׳ 2022 ב-13:53 מאת ‪Lane Chance‬‏ <‪
> zinkl...@gmail.com‬‏>:‬
>
>> Dariusz, Chair of the BGC: "Cryptocurrency and blockchains were not a
>> factor here – the Governance Committee, and then the Board, were
>> considering other things..."
>>
>> This is so wrong it's painful to read. The fundamental job of the
>> Governance Committee is to ensure that appointed trustees do not come with
>> the potential to cause harm to the Wikimedia 'brand' and the community.
>>
>> A WMF trustee that promotes Bitcoin and NFTs? Compare with the WMF
>> statement "We at the Wikimedia Foundation strive to ensure that our work
>> and mission support a sustainable world" - now in the bin as it lacks any
>> credibility from here on, as the governance committee and therefore the
>> board of trustees does not believe in these values. This is not a
>> successful appointment, Luis Bitencourt-Emilio is not welcome as they are a
>> controversial and damaging addition to the board.
>>
>> Ref:
>> https://wikimediafoundation.org/news/2019/09/19/how-the-wikimedia-foundation-is-making-efforts-to-go-green
>>
>> On Thu, 13 Jan 2022 at 13:40, Dariusz Jemielniak 
>> wrote:
>>
>>> Dear Dan,
>>>
>>> Thank you for the feedback!
>>>
>>> The search for a trustee with an expertise in product and technology
>>> began a few months ago. One of the problems we identified was that the
>>> Wikimedia Foundation CTOs (Chief Technology Officer) are usually not
>>> staying for a long period of time, and then there was also a CPO (Chief
>>> Product Officer) transition. It was also important that the new CEO (Chief
>>> Executive Officer) would like to have a trustee with relevant experience
>>> and leadership in the tech world (as would the Board itself), but also with
>>> the understanding and experience of how technology and communities can work
>>> together, so, as you said, Reddit experience is very relevant.
>>>
>>> The other critical factor was diversity – the search was prioritizing
>>> candidates with experience outside of Silicon Valley, in non-English
>>> speaking countries, preferably from the Global South.
>>>
>>> And, of course, we also needed a commitment to spend enough time on the
>>> Board work – to be engaged and present. For example, Luis met online and
>>> offline with Wikimedia volunteers from Spanish and Portuguese-speaking
>>> communities, he is eager to help us with his knowledge and experience.
>>> Cryptocurrency and blockchains were not a factor here – the Governance
>>> Committee, and then the Board, were considering other things Luis brings to
>>> the table, the needed expertise, diversity and commitment.
>>>
>>> I personally am not particularly fond of cryptocurrencies, even though I
>>> appreciate blockchain as a technology, and support e.g. decentralized
>>> science (https://decentralized.science/). We as a movement have not had
>>> a uniform stand on this, and I’m not sure if we should, though.

[Wikimedia-l] Re: Luis Bitencourt-Emilio Joins Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees

[Vi to]

I'd generally second this, but honestly a big "it depends" is due. Being an
HR manager from Kellog's would be a disqualifying attribute, same for a
personal interest in building and using rolling coals.

The *Bored Ape Yacht Club *is something more than an incidental interest,
but I think the board has already weighted pro and cons.

Vito

Il giorno gio 13 gen 2022 alle ore 21:02 Yair Rand  ha
scritto:

> I'm going to strongly disagree with this.
>
> People are allowed to have outside interests. Being incidentally
> interested in blockchain tech is not a disqualifying attribute. Having
> worked in large technology companies is not a disqualifying attribute.
> Neither of these things should even be counted negatively. If the Board has
> ascertained that the new trustee fits the relevant needs of expertise,
> experience, values, and level of commitment, as well as furthering the
> Board's goals of having a diverse set of backgrounds and competencies, then
> wonderful. The idea that a trustee's background interest in NFTs (which, if
> I may remind people, is something the general public has by-and-large never
> even *heard of*, let alone have strong opinions on) will affect Wikimedia's
> reputation is, frankly, beyond silly.
>
> Welcome to Wikimedia, Luis Bitencourt-Emilio. Apologies for the
> less-than-ideal reception.
>
> -- Yair Rand
>
> ‫בתאריך יום ה׳, 13 בינו׳ 2022 ב-13:53 מאת ‪Lane Chance‬‏ <‪
> zinkl...@gmail.com‬‏>:‬
>
>> Dariusz, Chair of the BGC: "Cryptocurrency and blockchains were not a
>> factor here – the Governance Committee, and then the Board, were
>> considering other things..."
>>
>> This is so wrong it's painful to read. The fundamental job of the
>> Governance Committee is to ensure that appointed trustees do not come with
>> the potential to cause harm to the Wikimedia 'brand' and the community.
>>
>> A WMF trustee that promotes Bitcoin and NFTs? Compare with the WMF
>> statement "We at the Wikimedia Foundation strive to ensure that our work
>> and mission support a sustainable world" - now in the bin as it lacks any
>> credibility from here on, as the governance committee and therefore the
>> board of trustees does not believe in these values. This is not a
>> successful appointment, Luis Bitencourt-Emilio is not welcome as they are a
>> controversial and damaging addition to the board.
>>
>> Ref:
>> https://wikimediafoundation.org/news/2019/09/19/how-the-wikimedia-foundation-is-making-efforts-to-go-green
>>
>> On Thu, 13 Jan 2022 at 13:40, Dariusz Jemielniak 
>> wrote:
>>
>>> Dear Dan,
>>>
>>> Thank you for the feedback!
>>>
>>> The search for a trustee with an expertise in product and technology
>>> began a few months ago. One of the problems we identified was that the
>>> Wikimedia Foundation CTOs (Chief Technology Officer) are usually not
>>> staying for a long period of time, and then there was also a CPO (Chief
>>> Product Officer) transition. It was also important that the new CEO (Chief
>>> Executive Officer) would like to have a trustee with relevant experience
>>> and leadership in the tech world (as would the Board itself), but also with
>>> the understanding and experience of how technology and communities can work
>>> together, so, as you said, Reddit experience is very relevant.
>>>
>>> The other critical factor was diversity – the search was prioritizing
>>> candidates with experience outside of Silicon Valley, in non-English
>>> speaking countries, preferably from the Global South.
>>>
>>> And, of course, we also needed a commitment to spend enough time on the
>>> Board work – to be engaged and present. For example, Luis met online and
>>> offline with Wikimedia volunteers from Spanish and Portuguese-speaking
>>> communities, he is eager to help us with his knowledge and experience.
>>> Cryptocurrency and blockchains were not a factor here – the Governance
>>> Committee, and then the Board, were considering other things Luis brings to
>>> the table, the needed expertise, diversity and commitment.
>>>
>>> I personally am not particularly fond of cryptocurrencies, even though I
>>> appreciate blockchain as a technology, and support e.g. decentralized
>>> science (https://decentralized.science/). We as a movement have not had
>>> a uniform stand on this, and I’m not sure if we should, though.
>>>
>>> Best regards,
>>> Dariusz (chair of the BGC)
>>>
>>> On Thu, Jan 13, 2022 at 1:40 PM Dan Garry (Deskana) 
>>> wrote:
>>>
 Thanks for the update, Nataliia. Knowledge and expertise in product and
 technology is a skill set that has been lacking on the Board, and it's
 great to see the Board addressing this by co-opting product and technology
 leaders. Luis's experience, such as his time at reddit, will likely be very
 applicable to our movement.

 However, I'm surprised that the Board chose to co-opt someone who seems
 to have such a public focus on technology like blockchains and
 cryptocurrency, and that this focus of his was omitted from 

[Wikimedia-l] Re: Luis Bitencourt-Emilio Joins Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees

[Samuel Klein]

 Welcome, Luis :)  A light hazing is traditional. ✨

I am delighted to see someone w/ not just a product and technical
background, but specific experience maintaining a collaborative read-write
platform w/ global audience.  Of course the board is responsible for
higher-level governance.  But increasingly, advancing the mission [of the
foundation and the movement as a whole] touches on technical details and
their implications.  That's why experience with our sort of tech at scale
has long been on the list of skills the Board seeks.

Yair writes:
> People are allowed to have outside interests. Being incidentally
interested in blockchain tech is not
> a disqualifying attribute. Having worked in large technology companies is
not a disqualifying attribute.
> Neither of these things should even be counted negatively.

Indeed not.  (Steven, I don't see any meaningful parallel w/ AG!)

We should discuss what place blockchain + nft communities, trends, and
practices have with respect to our mission.  But ... in a separate thread
perhaps?

SJ
w:user:sj

[ Personally I see more substantive alternatives to the destructive trend
towards copyright-maximalism than I have for some time. ]

On Thu, Jan 13, 2022 at 8:40 AM Dariusz Jemielniak 
wrote:

> Dear Dan,
>
> Thank you for the feedback!
>
> The search for a trustee with an expertise in product and technology began
> a few months ago. One of the problems we identified was that the Wikimedia
> Foundation CTOs (Chief Technology Officer) are usually not staying for a
> long period of time, and then there was also a CPO (Chief Product Officer)
> transition. It was also important that the new CEO (Chief Executive
> Officer) would like to have a trustee with relevant experience and
> leadership in the tech world (as would the Board itself), but also with the
> understanding and experience of how technology and communities can work
> together, so, as you said, Reddit experience is very relevant.
>
> The other critical factor was diversity – the search was prioritizing
> candidates with experience outside of Silicon Valley, in non-English
> speaking countries, preferably from the Global South.
>
> And, of course, we also needed a commitment to spend enough time on the
> Board work – to be engaged and present. For example, Luis met online and
> offline with Wikimedia volunteers from Spanish and Portuguese-speaking
> communities, he is eager to help us with his knowledge and experience.
> Cryptocurrency and blockchains were not a factor here – the Governance
> Committee, and then the Board, were considering other things Luis brings to
> the table, the needed expertise, diversity and commitment.
>
> I personally am not particularly fond of cryptocurrencies, even though I
> appreciate blockchain as a technology, and support e.g. decentralized
> science (https://decentralized.science/). We as a movement have not had a
> uniform stand on this, and I’m not sure if we should, though.
>
> Best regards,
> Dariusz (chair of the BGC)
>
> On Thu, Jan 13, 2022 at 1:40 PM Dan Garry (Deskana) 
> wrote:
>
>> Thanks for the update, Nataliia. Knowledge and expertise in product and
>> technology is a skill set that has been lacking on the Board, and it's
>> great to see the Board addressing this by co-opting product and technology
>> leaders. Luis's experience, such as his time at reddit, will likely be very
>> applicable to our movement.
>>
>> However, I'm surprised that the Board chose to co-opt someone who seems
>> to have such a public focus on technology like blockchains and
>> cryptocurrency, and that this focus of his was omitted from this
>> announcement.
>>
>> It would be helpful if we could hear from Luis how he intends to use his
>> knowledge and expertise to contribute to the movement as a Board member,
>> and to what extent he considers blockchain and cryptocurrency to factor
>> into that.
>>
>> Thanks,
>> Dan
>>
>> On Wed, 12 Jan 2022 at 17:20, Nataliia Tymkiv 
>> wrote:
>>
>>> Dear All,
>>>
>>> Please join me in welcoming Luis Bitencourt-Emilio to the Wikimedia
>>> Foundation Board of Trustees. Luis was unanimously appointed to a 3-year
>>> term and replaces a board-selected Trustee, Lisa Lewin, whose term ended in
>>> November 2021 [1].
>>>
>>> Currently based in São Paulo, Luis is the Chief Technology Officer at
>>> Loft, a technology startup in the real-estate industry. He brings product
>>> and technology experience from a globally diverse career that has spanned
>>> large technology companies including Microsoft, online networking sites
>>> like Reddit, and a series of entrepreneurial technology ventures focused in
>>> the USA and Latin America. Luis has led product and technology teams across
>>> Latin America, the United States, Europe and Asia. He is passionately
>>> involved in building and promoting the entrepreneurial ecosystem for Latin
>>> American-based startups.
>>>
>>> Luis has more than two decades of experience across product development,
>>> software 

[Wikimedia-l] Re: Luis Bitencourt-Emilio Joins Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees

[Isaac Olatunde]

I agree with Yair, here.

I understand this announcement was made at the time a RfC regarding WMF
accepting cryptocurrency donations is ongoing.[1]

I think having someone with a sound knowledge of this area on the board
would be a net positive in implementing the result of that RfC.

I see the appointment of Luis Bitencourt-Emilio as a good one and I want to
thank Luis for accepting to join the board.

Welcome to the board, Luis.

Best regards

Isaac


[1].
https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Requests_for_comment/Stop_accepting_cryptocurrency_donations

On Thu, 13 Jan 2022, 21:02 Yair Rand,  wrote:

> I'm going to strongly disagree with this.
>
> People are allowed to have outside interests. Being incidentally
> interested in blockchain tech is not a disqualifying attribute. Having
> worked in large technology companies is not a disqualifying attribute.
> Neither of these things should even be counted negatively. If the Board has
> ascertained that the new trustee fits the relevant needs of expertise,
> experience, values, and level of commitment, as well as furthering the
> Board's goals of having a diverse set of backgrounds and competencies, then
> wonderful. The idea that a trustee's background interest in NFTs (which, if
> I may remind people, is something the general public has by-and-large never
> even *heard of*, let alone have strong opinions on) will affect Wikimedia's
> reputation is, frankly, beyond silly.
>
> Welcome to Wikimedia, Luis Bitencourt-Emilio. Apologies for the
> less-than-ideal reception.
>
> -- Yair Rand
>
> ‫בתאריך יום ה׳, 13 בינו׳ 2022 ב-13:53 מאת ‪Lane Chance‬‏ <‪
> zinkl...@gmail.com‬‏>:‬
>
>> Dariusz, Chair of the BGC: "Cryptocurrency and blockchains were not a
>> factor here – the Governance Committee, and then the Board, were
>> considering other things..."
>>
>> This is so wrong it's painful to read. The fundamental job of the
>> Governance Committee is to ensure that appointed trustees do not come with
>> the potential to cause harm to the Wikimedia 'brand' and the community.
>>
>> A WMF trustee that promotes Bitcoin and NFTs? Compare with the WMF
>> statement "We at the Wikimedia Foundation strive to ensure that our work
>> and mission support a sustainable world" - now in the bin as it lacks any
>> credibility from here on, as the governance committee and therefore the
>> board of trustees does not believe in these values. This is not a
>> successful appointment, Luis Bitencourt-Emilio is not welcome as they are a
>> controversial and damaging addition to the board.
>>
>> Ref:
>> https://wikimediafoundation.org/news/2019/09/19/how-the-wikimedia-foundation-is-making-efforts-to-go-green
>>
>> On Thu, 13 Jan 2022 at 13:40, Dariusz Jemielniak 
>> wrote:
>>
>>> Dear Dan,
>>>
>>> Thank you for the feedback!
>>>
>>> The search for a trustee with an expertise in product and technology
>>> began a few months ago. One of the problems we identified was that the
>>> Wikimedia Foundation CTOs (Chief Technology Officer) are usually not
>>> staying for a long period of time, and then there was also a CPO (Chief
>>> Product Officer) transition. It was also important that the new CEO (Chief
>>> Executive Officer) would like to have a trustee with relevant experience
>>> and leadership in the tech world (as would the Board itself), but also with
>>> the understanding and experience of how technology and communities can work
>>> together, so, as you said, Reddit experience is very relevant.
>>>
>>> The other critical factor was diversity – the search was prioritizing
>>> candidates with experience outside of Silicon Valley, in non-English
>>> speaking countries, preferably from the Global South.
>>>
>>> And, of course, we also needed a commitment to spend enough time on the
>>> Board work – to be engaged and present. For example, Luis met online and
>>> offline with Wikimedia volunteers from Spanish and Portuguese-speaking
>>> communities, he is eager to help us with his knowledge and experience.
>>> Cryptocurrency and blockchains were not a factor here – the Governance
>>> Committee, and then the Board, were considering other things Luis brings to
>>> the table, the needed expertise, diversity and commitment.
>>>
>>> I personally am not particularly fond of cryptocurrencies, even though I
>>> appreciate blockchain as a technology, and support e.g. decentralized
>>> science (https://decentralized.science/). We as a movement have not had
>>> a uniform stand on this, and I’m not sure if we should, though.
>>>
>>> Best regards,
>>> Dariusz (chair of the BGC)
>>>
>>> On Thu, Jan 13, 2022 at 1:40 PM Dan Garry (Deskana) 
>>> wrote:
>>>
 Thanks for the update, Nataliia. Knowledge and expertise in product and
 technology is a skill set that has been lacking on the Board, and it's
 great to see the Board addressing this by co-opting product and technology
 leaders. Luis's experience, such as his time at reddit, will likely be very
 applicable to our movement.

 However, 

[Wikimedia-l] Re: Luis Bitencourt-Emilio Joins Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees

[Yair Rand]

I'm going to strongly disagree with this.

People are allowed to have outside interests. Being incidentally interested
in blockchain tech is not a disqualifying attribute. Having worked in large
technology companies is not a disqualifying attribute. Neither of these
things should even be counted negatively. If the Board has ascertained that
the new trustee fits the relevant needs of expertise, experience, values,
and level of commitment, as well as furthering the Board's goals of having
a diverse set of backgrounds and competencies, then wonderful. The idea
that a trustee's background interest in NFTs (which, if I may remind
people, is something the general public has by-and-large never even *heard
of*, let alone have strong opinions on) will affect Wikimedia's reputation
is, frankly, beyond silly.

Welcome to Wikimedia, Luis Bitencourt-Emilio. Apologies for the
less-than-ideal reception.

-- Yair Rand

‫בתאריך יום ה׳, 13 בינו׳ 2022 ב-13:53 מאת ‪Lane Chance‬‏ <‪
zinkl...@gmail.com‬‏>:‬

> Dariusz, Chair of the BGC: "Cryptocurrency and blockchains were not a
> factor here – the Governance Committee, and then the Board, were
> considering other things..."
>
> This is so wrong it's painful to read. The fundamental job of the
> Governance Committee is to ensure that appointed trustees do not come with
> the potential to cause harm to the Wikimedia 'brand' and the community.
>
> A WMF trustee that promotes Bitcoin and NFTs? Compare with the WMF
> statement "We at the Wikimedia Foundation strive to ensure that our work
> and mission support a sustainable world" - now in the bin as it lacks any
> credibility from here on, as the governance committee and therefore the
> board of trustees does not believe in these values. This is not a
> successful appointment, Luis Bitencourt-Emilio is not welcome as they are a
> controversial and damaging addition to the board.
>
> Ref:
> https://wikimediafoundation.org/news/2019/09/19/how-the-wikimedia-foundation-is-making-efforts-to-go-green
>
> On Thu, 13 Jan 2022 at 13:40, Dariusz Jemielniak 
> wrote:
>
>> Dear Dan,
>>
>> Thank you for the feedback!
>>
>> The search for a trustee with an expertise in product and technology
>> began a few months ago. One of the problems we identified was that the
>> Wikimedia Foundation CTOs (Chief Technology Officer) are usually not
>> staying for a long period of time, and then there was also a CPO (Chief
>> Product Officer) transition. It was also important that the new CEO (Chief
>> Executive Officer) would like to have a trustee with relevant experience
>> and leadership in the tech world (as would the Board itself), but also with
>> the understanding and experience of how technology and communities can work
>> together, so, as you said, Reddit experience is very relevant.
>>
>> The other critical factor was diversity – the search was prioritizing
>> candidates with experience outside of Silicon Valley, in non-English
>> speaking countries, preferably from the Global South.
>>
>> And, of course, we also needed a commitment to spend enough time on the
>> Board work – to be engaged and present. For example, Luis met online and
>> offline with Wikimedia volunteers from Spanish and Portuguese-speaking
>> communities, he is eager to help us with his knowledge and experience.
>> Cryptocurrency and blockchains were not a factor here – the Governance
>> Committee, and then the Board, were considering other things Luis brings to
>> the table, the needed expertise, diversity and commitment.
>>
>> I personally am not particularly fond of cryptocurrencies, even though I
>> appreciate blockchain as a technology, and support e.g. decentralized
>> science (https://decentralized.science/). We as a movement have not had
>> a uniform stand on this, and I’m not sure if we should, though.
>>
>> Best regards,
>> Dariusz (chair of the BGC)
>>
>> On Thu, Jan 13, 2022 at 1:40 PM Dan Garry (Deskana) 
>> wrote:
>>
>>> Thanks for the update, Nataliia. Knowledge and expertise in product and
>>> technology is a skill set that has been lacking on the Board, and it's
>>> great to see the Board addressing this by co-opting product and technology
>>> leaders. Luis's experience, such as his time at reddit, will likely be very
>>> applicable to our movement.
>>>
>>> However, I'm surprised that the Board chose to co-opt someone who seems
>>> to have such a public focus on technology like blockchains and
>>> cryptocurrency, and that this focus of his was omitted from this
>>> announcement.
>>>
>>> It would be helpful if we could hear from Luis how he intends to use his
>>> knowledge and expertise to contribute to the movement as a Board member,
>>> and to what extent he considers blockchain and cryptocurrency to factor
>>> into that.
>>>
>>> Thanks,
>>> Dan
>>>
>>> On Wed, 12 Jan 2022 at 17:20, Nataliia Tymkiv 
>>> wrote:
>>>
 Dear All,

 Please join me in welcoming Luis Bitencourt-Emilio to the Wikimedia
 Foundation Board of Trustees. Luis was unanimously 

[Wikimedia-l] Re: Luis Bitencourt-Emilio Joins Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees

[Lane Chance]

Dariusz, Chair of the BGC: "Cryptocurrency and blockchains were not a
factor here – the Governance Committee, and then the Board, were
considering other things..."

This is so wrong it's painful to read. The fundamental job of the
Governance Committee is to ensure that appointed trustees do not come with
the potential to cause harm to the Wikimedia 'brand' and the community.

A WMF trustee that promotes Bitcoin and NFTs? Compare with the WMF
statement "We at the Wikimedia Foundation strive to ensure that our work
and mission support a sustainable world" - now in the bin as it lacks any
credibility from here on, as the governance committee and therefore the
board of trustees does not believe in these values. This is not a
successful appointment, Luis Bitencourt-Emilio is not welcome as they are a
controversial and damaging addition to the board.

Ref:
https://wikimediafoundation.org/news/2019/09/19/how-the-wikimedia-foundation-is-making-efforts-to-go-green

On Thu, 13 Jan 2022 at 13:40, Dariusz Jemielniak 
wrote:

> Dear Dan,
>
> Thank you for the feedback!
>
> The search for a trustee with an expertise in product and technology began
> a few months ago. One of the problems we identified was that the Wikimedia
> Foundation CTOs (Chief Technology Officer) are usually not staying for a
> long period of time, and then there was also a CPO (Chief Product Officer)
> transition. It was also important that the new CEO (Chief Executive
> Officer) would like to have a trustee with relevant experience and
> leadership in the tech world (as would the Board itself), but also with the
> understanding and experience of how technology and communities can work
> together, so, as you said, Reddit experience is very relevant.
>
> The other critical factor was diversity – the search was prioritizing
> candidates with experience outside of Silicon Valley, in non-English
> speaking countries, preferably from the Global South.
>
> And, of course, we also needed a commitment to spend enough time on the
> Board work – to be engaged and present. For example, Luis met online and
> offline with Wikimedia volunteers from Spanish and Portuguese-speaking
> communities, he is eager to help us with his knowledge and experience.
> Cryptocurrency and blockchains were not a factor here – the Governance
> Committee, and then the Board, were considering other things Luis brings to
> the table, the needed expertise, diversity and commitment.
>
> I personally am not particularly fond of cryptocurrencies, even though I
> appreciate blockchain as a technology, and support e.g. decentralized
> science (https://decentralized.science/). We as a movement have not had a
> uniform stand on this, and I’m not sure if we should, though.
>
> Best regards,
> Dariusz (chair of the BGC)
>
> On Thu, Jan 13, 2022 at 1:40 PM Dan Garry (Deskana) 
> wrote:
>
>> Thanks for the update, Nataliia. Knowledge and expertise in product and
>> technology is a skill set that has been lacking on the Board, and it's
>> great to see the Board addressing this by co-opting product and technology
>> leaders. Luis's experience, such as his time at reddit, will likely be very
>> applicable to our movement.
>>
>> However, I'm surprised that the Board chose to co-opt someone who seems
>> to have such a public focus on technology like blockchains and
>> cryptocurrency, and that this focus of his was omitted from this
>> announcement.
>>
>> It would be helpful if we could hear from Luis how he intends to use his
>> knowledge and expertise to contribute to the movement as a Board member,
>> and to what extent he considers blockchain and cryptocurrency to factor
>> into that.
>>
>> Thanks,
>> Dan
>>
>> On Wed, 12 Jan 2022 at 17:20, Nataliia Tymkiv 
>> wrote:
>>
>>> Dear All,
>>>
>>> Please join me in welcoming Luis Bitencourt-Emilio to the Wikimedia
>>> Foundation Board of Trustees. Luis was unanimously appointed to a 3-year
>>> term and replaces a board-selected Trustee, Lisa Lewin, whose term ended in
>>> November 2021 [1].
>>>
>>> Currently based in São Paulo, Luis is the Chief Technology Officer at
>>> Loft, a technology startup in the real-estate industry. He brings product
>>> and technology experience from a globally diverse career that has spanned
>>> large technology companies including Microsoft, online networking sites
>>> like Reddit, and a series of entrepreneurial technology ventures focused in
>>> the USA and Latin America. Luis has led product and technology teams across
>>> Latin America, the United States, Europe and Asia. He is passionately
>>> involved in building and promoting the entrepreneurial ecosystem for Latin
>>> American-based startups.
>>>
>>> Luis has more than two decades of experience across product development,
>>> software engineering, and data science. At Microsoft, he led engineering
>>> teams shipping multiple Microsoft Office products. At Reddit, he led the
>>> Knowledge Group, an engineering team that owned critical functions such as
>>> data, 

[Wikimedia-l] Re: Luis Bitencourt-Emilio Joins Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees

[Inductiveload]

On Thu, 13 Jan 2022 at 13:41, Dariusz Jemielniak
 wrote:
>
> One of the problems we identified was that the Wikimedia Foundation CTOs 
> (Chief Technology Officer) are usually not staying for a long period of time

Does anyone know why this is? This sounds like a pretty critical
buried lead if the very top level of leadership isn't invested enough
to stick around. Sure they might be excellent technically, but if they
dip after a year or so, they're not really going to drive long-term
technical progress for the projects. Even if you miss out on having a
year of Captain Awesome before s/he leaves for SpaceX or whatever,
would it be better to have 5 years or more of someone who can
completely immerse themselves in the technology involved and
understand the issues end-to-end and inside-out (or perhaps better
still: someone who _already_ knows it)?

Wikimedia is different to other tech darlings, because it is,
hopefully, not trying to drum up valuations for a quick and lucrative
exit, so I'm not sure why cycling C-level executives like there's an
IPO around the corner and you need to look dynamic and profitable is
helpful.

> It was also important that the new CEO (Chief Executive Officer) would like 
> to have a trustee with relevant experience and leadership in the tech world 
> (as would the Board itself), but also with the understanding and experience 
> of how technology and communities can work together, so, as you said, Reddit 
> experience is very relevant.

I'd be interested to know the perspective coming from Reddit, as it
seems there have been some serious issues there over the years. Since
I generally avoid Reddit, I'm not aware of them in excruciating
detail, other than that being partly why I do avoid Reddit in the
first place. Perhaps an (ex-)insider will be well placed to help avoid
things like:

* Some Reddit communities being famously toxic, and even bordering on
illegal[1]]
* Reddit communities being siloed from each other, leading to "echo
chambers" and general animosity
* Misinformation of various sorts is rife (Covid threw this into sharp
relief with specific demonstrable cases, but it's not new), not to
mention the crypto-scams
* Conflict between "the mods" and "the users" (and infighting between
mods), not to mention secretive modding and practises like
auto-shadowbanning
* Distrust between "the community/ies" and the company itself
* The Reddit "product" has come out with some very hostile un-features:
** Forcing login to read most of it in the first place on a mobile
** Top-down redesign which was impressively unpopular, even for a
website redesign[2], especially because they then crippled the mobile
site anyway with app-nags and full-on browser-blocks
** Advertising is pervasive and dishonestly disguised as content (if
you use the app, so I suppose that's why they force you into it when
they can)
** Scads of other dark patterns[3][4]

Not all will translate to Wikimedia projects, due to the open nature
and different goals. Nevertheless, I think there are some parallels to
be drawn. Hopefully Luis will be well positioned to have insight on
how to avoid such issues.

Cheers,

--IL

[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Controversial_Reddit_communities
[2] This guarantees drama, as everyone knows, no matter how amazing
the new thing is
[3] https://ognjen.io/reddits-disrespectful-design/
[4] Interestingly, Reddit does actually manage to have a correct
cookies dialog, unlike novi.com which would probably be outright
illegal in the EU since you can't decline ad/tracking cookies
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[Wikimedia-l] Re: Luis Bitencourt-Emilio Joins Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees

[Frank Schulenburg]

Nataliia,

Thanks so much for your announcement and welcome to Luis! Given that we’re 
talking about a board role that requires a range of governance / oversight 
responsibilities, could you please tell us more about Luis’ non-profit board 
and governance experience? 

Best,

Frank

> Am 1/12/22 um 09:19 schrieb Nataliia Tymkiv :
> 
> Dear All, 
> 
> Please join me in welcoming Luis Bitencourt-Emilio to the Wikimedia 
> Foundation Board of Trustees. Luis was unanimously appointed to a 3-year term 
> and replaces a board-selected Trustee, Lisa Lewin, whose term ended in 
> November 2021 [1].
> 
> Currently based in São Paulo, Luis is the Chief Technology Officer at Loft, a 
> technology startup in the real-estate industry. He brings product and 
> technology experience from a globally diverse career that has spanned large 
> technology companies including Microsoft, online networking sites like 
> Reddit, and a series of entrepreneurial technology ventures focused in the 
> USA and Latin America. Luis has led product and technology teams across Latin 
> America, the United States, Europe and Asia. He is passionately involved in 
> building and promoting the entrepreneurial ecosystem for Latin American-based 
> startups. 
> 
> Luis has more than two decades of experience across product development, 
> software engineering, and data science. At Microsoft, he led engineering 
> teams shipping multiple Microsoft Office products. At Reddit, he led the 
> Knowledge Group, an engineering team that owned critical functions such as 
> data, machine learning, abuse detection and search. He was deeply involved in 
> Reddit’s growth stage and worked closely with Reddit’s communities in that 
> evolution. Luis also co-founded a fintech startup to help millennials manage 
> and automate their finances.
> 
> His career has also been shaped by a visible commitment to recruiting diverse 
> leaders. At Reddit, Luis was a key member of the recruitment efforts that 
> achieved equal representation of women engineering directors. Luis says his 
> proudest achievement at Microsoft was building their Brazilian talent 
> pipeline by working closely with local universities to place thousands of 
> engineering candidates at Microsoft, as well as his involvement in expanding 
> global recruitment to markets including Ukraine, Poland, Great Britain, the 
> EU and Mexico. 
> 
> Luis was educated in Brazil and the United States, receiving a Bachelor of 
> Science in Computer Engineering with Honors from the University of Maryland. 
> He is fluent in Portuguese, Spanish and English. He is also a proud father 
> and dog lover. 
> 
> I would like to thank the Governance Committee, chaired by Dariusz 
> Jemielniak, for this nomination process as well as volunteers in our Spanish 
> and Portuguese speaking communities who also met with Luis or shared their 
> experiences.
> 
> You can find an official announcement here [2].
> 
> PS. You can help translate or find translations of this message on Meta-Wiki: 
> https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia_Foundation_Board_noticeboard/January_2022_-_Luis_Bitencourt-Emilio_Joins_Wikimedia_Foundation_Board_of_Trustees
>  
> 
>  
> 
> [1] Lisa Lewin served from January 2019 till November 2021: 
> https://foundation.wikimedia.org/wiki/Resolution:Renewing_Lisa_Lewin%E2%80%99s_Appointment_to_the_Board_of_Trustees,_2021
>  
> 
>  
> [2] 
> https://diff.wikimedia.org/2022/01/12/luis-bitencourt-emilio-joins-wikimedia-foundation-board-of-trustees/
>  
> 
> 
> Best regards,
> antanana / Nataliia Tymkiv
> Chair, Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees
> 
> NOTICE: You may have received this message outside of your normal working 
> hours/days, as I usually can work more as a volunteer during weekend. You 
> should not feel obligated to answer it during your days off. Thank you in 
> advance!
> 
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[Wikimedia-l] Re: Luis Bitencourt-Emilio Joins Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees

[Steven Walling]

On Thu, Jan 13, 2022 at 7:40 AM Guettarda  wrote:

> Crypto + NFTs + {tech startup + disrupt + housing market} sounds like
> *just* the kind of person WMF needs on its board!
>
> Luis Bitencourt-Emilio might be a great person, and just who we need on
> the Board right now, but the optics seem terrible. Maybe I've been spending
> too much time in the wrong parts of the internet, but this collection of
> attributes seems like a cherry-picked collection of what's wrong with the
> world.
>
> Ian
>

This kind of community reaction to a board appointment from the tech sector
has happened before with Arnnon Geshuri. We should have looked at that
history and treaded more carefully.

The community has always been super skeptical of the tech industry and
people associated with it, and we should have been able to anticipate that,
and develop a communication plan to show everyone what a new board member’s
values and mindset are by having them, like… send an introductory email
immediately after their announcement? Otherwise all we have is their
twitter. Maryana’s  hiring as CEO was a good example of a positive
introductory approach that has helped the community assume good faith about
her, for instance.

If we are having trouble retaining CTOs and CPOs, the first people for the
Board and CEO to ask about why are *not* outside tech execs from
venture-backed companies. It’s the tech employees of the Foundation (those
past leaders in those roles and their entire reporting chain), community
software contributors, other leaders of influential projects like Mozilla
that have similar struggles, and potential candidates we liked for
leadership roles who declined their offers. If we need advisors with tech
skills for our incoming CEO, we have dozens of people (remember our long
defunct advisory board? Or perhaps the long-tenured technical staff who
have both expertise and Wikimedia values embedded in their bones?)

None of that work to strengthen our tech organization can be done by a
single Board member alone and it most certainly doesn’t require giving
someone a voting seat on our governing legal body. If we wanted someone so
high profile and crunched for time that they need the board seat to justify
the time spent on advising us, this guy is not it. You could find a lot of
people who—from looking at his LinkedIn—spent two years at Reddit or ran an
engineering team at MSFT who would gladly help us without being on the
board.

On Thu, Jan 13, 2022 at 10:05 AM GorillaWarfare <
> gorillawarfarewikipe...@gmail.com> wrote:
>
>> Thank you for the further details, Dariusz. What is his experience with
>> free software or open knowledge communities such as ours?
>>
>> I would also love to hear from him directly to know more about whether he
>> feels cryptocurrencies, NFTs, and such technologies have a place in the
>> Wikimedia mission. Do you know if he plans to join the conversation?
>>
>> Sincerely,
>> Molly White (User:GorillaWarfare)
>> https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/User:GorillaWarfare
>> she/her
>>
>>
>> On Thu, Jan 13, 2022, 8:41 AM Dariusz Jemielniak 
>> wrote:
>>
>>> Dear Dan,
>>>
>>> Thank you for the feedback!
>>>
>>> The search for a trustee with an expertise in product and technology
>>> began a few months ago. One of the problems we identified was that the
>>> Wikimedia Foundation CTOs (Chief Technology Officer) are usually not
>>> staying for a long period of time, and then there was also a CPO (Chief
>>> Product Officer) transition. It was also important that the new CEO (Chief
>>> Executive Officer) would like to have a trustee with relevant experience
>>> and leadership in the tech world (as would the Board itself), but also with
>>> the understanding and experience of how technology and communities can work
>>> together, so, as you said, Reddit experience is very relevant.
>>>
>>> The other critical factor was diversity – the search was prioritizing
>>> candidates with experience outside of Silicon Valley, in non-English
>>> speaking countries, preferably from the Global South.
>>>
>>> And, of course, we also needed a commitment to spend enough time on the
>>> Board work – to be engaged and present. For example, Luis met online and
>>> offline with Wikimedia volunteers from Spanish and Portuguese-speaking
>>> communities, he is eager to help us with his knowledge and experience.
>>> Cryptocurrency and blockchains were not a factor here – the Governance
>>> Committee, and then the Board, were considering other things Luis brings to
>>> the table, the needed expertise, diversity and commitment.
>>>
>>> I personally am not particularly fond of cryptocurrencies, even though I
>>> appreciate blockchain as a technology, and support e.g. decentralized
>>> science (https://decentralized.science/). We as a movement have not had
>>> a uniform stand on this, and I’m not sure if we should, though.
>>>
>>> Best regards,
>>> Dariusz (chair of the BGC)
>>>
>>> On Thu, Jan 13, 2022 at 1:40 PM Dan Garry (Deskana) 
>>> wrote:
>>>

[Wikimedia-l] Re: Luis Bitencourt-Emilio Joins Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees

[Dariusz Jemielniak]

have you had a chance to check the link I sent?

cheers,

dj

On Thu, Jan 13, 2022 at 4:34 PM David Gerard  wrote:

> On Thu, 13 Jan 2022 at 13:41, Dariusz Jemielniak
>  wrote:
>
> > even though I appreciate blockchain as a technology,
>
> This is a common buzzword phrase. What *in particular* do you
> appreciate about them, that someone who knows what they are and how
> they work but isn't a fan would find a credible claim?
> ___
> Wikimedia-l mailing list -- wikimedia-l@lists.wikimedia.org, guidelines
> at: https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Mailing_lists/Guidelines and
> https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia-l
> Public archives at
> https://lists.wikimedia.org/hyperkitty/list/wikimedia-l@lists.wikimedia.org/message/MO3VBAQ7FHQYELA5Q65TN3DNEWXZBLCV/
> To unsubscribe send an email to wikimedia-l-le...@lists.wikimedia.org
>


-- 

__

​​

prof. dr hab. Dariusz Jemielniak kierownik katedry MINDS
, Akademia Leona Koźmińskiego

członek korespondent Polskiej Akademii Nauk 

faculty associate Berkman-Klein Center for Internet and Society
, Harvard University
Ważniejsze książki: Collaborative Society
 (2020, MIT Press, z
A. Przegalińską), Thick Big Data

(2020,
Oxford University Press), Common Knowledge?
 (2014, Stanford University
Press)
*Ostatnie artykuły:*

   - Jędrzej Chrzanowski, Julia Sołek, Dariusz Jemielniak, Wojciech Fendler
   (2021) Assessing Public Interest Based on Wikipedia’s Most Visited
   Medical Articles During the SARS-CoV-2 Outbreak
   , *Journal of Medical Internet
   Research*, 23(4)::e26331
   - Natalia Banasik-Jemielniak, Dariusz Jemielniak, Wojciech Pędzich
   (2021) Intercessory Rote Prayer, Life Longevity and the Mortality of
   Roman Catholic Bishops: An Exploratory Study
   ,  *Journal
   of Religion and Health*, doi.org/10.1007/s10943-021-01214-9
   -   Natalia Banasik-Jemielniak, Dariusz Jemielniak, Maciej Wilamowski
   (2021)  Psychology and Wikipedia: Measuring Psychology Journals’ Impact
   by Wikipedia Citations
   

   ,  *Social Science Computer Review, *doi.org/10.1177/0894439321993836
   - Agata Stasik, Dariusz Jemielniak (2021) Public involvement in risk
   governance in the internet era: impact of new rules of building trust and
   credibility
   
,
   Journal of Risk Research, doi.org/10.1080/13669877.2020.1864008
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[Wikimedia-l] Re: Luis Bitencourt-Emilio Joins Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees

[Chris Keating]

On Thu, Jan 13, 2022 at 3:41 PM Guettarda  wrote:

> Crypto + NFTs + {tech startup + disrupt + housing market} sounds like
> *just* the kind of person WMF needs on its board!
>
> Luis Bitencourt-Emilio might be a great person, and just who we need on
> the Board right now, but the optics seem terrible. Maybe I've been spending
> too much time in the wrong parts of the internet, but this collection of
> attributes seems like a cherry-picked collection of what's wrong with the
> world.
>

I think it's important to distinguish between "things Wikimedians tend not
to like" and "things that are in opposition to the movement's values".

I can definitely see the former here, but not really the latter.

Chris
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[Wikimedia-l] Re: Luis Bitencourt-Emilio Joins Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees

[Guettarda]

Crypto + NFTs + {tech startup + disrupt + housing market} sounds like
*just* the kind of person WMF needs on its board!

Luis Bitencourt-Emilio might be a great person, and just who we need on the
Board right now, but the optics seem terrible. Maybe I've been spending too
much time in the wrong parts of the internet, but this collection of
attributes seems like a cherry-picked collection of what's wrong with the
world.

Ian


On Thu, Jan 13, 2022 at 10:05 AM GorillaWarfare <
gorillawarfarewikipe...@gmail.com> wrote:

> Thank you for the further details, Dariusz. What is his experience with
> free software or open knowledge communities such as ours?
>
> I would also love to hear from him directly to know more about whether he
> feels cryptocurrencies, NFTs, and such technologies have a place in the
> Wikimedia mission. Do you know if he plans to join the conversation?
>
> Sincerely,
> Molly White (User:GorillaWarfare)
> https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/User:GorillaWarfare
> she/her
>
>
> On Thu, Jan 13, 2022, 8:41 AM Dariusz Jemielniak 
> wrote:
>
>> Dear Dan,
>>
>> Thank you for the feedback!
>>
>> The search for a trustee with an expertise in product and technology
>> began a few months ago. One of the problems we identified was that the
>> Wikimedia Foundation CTOs (Chief Technology Officer) are usually not
>> staying for a long period of time, and then there was also a CPO (Chief
>> Product Officer) transition. It was also important that the new CEO (Chief
>> Executive Officer) would like to have a trustee with relevant experience
>> and leadership in the tech world (as would the Board itself), but also with
>> the understanding and experience of how technology and communities can work
>> together, so, as you said, Reddit experience is very relevant.
>>
>> The other critical factor was diversity – the search was prioritizing
>> candidates with experience outside of Silicon Valley, in non-English
>> speaking countries, preferably from the Global South.
>>
>> And, of course, we also needed a commitment to spend enough time on the
>> Board work – to be engaged and present. For example, Luis met online and
>> offline with Wikimedia volunteers from Spanish and Portuguese-speaking
>> communities, he is eager to help us with his knowledge and experience.
>> Cryptocurrency and blockchains were not a factor here – the Governance
>> Committee, and then the Board, were considering other things Luis brings to
>> the table, the needed expertise, diversity and commitment.
>>
>> I personally am not particularly fond of cryptocurrencies, even though I
>> appreciate blockchain as a technology, and support e.g. decentralized
>> science (https://decentralized.science/). We as a movement have not had
>> a uniform stand on this, and I’m not sure if we should, though.
>>
>> Best regards,
>> Dariusz (chair of the BGC)
>>
>> On Thu, Jan 13, 2022 at 1:40 PM Dan Garry (Deskana) 
>> wrote:
>>
>>> Thanks for the update, Nataliia. Knowledge and expertise in product and
>>> technology is a skill set that has been lacking on the Board, and it's
>>> great to see the Board addressing this by co-opting product and technology
>>> leaders. Luis's experience, such as his time at reddit, will likely be very
>>> applicable to our movement.
>>>
>>> However, I'm surprised that the Board chose to co-opt someone who seems
>>> to have such a public focus on technology like blockchains and
>>> cryptocurrency, and that this focus of his was omitted from this
>>> announcement.
>>>
>>> It would be helpful if we could hear from Luis how he intends to use his
>>> knowledge and expertise to contribute to the movement as a Board member,
>>> and to what extent he considers blockchain and cryptocurrency to factor
>>> into that.
>>>
>>> Thanks,
>>> Dan
>>>
>>> On Wed, 12 Jan 2022 at 17:20, Nataliia Tymkiv 
>>> wrote:
>>>
 Dear All,

 Please join me in welcoming Luis Bitencourt-Emilio to the Wikimedia
 Foundation Board of Trustees. Luis was unanimously appointed to a 3-year
 term and replaces a board-selected Trustee, Lisa Lewin, whose term ended in
 November 2021 [1].

 Currently based in São Paulo, Luis is the Chief Technology Officer at
 Loft, a technology startup in the real-estate industry. He brings product
 and technology experience from a globally diverse career that has spanned
 large technology companies including Microsoft, online networking sites
 like Reddit, and a series of entrepreneurial technology ventures focused in
 the USA and Latin America. Luis has led product and technology teams across
 Latin America, the United States, Europe and Asia. He is passionately
 involved in building and promoting the entrepreneurial ecosystem for Latin
 American-based startups.

 Luis has more than two decades of experience across product
 development, software engineering, and data science. At Microsoft, he led
 engineering teams shipping multiple Microsoft Office products. At 

[Wikimedia-l] Re: Luis Bitencourt-Emilio Joins Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees

[David Gerard]

On Thu, 13 Jan 2022 at 13:41, Dariusz Jemielniak
 wrote:

> even though I appreciate blockchain as a technology,

This is a common buzzword phrase. What *in particular* do you
appreciate about them, that someone who knows what they are and how
they work but isn't a fan would find a credible claim?
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[Wikimedia-l] Re: Luis Bitencourt-Emilio Joins Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees

[GorillaWarfare]

Thank you for the further details, Dariusz. What is his experience with
free software or open knowledge communities such as ours?

I would also love to hear from him directly to know more about whether he
feels cryptocurrencies, NFTs, and such technologies have a place in the
Wikimedia mission. Do you know if he plans to join the conversation?

Sincerely,
Molly White (User:GorillaWarfare)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/User:GorillaWarfare
she/her


On Thu, Jan 13, 2022, 8:41 AM Dariusz Jemielniak 
wrote:

> Dear Dan,
>
> Thank you for the feedback!
>
> The search for a trustee with an expertise in product and technology began
> a few months ago. One of the problems we identified was that the Wikimedia
> Foundation CTOs (Chief Technology Officer) are usually not staying for a
> long period of time, and then there was also a CPO (Chief Product Officer)
> transition. It was also important that the new CEO (Chief Executive
> Officer) would like to have a trustee with relevant experience and
> leadership in the tech world (as would the Board itself), but also with the
> understanding and experience of how technology and communities can work
> together, so, as you said, Reddit experience is very relevant.
>
> The other critical factor was diversity – the search was prioritizing
> candidates with experience outside of Silicon Valley, in non-English
> speaking countries, preferably from the Global South.
>
> And, of course, we also needed a commitment to spend enough time on the
> Board work – to be engaged and present. For example, Luis met online and
> offline with Wikimedia volunteers from Spanish and Portuguese-speaking
> communities, he is eager to help us with his knowledge and experience.
> Cryptocurrency and blockchains were not a factor here – the Governance
> Committee, and then the Board, were considering other things Luis brings to
> the table, the needed expertise, diversity and commitment.
>
> I personally am not particularly fond of cryptocurrencies, even though I
> appreciate blockchain as a technology, and support e.g. decentralized
> science (https://decentralized.science/). We as a movement have not had a
> uniform stand on this, and I’m not sure if we should, though.
>
> Best regards,
> Dariusz (chair of the BGC)
>
> On Thu, Jan 13, 2022 at 1:40 PM Dan Garry (Deskana) 
> wrote:
>
>> Thanks for the update, Nataliia. Knowledge and expertise in product and
>> technology is a skill set that has been lacking on the Board, and it's
>> great to see the Board addressing this by co-opting product and technology
>> leaders. Luis's experience, such as his time at reddit, will likely be very
>> applicable to our movement.
>>
>> However, I'm surprised that the Board chose to co-opt someone who seems
>> to have such a public focus on technology like blockchains and
>> cryptocurrency, and that this focus of his was omitted from this
>> announcement.
>>
>> It would be helpful if we could hear from Luis how he intends to use his
>> knowledge and expertise to contribute to the movement as a Board member,
>> and to what extent he considers blockchain and cryptocurrency to factor
>> into that.
>>
>> Thanks,
>> Dan
>>
>> On Wed, 12 Jan 2022 at 17:20, Nataliia Tymkiv 
>> wrote:
>>
>>> Dear All,
>>>
>>> Please join me in welcoming Luis Bitencourt-Emilio to the Wikimedia
>>> Foundation Board of Trustees. Luis was unanimously appointed to a 3-year
>>> term and replaces a board-selected Trustee, Lisa Lewin, whose term ended in
>>> November 2021 [1].
>>>
>>> Currently based in São Paulo, Luis is the Chief Technology Officer at
>>> Loft, a technology startup in the real-estate industry. He brings product
>>> and technology experience from a globally diverse career that has spanned
>>> large technology companies including Microsoft, online networking sites
>>> like Reddit, and a series of entrepreneurial technology ventures focused in
>>> the USA and Latin America. Luis has led product and technology teams across
>>> Latin America, the United States, Europe and Asia. He is passionately
>>> involved in building and promoting the entrepreneurial ecosystem for Latin
>>> American-based startups.
>>>
>>> Luis has more than two decades of experience across product development,
>>> software engineering, and data science. At Microsoft, he led engineering
>>> teams shipping multiple Microsoft Office products. At Reddit, he led the
>>> Knowledge Group, an engineering team that owned critical functions such as
>>> data, machine learning, abuse detection and search. He was deeply involved
>>> in Reddit’s growth stage and worked closely with Reddit’s communities in
>>> that evolution. Luis also co-founded a fintech startup to help millennials
>>> manage and automate their finances.
>>>
>>> His career has also been shaped by a visible commitment to recruiting
>>> diverse leaders. At Reddit, Luis was a key member of the recruitment
>>> efforts that achieved equal representation of women engineering directors.
>>> Luis says his proudest 

[Wikimedia-l] Re: Luis Bitencourt-Emilio Joins Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees

[Dariusz Jemielniak]

Dear Dan,

Thank you for the feedback!

The search for a trustee with an expertise in product and technology began
a few months ago. One of the problems we identified was that the Wikimedia
Foundation CTOs (Chief Technology Officer) are usually not staying for a
long period of time, and then there was also a CPO (Chief Product Officer)
transition. It was also important that the new CEO (Chief Executive
Officer) would like to have a trustee with relevant experience and
leadership in the tech world (as would the Board itself), but also with the
understanding and experience of how technology and communities can work
together, so, as you said, Reddit experience is very relevant.

The other critical factor was diversity – the search was prioritizing
candidates with experience outside of Silicon Valley, in non-English
speaking countries, preferably from the Global South.

And, of course, we also needed a commitment to spend enough time on the
Board work – to be engaged and present. For example, Luis met online and
offline with Wikimedia volunteers from Spanish and Portuguese-speaking
communities, he is eager to help us with his knowledge and experience.
Cryptocurrency and blockchains were not a factor here – the Governance
Committee, and then the Board, were considering other things Luis brings to
the table, the needed expertise, diversity and commitment.

I personally am not particularly fond of cryptocurrencies, even though I
appreciate blockchain as a technology, and support e.g. decentralized
science (https://decentralized.science/). We as a movement have not had a
uniform stand on this, and I’m not sure if we should, though.

Best regards,
Dariusz (chair of the BGC)

On Thu, Jan 13, 2022 at 1:40 PM Dan Garry (Deskana) 
wrote:

> Thanks for the update, Nataliia. Knowledge and expertise in product and
> technology is a skill set that has been lacking on the Board, and it's
> great to see the Board addressing this by co-opting product and technology
> leaders. Luis's experience, such as his time at reddit, will likely be very
> applicable to our movement.
>
> However, I'm surprised that the Board chose to co-opt someone who seems to
> have such a public focus on technology like blockchains and cryptocurrency,
> and that this focus of his was omitted from this announcement.
>
> It would be helpful if we could hear from Luis how he intends to use his
> knowledge and expertise to contribute to the movement as a Board member,
> and to what extent he considers blockchain and cryptocurrency to factor
> into that.
>
> Thanks,
> Dan
>
> On Wed, 12 Jan 2022 at 17:20, Nataliia Tymkiv 
> wrote:
>
>> Dear All,
>>
>> Please join me in welcoming Luis Bitencourt-Emilio to the Wikimedia
>> Foundation Board of Trustees. Luis was unanimously appointed to a 3-year
>> term and replaces a board-selected Trustee, Lisa Lewin, whose term ended in
>> November 2021 [1].
>>
>> Currently based in São Paulo, Luis is the Chief Technology Officer at
>> Loft, a technology startup in the real-estate industry. He brings product
>> and technology experience from a globally diverse career that has spanned
>> large technology companies including Microsoft, online networking sites
>> like Reddit, and a series of entrepreneurial technology ventures focused in
>> the USA and Latin America. Luis has led product and technology teams across
>> Latin America, the United States, Europe and Asia. He is passionately
>> involved in building and promoting the entrepreneurial ecosystem for Latin
>> American-based startups.
>>
>> Luis has more than two decades of experience across product development,
>> software engineering, and data science. At Microsoft, he led engineering
>> teams shipping multiple Microsoft Office products. At Reddit, he led the
>> Knowledge Group, an engineering team that owned critical functions such as
>> data, machine learning, abuse detection and search. He was deeply involved
>> in Reddit’s growth stage and worked closely with Reddit’s communities in
>> that evolution. Luis also co-founded a fintech startup to help millennials
>> manage and automate their finances.
>>
>> His career has also been shaped by a visible commitment to recruiting
>> diverse leaders. At Reddit, Luis was a key member of the recruitment
>> efforts that achieved equal representation of women engineering directors.
>> Luis says his proudest achievement at Microsoft was building their
>> Brazilian talent pipeline by working closely with local universities to
>> place thousands of engineering candidates at Microsoft, as well as his
>> involvement in expanding global recruitment to markets including Ukraine,
>> Poland, Great Britain, the EU and Mexico.
>>
>> Luis was educated in Brazil and the United States, receiving a Bachelor
>> of Science in Computer Engineering with Honors from the University of
>> Maryland. He is fluent in Portuguese, Spanish and English. He is also a
>> proud father and dog lover.
>>
>> I would like to thank the Governance Committee, 

[Wikimedia-l] Re: Luis Bitencourt-Emilio Joins Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees

[Dan Garry (Deskana)]

Thanks for the update, Nataliia. Knowledge and expertise in product and
technology is a skill set that has been lacking on the Board, and it's
great to see the Board addressing this by co-opting product and technology
leaders. Luis's experience, such as his time at reddit, will likely be very
applicable to our movement.

However, I'm surprised that the Board chose to co-opt someone who seems to
have such a public focus on technology like blockchains and cryptocurrency,
and that this focus of his was omitted from this announcement.

It would be helpful if we could hear from Luis how he intends to use his
knowledge and expertise to contribute to the movement as a Board member,
and to what extent he considers blockchain and cryptocurrency to factor
into that.

Thanks,
Dan

On Wed, 12 Jan 2022 at 17:20, Nataliia Tymkiv  wrote:

> Dear All,
>
> Please join me in welcoming Luis Bitencourt-Emilio to the Wikimedia
> Foundation Board of Trustees. Luis was unanimously appointed to a 3-year
> term and replaces a board-selected Trustee, Lisa Lewin, whose term ended in
> November 2021 [1].
>
> Currently based in São Paulo, Luis is the Chief Technology Officer at
> Loft, a technology startup in the real-estate industry. He brings product
> and technology experience from a globally diverse career that has spanned
> large technology companies including Microsoft, online networking sites
> like Reddit, and a series of entrepreneurial technology ventures focused in
> the USA and Latin America. Luis has led product and technology teams across
> Latin America, the United States, Europe and Asia. He is passionately
> involved in building and promoting the entrepreneurial ecosystem for Latin
> American-based startups.
>
> Luis has more than two decades of experience across product development,
> software engineering, and data science. At Microsoft, he led engineering
> teams shipping multiple Microsoft Office products. At Reddit, he led the
> Knowledge Group, an engineering team that owned critical functions such as
> data, machine learning, abuse detection and search. He was deeply involved
> in Reddit’s growth stage and worked closely with Reddit’s communities in
> that evolution. Luis also co-founded a fintech startup to help millennials
> manage and automate their finances.
>
> His career has also been shaped by a visible commitment to recruiting
> diverse leaders. At Reddit, Luis was a key member of the recruitment
> efforts that achieved equal representation of women engineering directors.
> Luis says his proudest achievement at Microsoft was building their
> Brazilian talent pipeline by working closely with local universities to
> place thousands of engineering candidates at Microsoft, as well as his
> involvement in expanding global recruitment to markets including Ukraine,
> Poland, Great Britain, the EU and Mexico.
>
> Luis was educated in Brazil and the United States, receiving a Bachelor of
> Science in Computer Engineering with Honors from the University of
> Maryland. He is fluent in Portuguese, Spanish and English. He is also a
> proud father and dog lover.
>
> I would like to thank the Governance Committee, chaired by Dariusz
> Jemielniak, for this nomination process as well as volunteers in our
> Spanish and Portuguese speaking communities who also met with Luis or
> shared their experiences.
>
> You can find an official announcement here [2].
>
> PS. You can help translate or find translations of this message on
> Meta-Wiki:
> https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia_Foundation_Board_noticeboard/January_2022_-_Luis_Bitencourt-Emilio_Joins_Wikimedia_Foundation_Board_of_Trustees
>
>
> [1] Lisa Lewin served from January 2019 till November 2021:
> https://foundation.wikimedia.org/wiki/Resolution:Renewing_Lisa_Lewin%E2%80%99s_Appointment_to_the_Board_of_Trustees,_2021
>
> [2]
> https://diff.wikimedia.org/2022/01/12/luis-bitencourt-emilio-joins-wikimedia-foundation-board-of-trustees/
>
> Best regards,
> antanana / Nataliia Tymkiv
> Chair, Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees
>
> *NOTICE: You may have received this message outside of your normal working
> hours/days, as I usually can work more as a volunteer during weekend. You
> should not feel obligated to answer it during your days off. Thank you in
> advance!*
>
> ___
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> at: https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Mailing_lists/Guidelines and
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[Wikimedia-l] Re: Luis Bitencourt-Emilio Joins Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees

[Vi to]

OMG.
I've just committed a rightclickcide.

Vito

Il giorno gio 13 gen 2022 alle ore 06:07 Brion Vibber 
ha scritto:

> To make sure, is this the same guy?
>
> https://twitter.com/luisatlive
>
> -- brion
>
> On Wed, Jan 12, 2022, 9:20 AM Nataliia Tymkiv 
> wrote:
>
>> Dear All,
>>
>> Please join me in welcoming Luis Bitencourt-Emilio to the Wikimedia
>> Foundation Board of Trustees. Luis was unanimously appointed to a 3-year
>> term and replaces a board-selected Trustee, Lisa Lewin, whose term ended in
>> November 2021 [1].
>>
>> Currently based in São Paulo, Luis is the Chief Technology Officer at
>> Loft, a technology startup in the real-estate industry. He brings product
>> and technology experience from a globally diverse career that has spanned
>> large technology companies including Microsoft, online networking sites
>> like Reddit, and a series of entrepreneurial technology ventures focused in
>> the USA and Latin America. Luis has led product and technology teams across
>> Latin America, the United States, Europe and Asia. He is passionately
>> involved in building and promoting the entrepreneurial ecosystem for Latin
>> American-based startups.
>>
>> Luis has more than two decades of experience across product development,
>> software engineering, and data science. At Microsoft, he led engineering
>> teams shipping multiple Microsoft Office products. At Reddit, he led the
>> Knowledge Group, an engineering team that owned critical functions such as
>> data, machine learning, abuse detection and search. He was deeply involved
>> in Reddit’s growth stage and worked closely with Reddit’s communities in
>> that evolution. Luis also co-founded a fintech startup to help millennials
>> manage and automate their finances.
>>
>> His career has also been shaped by a visible commitment to recruiting
>> diverse leaders. At Reddit, Luis was a key member of the recruitment
>> efforts that achieved equal representation of women engineering directors.
>> Luis says his proudest achievement at Microsoft was building their
>> Brazilian talent pipeline by working closely with local universities to
>> place thousands of engineering candidates at Microsoft, as well as his
>> involvement in expanding global recruitment to markets including Ukraine,
>> Poland, Great Britain, the EU and Mexico.
>>
>> Luis was educated in Brazil and the United States, receiving a Bachelor
>> of Science in Computer Engineering with Honors from the University of
>> Maryland. He is fluent in Portuguese, Spanish and English. He is also a
>> proud father and dog lover.
>>
>> I would like to thank the Governance Committee, chaired by Dariusz
>> Jemielniak, for this nomination process as well as volunteers in our
>> Spanish and Portuguese speaking communities who also met with Luis or
>> shared their experiences.
>>
>> You can find an official announcement here [2].
>>
>> PS. You can help translate or find translations of this message on
>> Meta-Wiki:
>> https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia_Foundation_Board_noticeboard/January_2022_-_Luis_Bitencourt-Emilio_Joins_Wikimedia_Foundation_Board_of_Trustees
>>
>>
>> [1] Lisa Lewin served from January 2019 till November 2021:
>> https://foundation.wikimedia.org/wiki/Resolution:Renewing_Lisa_Lewin%E2%80%99s_Appointment_to_the_Board_of_Trustees,_2021
>>
>> [2]
>> https://diff.wikimedia.org/2022/01/12/luis-bitencourt-emilio-joins-wikimedia-foundation-board-of-trustees/
>>
>> Best regards,
>> antanana / Nataliia Tymkiv
>> Chair, Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees
>>
>> *NOTICE: You may have received this message outside of your normal
>> working hours/days, as I usually can work more as a volunteer during
>> weekend. You should not feel obligated to answer it during your days off.
>> Thank you in advance!*
>>
>> ___
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>
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[Wikimedia-l] Re: Luis Bitencourt-Emilio Joins Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees

[Brion Vibber]

To make sure, is this the same guy?

https://twitter.com/luisatlive

-- brion

On Wed, Jan 12, 2022, 9:20 AM Nataliia Tymkiv  wrote:

> Dear All,
>
> Please join me in welcoming Luis Bitencourt-Emilio to the Wikimedia
> Foundation Board of Trustees. Luis was unanimously appointed to a 3-year
> term and replaces a board-selected Trustee, Lisa Lewin, whose term ended in
> November 2021 [1].
>
> Currently based in São Paulo, Luis is the Chief Technology Officer at
> Loft, a technology startup in the real-estate industry. He brings product
> and technology experience from a globally diverse career that has spanned
> large technology companies including Microsoft, online networking sites
> like Reddit, and a series of entrepreneurial technology ventures focused in
> the USA and Latin America. Luis has led product and technology teams across
> Latin America, the United States, Europe and Asia. He is passionately
> involved in building and promoting the entrepreneurial ecosystem for Latin
> American-based startups.
>
> Luis has more than two decades of experience across product development,
> software engineering, and data science. At Microsoft, he led engineering
> teams shipping multiple Microsoft Office products. At Reddit, he led the
> Knowledge Group, an engineering team that owned critical functions such as
> data, machine learning, abuse detection and search. He was deeply involved
> in Reddit’s growth stage and worked closely with Reddit’s communities in
> that evolution. Luis also co-founded a fintech startup to help millennials
> manage and automate their finances.
>
> His career has also been shaped by a visible commitment to recruiting
> diverse leaders. At Reddit, Luis was a key member of the recruitment
> efforts that achieved equal representation of women engineering directors.
> Luis says his proudest achievement at Microsoft was building their
> Brazilian talent pipeline by working closely with local universities to
> place thousands of engineering candidates at Microsoft, as well as his
> involvement in expanding global recruitment to markets including Ukraine,
> Poland, Great Britain, the EU and Mexico.
>
> Luis was educated in Brazil and the United States, receiving a Bachelor of
> Science in Computer Engineering with Honors from the University of
> Maryland. He is fluent in Portuguese, Spanish and English. He is also a
> proud father and dog lover.
>
> I would like to thank the Governance Committee, chaired by Dariusz
> Jemielniak, for this nomination process as well as volunteers in our
> Spanish and Portuguese speaking communities who also met with Luis or
> shared their experiences.
>
> You can find an official announcement here [2].
>
> PS. You can help translate or find translations of this message on
> Meta-Wiki:
> https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia_Foundation_Board_noticeboard/January_2022_-_Luis_Bitencourt-Emilio_Joins_Wikimedia_Foundation_Board_of_Trustees
>
>
> [1] Lisa Lewin served from January 2019 till November 2021:
> https://foundation.wikimedia.org/wiki/Resolution:Renewing_Lisa_Lewin%E2%80%99s_Appointment_to_the_Board_of_Trustees,_2021
>
> [2]
> https://diff.wikimedia.org/2022/01/12/luis-bitencourt-emilio-joins-wikimedia-foundation-board-of-trustees/
>
> Best regards,
> antanana / Nataliia Tymkiv
> Chair, Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees
>
> *NOTICE: You may have received this message outside of your normal working
> hours/days, as I usually can work more as a volunteer during weekend. You
> should not feel obligated to answer it during your days off. Thank you in
> advance!*
>
> ___
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> at: https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Mailing_lists/Guidelines and
> https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia-l
> Public archives at
> https://lists.wikimedia.org/hyperkitty/list/wikimedia-l@lists.wikimedia.org/message/2GJOGXKJITWZDZU3NQZQXX2ENN2EEK25/
> To unsubscribe send an email to wikimedia-l-le...@lists.wikimedia.org
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