Rights Action Lab combines secure digital communication tools with creative nonviolent activism to advance human rights for people living under heavy repression. Using our experience as innovators, researchers, campaigners, and facilitators, we support those in need – especially Tibetans and other communities in Asia facing severe human rights violations – through education programs, training and technology development.
Our work includes:
– Educational programs on Internet freedom, digital security and strategies of nonviolent action
– Providing in-depth trainings on digital security, strategic organizing and advocacy, and application of nonviolent strategies
– Evidence-based research to advance campaigns and support the development of freedom-enhancing technologies
– Developing and testing new software that enables secure, private communications for activists, journalists, and others seeking freedom of expression
– Building networks between and capacity of communities facing extreme human rights violations
Rights Action Lab is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) charitable organization with tax ID 46-4078393
EXECUTIVE TEAM
Kate Woznow
Executive Director
With two decades of nonprofit management and leadership experience, Kate oversees Rights Action Lab’s growth and development to achieve high-impact results. She manages collaborations between developers, researchers, rights advocates and strategists to design and carry out innovative projects combining technology development and strategic nonviolence to advance human rights. Kate is passionate about sharing her knowledge with the next generation of human rights leaders.
Lhadon Tethong
Founder & Director
Lhadon is an award-winning Tibetan activist and leader with more than two decades of nonprofit leadership and governance experience, including strategic development, program design and implementation, and mentorship. Lhadon’s vision led to the founding of Rights Action Lab in 2014 as a platform for combining innovative technology and nonviolent strategies to address rights abuses in her homeland of Tibet and around the globe. As a leading spokesperson for Tibet, Lhadon regularly addresses policy makers, journalists, UN bodies, academics, and youth on how to achieve positive change even in the most repressive conditions.
Nathan Freitas
Founder and Director of Guardian Project
Nathan is a co-founder of Rights Action Lab and the founder and director of Guardian Project, an award-winning, open-source, mobile security collaborative with millions of users and beneficiaries worldwide. The Guardian Project’s most well known app is Orbot, which brings the Tor anonymity and circumvention network to Android devices, and has been installed more than 20 million times. Current projects with Rights Action Lab include LetsConvene, an easy-to-use, ephemeral, and privacy-preserving communications and information sharing tool, in addition to the Butter Box offline app store, the Keanu engine and Círculo app, and work on ProofMode.org applications and services.
Freya Putt
Director of Strategy
Freya guides Rights Action Lab’s strategic direction at all levels, enabling the organization to achieve high-impact results in some of the most repressive places in the world. Prior to co-founding Rights Action Lab in 2014, she developed her skills and leadership through campaign roles at several other human rights and environmental organizations. Freya holds a Master of International Affairs with a concentration in human rights from Columbia University.
Tenzin Lobsang
Chief Financial Officer
Tenzin is a seasoned leader in nonprofit finance and operations. Holding a CPA designation, she applies her expertise to oversee Rights Action Lab’s financial and operational affairs. Her responsibilities span from budgeting, accounting, and grant management to service contracts, compliance, risk management, and operational systems across diverse international settings.
Lobsang Gyatso Sither
Director of Technology/TibCERT
Trained as a computer scientist, Lobsang Gyatso Sither is at the forefront of community-embedded technology development, digital security training, and innovative program design at Rights Action Lab. Programs he leads – including the Tibetan Computer Emergency Response Team (TibCERT) – effectively counter cyber attacks from some of the most powerful threat actors in the world, serving as ground-breaking models for impacted communities around the globe. Lobsang was included in Wired UK’s 2021 list of 32 innovators who are building a better future.
BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Tenzin Nyesang Fessler
Board Chair
Tenzin Nyesang Fessler has more than two decades of experience serving on nonprofit and community boards and fundraising to support them. In her day job, she is a Pharmacy Manager and holds a Masters in Public Health (MPH) from Tufts University School of Medicine and a Doctor of Pharmacy degree from Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences – Worcester.
Stacey Simon
Treasurer
Stacey has been an accountant for over 20 years with a focus on nonprofits and small businesses. Before running her own accounting firm for 8 years, she had over a decade of experience in corporate accounting. She has an MBA from Salem State with a concentration in financial planning, and sits on the boards of other not-for-profit organizations based in the Massachusetts area.
Dr. Sophia Conroy
Secretary
Dr. Sophia Conroy entered medical school after 13 years of experience working for and serving on the boards of human rights and social justice organizations. She earned a medical degree with a distinction in bioethics from Albany Medical College and completed her residency in family medicine at Albany Medical Center. Board certified in family medicine, Dr. Conroy serves as core faculty for the Saratoga Hospital Family Medicine Residency Program and practices primary care at the Saratoga Community Health Center.