The Advisory Board of the Connected Politics Lab at University College Dublin provides strategic guidance and insight to advance our mission of exploring the intersection of technology, politics, and society. Comprising four distinguished members with diverse expertise in political science, computational social science, data ethics, and public policy, the board fosters interdisciplinary collaboration and innovation.
Ciarán Conlon is currently the Government Affairs Director for Microsoft Ireland and is also the Director of Microsoft's EMEA Data Centre Government Affairs team. Before joining Microsoft he spent 8 years as Communications Director and Director of Election Planning for former Irish Taoiseach (Prime Minister), Enda Kenny and 5 years as Special Policy Adviser to the Irish Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment, Richard Bruton TD (2011 - 2016). Since joining Microsoft he has supported the Irish and EMEA HQ campus in Dublin and was part of the Microsoft Twin Transition team in Brussels before joining the WE Leadership Team last year. He was the project lead for the development of a new Digital Policy Masters Programme at University College Dublin (www.digitalpolicy.ie, launched in 2020).
Ciarán has a Master’s degree in Economics from UCD, a Bachelor’s degree in Economics from the National University of Ireland, Maynooth a postgraduate Diploma in Strategy, Innovation and Change from the Smurfit Graduate School of Business and a Prof. Certificate in Digital Policy Studies from UCD. He is a member of the Irish Government’s National Competitiveness and Policy Council, and the Grant Approval Committee of Science Foundation Ireland until its recent merger into Research Ireland and is a member of the Advisory Board of the Centre for Digital Policy Studies in UCD. In June 2024 he was appointed by UCD as Adjunct Associate Professor in SPIRE.
Lucia Niño Kehoe, Senior Staff UX Researcher at Google, conducts research at the intersection of human-computer interaction and artificial intelligence. Her work employs supervised machine learning models to identify patterns of creative effectiveness in YouTube Ads, contributing to a deeper understanding of digital advertising efficacy. Currently, her research explores the application of AI agents for user interfaces, with a particular focus on the crucial aspects of explainability and interpretability for end users. Since joining Google in 2008, Lucia has demonstrated leadership in navigating the complexities of user experience research within a rapidly evolving technological landscape. Her roles in Buenos Aires, Miami, New York, and Dublin have involved leading interdisciplinary teams, bridging the gap between data science and qualitative research methodologies.
Lucia Nino Kehoe's academic background reflects her interdisciplinary approach to research. She holds a BA in Political Science from the Universidad de San Andrés, a Diploma in Data Science from the London School of Economics, and is currently completing an MSc in Sustainable Development from the University of Sussex. This diverse foundation informs her work at the intersection of human-computer interaction and artificial intelligence.
Natalia Umansky is a digital governance expert who leads the research and policy work on cybercrime at the World Economic Forum. Before joining the Cybercrime Atlas initiative, she held a Postdoctoral Research Fellow in Political Science at the University of Zurich and the Digital Democracy Lab. Natalia was also an Iseult Honohan Scholar at University College Dublin and the Connected_Politics Lab, where she obtained her PhD in Politics and International Relations. Natalia specializes in using data-driven research to shape digital policy and has extensive expertise in Computational Science including NLP, machine learning, computer vision, network analysis, and causal inference.
Raphaël Kergueno, Senior Policy Officer, is part of the EU integrity team, working on projects related to lobbying, conflict of interests and legislative transparency. He is also tasked with managing EU Integrity Watch and developing national versions of the online platform in partnership with our national chapters. Prior to joining Transparency International EU, Raphaël worked at the Europe Direct Contact Centre of the European Commission and as a partnership manager at Groupon. Raphaël holds a BA in politics and international relations from the University of Kent and an MA in European Studies from Maastricht University.