Ambassadors

Engage
new voices

Santosh Viswanatham, Open Web Technology Ambassador

Our Ambassador program is for individuals passionate about activating communities who have been – and continue to be – systematically excluded from financial access and empowerment opportunities.


Ambassadors are cross-disciplinary thought leaders who research, build, organize, advocate, and imagine new paths to digital financial inclusion with Open Payments technology.


“We want to include different voices, especially the voices that were not heard before.”

–Santosh Viswanatham, Open Source Technology Ambassador

Open Opportunities

The 2024 Interledger Ambassador Program

Applications will be accepted via Submittable from June 4th, 2024, 12 am EDT until August 31st, 2024

We invite applicants to submit a proposal for a 6-month project that advances the digital financial inclusion agenda specific to their expertise and networks. This program is ideal for researchers, developers, open-source contributors, entrepreneurs, educators, policy regulators, open standards enthusiasts, digital and financial rights advocates, creators, and artists operating at the intersection of technology and community. All ambassadors will receive a $30,000 grant for research, building, organizing, and advocacy.

View the Ambassadors grant program guide for more information.

 

You can email our program team with any questions, to get all grant opportunities into your inbox and join our community space to interact with previously funded projects and our growing community.

We ensure that all applications are assessed through a fair and thoughtful process and that every applicant receives detailed feedback on their application.

View our participation guidelines


Ambassadors 2024

Victoria Coker is a social-impact entrepreneur, marketer, multidisciplinary artist, certified software engineer and founder of Black Web Fest.

Stephanie Perrin is an award winning privacy and civil liberties expert who has worked on privacy standards, policy, legislation, and technology interpretation for 40 years.

Smriti Parsheera is an author, lawyer, and public policy researcher working on issues at the intersection of technology and society.

Santosh Viswanatham is an Open web advocate and Tech Speaker passionate about how Open Web Technology & protocols serve and solve everyday challenges.

Ayden Ferdeline is a Public interest technologist with a focus on social impact who is building global tech community bonds through evidence-informed policy.


Ambassadors Alumni

Erica Hargreave is an award winning storyteller and educator, who enjoys helping others pursue their passions through digital literacy and sharing pathways to sustainable funding.

Kokayi Issa is a preeminent Improvisational Vocalist, Author, Producer, GRAMMY-nominated musician, and multi-disciplinary fine artist and 2023 Guggenheim Fellow for Music Composition.

Jeremiah Lee is a software engineer who has worked with social network APIs since the original Facebook Platform and advocates for federated social networks.

Hollis Wong-Wear is a Grammy-nominated recording artist, filmmaker and strategist who works at the intersection of creativity, public policy, social impact and community building.