[DATAGOV Core] DATAGOV Kickoff Volunteer Application

[Meg Kitamura]

Dear Stefania and team,

We received two applications for the volunteer position (I know both of them from Terminally Online).
They both sent us their CVs as well, please see attached.

Application #1
My name is Yelyzaveta Terentieva, and I am a Research Master’s student at the UvA, with a specialisation in Cultural Data and AI. Alongside my studies, I work as a Teaching Assistant for Bachelor's programmes in the Media Studies Department, supporting lectures for over 300 students, assisting with grading, and guiding students through coursework.
My main research interest is the governance of AI and governance through AI, with a focus on agency and the infrastructural dependencies that shape these systems. This interest grew from seeing how data systems affect real lives. While there is a strong push from big tech companies and governments to present algorithmic decision-making as neutral and fair, we see the opposite in practice. For example, in the Dutch childcare benefits scandal, automated risk systems wrongly flagged many families for fraud, resulting in serious financial and personal consequences. In today’s unstable geopolitical situation, this feels even more urgent. In countries such as Ukraine, where I am from, people’s lives are also shaped by data and state systems, sometimes in extremely high-stakes ways, for example, when the government decides which citizens are considered more “contributing” to society and therefore should not go to the frontline. This makes questions of data governance deeply personal and important to me. The DATAGOV Lab’s research on the governance of data infrastructures closely aligns with my academic interests.
I also have hands-on experience supporting academic events. I assisted at the GenAI and Creative Practices conference, where I supported parallel sessions that ran both in person and online. When I realised a room had no webcam for remote speakers, I quickly rented equipment, set it up, troubleshooted a software issue, and ensured the session ran smoothly on Zoom. I am comfortable handling both technical and practical tasks without supervision to keep things moving during live events. I would be very excited to volunteer for this event.

Best,
Yelyzaveta Terentieva

Application #2
I’m e-mailing you to apply for the position of Student Volunteer at the DATAGOV Kick-off event. I heard about the call for volunteers through the student organization Terminally Online, which I joined in September of last year. The event appeals to me because I have a keen interest in data infrastructures, governance and digital civil rights. In my bachelor's, I majored in Media Data and Society, where I learned to critically analyze the implications of datafication and platformization for our democratic values. I’ve further explored this topic during my first year of the Research Master Media Studies, by writing about the technical infrastructure supporting the 2025 Trump administration’s ICE raids.

Outside my academic background, I also have some prior experience in event management. For example, I contributed to the Peripherals Launch Event<https://terminallyonline.nl/nov4_2025_event_details> organized by Terminally Online by thinking about a suitable structure for the event, introducing speakers and moderating Q&A’s with the audience. Moreover, through my internship at Netwerk Mediawijsheid I gained professional experience in promoting, documenting and writing short blog posts<https://netwerkmediawijsheid.nl/?s=joelle%20grotendorst&post_type[]=all&post_type[]=tools&post_type[]=onderzoek&post_type[]=agenda&post_type[]=post&post_type[]=x-partner&orderby=relevance&order=DESC> about events surrounding media literacy. I’d be excited to contribute to the DATAGOV Kick-off event by combining my academic knowledge with my practical expertise.

Thank you in advance for your consideration and kind regards,
Joëlle Grotendorst



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