MEDEA is pleased to share that Joan Barata has joined the academic constituency of the Global Network Initiative (GNI), an organisation dedicated to advancing human rights standards in the field of technology governance.
Joan Barata currently serves as a Visiting Professor at the Faculdade de Direito – Católica no Porto and is a member of the Centre for Law, Democracy, and Society at Queen Mary University of London. His previous academic and policy roles include work with Vanderbilt University’s Future Free Speech project and Stanford University’s Program on Platform Regulation. His publications and policy analyses have contributed to shaping global debates on digital regulation and platform accountability.
His professional experience includes long‑standing collaboration with international organisations such as UNESCO, the Council of Europe, the Organization of American States, and the OSCE, where he served as Principal Advisor to the Representative on Freedom of the Media. Barata has also held regulatory positions, including Secretary General of the Audiovisual Council of Catalonia and membership in the Permanent Secretariat of the Mediterranean Network of Regulatory Authorities.
In joining GNI, Barata will contribute his expertise to ongoing work at the intersection of freedom of expression, privacy, and corporate responsibility, with a focus on emerging regulatory challenges in a rapidly evolving digital environment.
MEDEA congratulates him on this appointment and looks forward to continued collaboration within our shared commitment to advancing evidence‑based, rights‑respecting media and platform governance.