Speaker Biographies

Expertise: IXP, Internet Governance, Industry Development Organisations, Public Policy

Vahan Hovsepyan is a Senior Community and Public Policy Advisor at the RIPE NCC. Vahan is in charge of developing cooperation and engaging stakeholders, including RIPE NCC members, governmental agencies, academic institutions and industry development organisations. Vahan graduated from the Armenian-Russian (Slavic) State University, obtained EMBA from Quantic School of Business and Technology, completed courses at the Maastricht School of Management and the John F. Kennedy School of Government. Vahan has extensive experience working in and with industry development organisations, IXPs and international organisations. He is also leading the Central Asia Peering and Interconnection Forum (CAPIF) and Internet Measurement Day (IMD) at RIPE NCC.

Expertise: Community development, Data storytelling, Internet Peering and Interconnection, IPv6, Capacity building, Public Policy and Internet Governance.

Hisham Ibrahim is the Chief Community Officer at the RIPE NCC.

He leads the RIPE NCC's engagement efforts to foster a dynamic, inclusive RIPE community. He is responsible for the engagement with the RIPE NCC members, the RIPE community, Internet governance and training services.

Both from a technical and policy background, Hisham has 20 years of experience in the field of Internet technology and its governance.

He has a strong vision of the market, a broad understanding of technologies used on the Internet and a deep knowledge of the European, African and Middle Eastern markets.

Hisham is active on several committees in various Network Operator Groups (NOGs), peering forums, IPv6 task forces and forums across three continents.

Email: Hisham Ibrahim

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Alex ("Oleksiy") is an External Relations Officer for the RIPE NCC (Eastern Europe and Central Asia).

As part of the External Relations team, he helps lead the RIPE NCC's engagement with membership, the RIPE community, technical bodies, academia, law enforcement and other Internet stakeholders. As Technical Advisor, Alex also follows Internet industry and government developments related to ICT, particularly in the former Soviet countries, monitors and attends industry conferences and meetings, representing the RIPE NCC, and works with internal stakeholders to enhance the RIPE NCC's training activities.

Expertise: Internet measurements, IPv6, RIPE Labs, RPKI , data science, statistics, data storytelling, data visualisations

Emile Aben is a Senior Research Engineer for the Research and Development department. Prior to that role, he worked in the RIPE NCC Science Group as a research engineer since 2009. In the 10 years before that he worked as a web developer, sysadmin, security consultant and researcher. He is interested in Internet measurement and technology changes like the transition to IPv6. He frequently posts on RIPE Labs.

Emile has a MSc. degree in Chemistry from the University of Nijmegen, NL.

Expertise: the RIPE NCC, the RIR system and Internet governance

The Community Development team is responsible for outreach and support to technical and non-technical communities such as NOGs, national IGFs, IXPs, industry associations, research and academia and civil society across the RIPE NCC service region. We also support the development of the Internet measurement ecosystem globally in partnership with other RIRs. I took over as the Manager of the Community Development team in 2026.

I started working at the RIPE NCC in 2018 as part of the Communications and Marketing team. Over the past years, I have been involved in the development of RIPE NCC Certified Professionals, the redesign of RIPE Labs and ripe.net and in supporting the RIPE Chair team and RIPE NCC-organised events, particularly RIPE Meetings. I also work closely with the NRO NC and the currently ongoing global process to review the governance of the RIR system, being held in conjunction with ICANN. I hold a Research Master in Literary Studies from the University of Amsterdam and an Executive MBA from the Rotterdam School of Management, Erasmus University.

Ties is a software engineer with a master's degree in computer science focusing on the development of RIPE NCC measurement services (RIS and RIPEstat). Before this, Ties worked on RPKI. Working at a regional internet registry, he was involved in the operational aspect of running the RPKI certificate authority and the standardisation of RPKI.

Expertise: community engagement, measurements and tools, Internet governance, RIPE and the RIPE NCC

Anastasiya Pak is a Senior Marketing and Communications Officer at the RIPE NCC. Her work focuses on external communications, including media relations, content development, and stakeholder engagement. She also collaborates with the research team on data pipeline and data storytelling projects.

Before joining the RIPE NCC, Anastasiya led the Communications Department at an international education NGO. She began her career as a TV journalist in Uzbekistan, covering international politics and diplomacy, UN discussions, and other topics related to international political and economic affairs. Anastasiya holds a Bachelor's Degree in International Relations from the University of World Economy and Diplomacy and a Joint Master's in Journalism, Media, and Globalisation from the University of Amsterdam and Aarhus University.

Expertise: Internet Governance, Cyber Diplomacy, European Union, Digital Policy

Romain Bosc is a Senior Public Policy and Governance Advisor at the RIPE NCC.

Based in Brussels, Romain engages with a wide range of partners and stakeholders including the European Union institutions, national authorities, civil society organisations, and academia. Romain's expertise and interests span global Internet governance, digital policy development, and cyber diplomacy.

Before joining the RIPE NCC in 2023, he held various positions in EU public affairs and policy research, notably at the German Marshall Fund of the United States (GMFUS) and the Centre for European Policy Studies (CEPS). He graduated with a degree in Political Science and International Relations and speaks French, Spanish and English.

Dmitrijs Nikitins is a Member of the Management Board and Chief Technology Officer at Tet, with more than 15 years of experience in IT, telecommunications, and technology leadership. In his role, he oversees technology strategy, infrastructure development, cybersecurity, and the modernization of critical digital platforms.

His leadership combines deep technical understanding with a business-focused approach, helping organizations strengthen resilience, improve operational performance, and turn technology into a source of long-term competitive advantage.