Candidate Biographies

Background

Raymond Jetten was born in the Netherlands but made a permanent move to Finland in December 1988. In the Netherlands, his first computer to computer connections were done in school and at home through a BBS in the beginning of the Eighties. Having started out in the ISP industry more than 25 years ago, working for a small ISP, Raymond has since taken on a variety of roles in the field, playing a key role in several mergers, including EUnet.

At present, Raymond works for a Finnish Telecommunications ICT and online service company, Elisa Oyj, where he is mainly involved in IP number management, international connections, and peering. He has been active in the RIPE community since 2006 and his interests include IPv6 (IPv6 WG Co-Chair), routing and community driven projects. He is also involved in nog.fi events, and as an operator working closely with TREX, a local exchange. He became a RIPE NCC Executive Board member in May 2020 at the start of the Covid pandemic, and has taken the role as treasurer since September 2022, where he has taken the responsibility of the financial wellbeing of the RIPE NCC.

Motivation

In these more difficult times with conflicts, increasing politicisation and regulation it is very important that we do not forget our most important goal: having a reliable, stable and safe Internet for all.

One of the most important commitments for a board member is listening to the members, being approachable to the members, and trying to find solutions that fit most of the members.

I have served as a treasurer. This role has been carried out through challenging times such as Covid and war conflict, very much affecting the global economy. The value of RIPE NCC treasury has remained stable, thanks to a lot of work being done.

We have started to invest a part of our reserves in order to reduce the influence of inflation, and keep your money's value. This, however, with a very conservative risk appetite. Due to changes, we are now moving the investment partner and investment bank. This work is ongoing.

Last, but not least, we are working on the Charging Scheme based on recommendations of the Task Force consisting of a diverse group of members. I want to ensure that our members get the best value for their money, while at the same time ensuring the stability and sustainability of the Organisation which is a crucial must.

My experience from the last two terms is beneficial for the organisation. With your support I would be honoured to continue to serve the community as a RIPE NCC Board Member.

Thank you for your consideration and trust.

Biography

Maria Häll holds a Master of Science in Computer Science and is the managing director of Sunet, the Swedish National Research and Education Network (NREN) and is the head of the department of Sunet and Associated Services at the Swedish Research Council.

Maria previously worked at the Government Offices of Sweden at the Ministry of Enterprise, Energy and Communications as a political advisor and as a deputy director at the division for IT Policy. Maria has extensive experience of working with ICT, broadband and Internet policy issues, both in the private and public sectors, at local, national and international levels. She has been engaged in the RIPE community for many years.

She has a strong interest in the positive development of society and the role of technology as an important tool. She is especially passionate about the development of the Internet as vital and global open infrastructure, and how collaboration between sectors on an equal footing is essential to fulfil this mission. This has been an important theme throughout the varied positions she has held over the years.

Her contributions include:

• Experience of governments and politics in the national and international arena
• Experience of the academic sector
• Bridging the gap between technical society, public sector and policymakers
• Creating productive dialogue and cooperation between different actors
• A large network of people and organisations around the world

Motivation

Maria has been engaged with the RIPE community for many years and puts a very high value on the important activities and role of RIPE NCC, its members and the RIPE community. Especially as the Internet is getting more and more important and engaging more and different sectors and players.

We are in a time with many challenges and in these difficult times Maria is ready to continue to contribute and support the work of the RIPE NCC together with the members and the RIPE Community.

I have spent more than three decades working at the core of the Internet’s infrastructure with a particular focus on DNS, operational resilience, and the coordination of technical and policy developments.

I am a Senior Systems Specialist and co-founder at Netnod, an Internet infrastructure company owned by a Swedish not-for-profit foundation. Since 1994, I have been responsible for the operation of i.root-servers.net, one of the Internet’s 13 root name server systems. My work has centred on building and operating systems that provide critical Internet services, combining hands-on technical expertise with long-term stewardship of essential infrastructure.

Alongside my operational role, I have contributed extensively to the development of Internet standards, governance, and community coordination. I have served as Chair of the DNS Operations Working Group in the IETF and as a member of the IETF DNS Directorate. I am co-author of RFC 7720, which clarifies how the root server system operates.

As a member of the gTLD-MOU Policy Oversight Committee I took part in the efforts to create what eventually became ICANN. I have held multiple ICANN-related roles, including Co-Chair of the Root Server System Advisory Committee (RSSAC), Chair of the Customer Standing Committee (CSC), and member of the Root Server System Governance Working Group (RSS GWG). I was a member of the IANA Stewardship Transition Coordination Group (ICG), and the IANA Functions Review Team (IFRT2). I have also served on the ICANN Nominating Committee.

Beyond global governance, I have contributed to national and regional coordination efforts, including as the founder and current auditor of the Swedish Operators’ Forum (SOF), and as a member of the Swedish National Telecommunications Coordination Group (NTSG). The NTSG brings together operators and authorities to ensure telecom services are maintained and rapidly restored during crises.

I have been an active participant in the RIPE community since 1992. Over time, my work has spanned the full Internet ecosystem — from protocol development and DNS operations to coordination between operators, policymakers, and the public sector — giving me a broad understanding of the technical, organisational, and societal dimensions of Internet infrastructure across the RIPE region and beyond.

Motivation

I strongly believe in open and free communication, and in the Internet as a fundamental platform for enabling this. Service providers benefit from working together — even when they compete — through coordination of technical operations, shared policy development, and coordinated actions vis-à-vis regulatory bodies. The RIPE NCC provides crucial support for this collaboration, enabling the RIPE community to bring its collective expertise and perspectives into dialogue with other LIRs, governments, regulators, and other stakeholders.

The RIPE NCC also plays a crucial role in the Internet’s infrastructure. It must operate as a well-run membership organisation, accountable to its members, while also acting as a neutral steward of shared Internet number resources.

The RIPE NCC does not exist in isolation. It is part of a global system that is affected by technical, regulatory, and geopolitical developments. My goal is to help ensure that the RIPE NCC remains a trusted, neutral, and technically credible organisation, one that serves its members and the RIPE community effectively and continues to safeguard the stability of the Internet.

I believe that my experience can support the work of the RIPE NCC in the following areas:

- Deep operational experience

I remain closely connected to the technical realities of operating critical Internet infrastructure enabling me to bring an informed perspective to Board discussions and help ensure that decisions are grounded in operational experience.

- Experience across technical and policy domains

Through long-standing involvement in global technical and governance bodies, I bring experience from both the engineering and policy arenas and the ability to bridge these communities.

- Broad international network

Decades of engagement across the RIPE region and global Internet bodies such as ICANN and the IETF have given me a wide network and an understanding of diverse perspectives across the global technical and policy communities.

- Long-term stewardship perspective

Working with critical systems has reinforced the importance of stability, continuity, and careful evolution in governance and operations.

- Collaborative and community-focused approach

I believe in consensus-building, transparency, and supporting collaborative efforts across the RIPE NCC membership and RIPE community.

- Strong engagement for solid infrastructure for open communication

I believe that solid infrastructure for digital communication is vital for the future of our society. I know what it takes to operate this kind of infrastructure, and what it takes to help others understand its importance.

Background

Danko Jevtović is an Internet infrastructure professional and governance leader whose career spans ISP operations, membership association governance, and international board leadership. He entered the Internet industry in the 1990s as cofounder of a pioneering Serbian ISP where he headed technical and network infrastructure.

He currently serves as a Non-Executive Director of RNIDS (Serbian National Internet Domain Registry Foundation), where he champions community-developed policies and public interest alignment. During an earlier tenure as CEO (2013–2017), he directed the registry’s technical modernisation and founded RSNOG, the Serbian Network Operators’ Group, building a national community of practice for network engineering and routing operations. His comprehensive registry experience includes managing complex technical transitions, ensuring critical infrastructure stability, and fostering bottom-up policy development.

Danko’s international governance credentials include serving on the ICANN Board (2018–2024), including two years as the peerelected Vice-Chair. He served as the Chair of the Board Finance Committee, and on the Executive, Governance, Compensation, Audit, and Strategic Planning committees. This gave him extensive experience in the global Internet coordination ecosystem, including the RIR system and ASO/NRO structures. Previously, as Treasurer of CENTR (Association of European Country-Code Registries, 2016–2021), he ensured financial compliance and transparent reporting for a 50+ member European association.

He is a PhD candidate in Economics and holds an MBA from IEDC Bled School of Management, Slovenia. His directorship certifications include INSEAD (European IDP), National Association of Corporate Directors (USA), Harvard Business School, and Carnegie Mellon (Cybersecurity Oversight). Based in Belgrade, Serbia, he brings a perspective from South-Eastern Europe to international Internet governance, with deep expertise in membership association models, multi-stakeholder coordination, and community-driven policy frameworks.

Motivation

Dear RIPE NCC Members,

I want to begin by thanking the members who nominated me and placed their trust in my candidacy.

I am an Internet operator, entrepreneur, and board member with over 25 years of hands-on experience in the Internet industry. I co-founded SezamPro in 1996, the first independent ISP in Serbia, a network that today operates as Orion Telekom and remains a RIPE NCC LIR. Since then, I have worked across this ecosystem: running businesses, managing a national registry, serving as CENTR Treasurer, and as Vice-Chair of the ICANN Board. I currently serve on the Board of RNIDS, the Serbian ccTLD registry, which I helped establish as a non-governmental, non-profit foundation.

My path, from operator to registry, to international governance, has taught me how this ecosystem works in practice and how important it is to keep it grounded in the community. My motivation is simple: to serve the community I grew up in, and to help keep it strong.

The environment around us is changing. Geopolitics, sanctions, digital sovereignty, and the ICP-2 review are challenging the principles that built RIPE: neutrality, independence, and bottom-up coordination. The Board must be stronger in defending RIPE NCC’s independence and our core principles when engaging with regulators and governments. These challenges require disciplined and independent governance that serves the community.

They require Board members who understand how to balance executive oversight, financial responsibility, institutional independence, and the realities faced by operators across our regionally diverse service region.

What I Bring to the Board: I combine operational experience as an ISP and registry operator with financial and governance oversight in member-driven organisations. Based in Serbia, a South-Eastern European country, and working globally, I understand how regulatory, economic, and geopolitical pressures affect operators in practice, not just in theory.

At ICANN, I chaired the Board Finance Committee, overseeing a $150M budget and $500M in reserves, and served on the Executive, Governance, Compensation, Audit, and Strategic Planning committees. As Treasurer of CENTR, I ensured financial compliance and transparent reporting for a 50+ member European association. I know what disciplined cost management looks like in a membership organisation, and what it means for the members who fund it.

At RNIDS, I helped build an internet community and governance in Serbia from the ground up. First, by designing the foundational framework for the registry as an independent non-profit, and then, as CEO, managing critical infrastructure and founding RSNOG, the Serbian Network Operators’ Group.

My Commitments: RIPE NCC is a strong organisation. But communication between the Board and the community can always be strengthened by listening more and by being more transparent about decisions and spending. Members deserve a charging scheme that is fair, transparent, and predictable, and efficient services that deliver clear value. The role of the Board is to direct and oversee management, ensuring accountable, transparent, secure, and efficient service delivery and the execution of community-developed policies.

That is my commitment to you: to act with discipline, openness, and to keep RIPE NCC firmly member-driven. Thank you for your support and your vote.

Harald A. Summa has spent more than three decades working in the Internet infrastructure and telecommunications ecosystem. He served as Chief Executive Officer of DE-CIX from 1996 to 2022, leading its development from a national Internet Exchange into a globally operating interconnection platform.

Today, he serves as a member of the Supervisory Board of DE-CIX Group AG and remains closely engaged in the evolution of international digital infrastructure as Co-Chair of the OMAC (ISOC Organisation Member Advisory Council). Throughout his career, he has worked at the intersection of technology, business and policy, with a particular focus on interconnection markets, infrastructure resilience and organisational development.

Harald’s background combines long-term operational leadership with extensive board and governance experience. He has worked with a wide range of stakeholders, including network operators, data centres, regulators and policy makers across Europe and internationally. His role has often required translating technical developments into economic and regulatory contexts and contributing to stable and sustainable frameworks for infrastructure growth.

He is not a technical specialist in the narrow sense. His contribution lies in strategic oversight, financial responsibility and governance discipline. He sees the role of the Executive Board as providing direction and stability, while ensuring that the RIPE NCC operates in a responsible and sustainable way on behalf of its members and the wider community.

Over the past years, as a member of the RIPE NCC Executive Board, Harald has been part of a period of significant change. The organisation has addressed financial questions, adapted its strategic direction and operated in an increasingly complex political environment. In this context, he has worked closely with the RIPE NCC Management, his fellow Board members and in continuous dialogue with the community.

He values the importance of working with the community as a core element of the RIPE model. Listening, building trust and maintaining open communication between members, the Board and the organisation are essential for effective governance.

Harald also believes in the importance of continuity in board composition. An experienced and well-functioning Board, built on trust and shared understanding, is a key factor in navigating challenging phases and ensuring consistent decision-making.

Motivation

The RIPE NCC is entering a phase where implementation, stability and consistency are becoming increasingly important.

Harald believes that the Executive Board should provide steady guidance, ensure financial responsibility and maintain a balanced relationship with the community. In a more complex political and economic environment, this requires both experience and continuity.

He is standing for election to continue contributing his experience and to support the RIPE NCC with a focus on stability, responsible governance and long-term perspective.