Samantha Floreani is one of Australia’s most prominent digital rights activists. She is currently the Head of Policy at Digital Rights Watch, where she advocates for human rights as realised in the digital age. Her areas of focus include the impacts of pervasive surveillance, online safety, digital privacy as a collective issue, and the political economy of technologies such as artificial intelligence and automated decision making.
Samantha is also an established writer and cultural critic. Her writing explores technology, power and social norms, and has been published in The Guardian, the Sydney Morning Herald, Overland and Meanjin, amongst others.
Previously, Samantha was the Program Director of Code Like a Girl – a social enterprise working to improve gender representation in tech – where she worked to grow a community of women in tech across Australia, create meaningful tech education pathways, and advocate for improved gender equity in the Australian tech industry.
Samantha is an experienced public speaker and has delivered talks for local, national, and international audiences across topics including digital privacy, human rights and ethics of technology, gender socialisation and equality, and gender representation in the tech industry. She appears regularly on television and radio programs to provide expert commentary and analysis, including the ABC, The Project, 9 News, SBS, and more.
Testimonials
It’s not often that speakers have the flexibility to present to teenagers and follow it up with women of all ages from a range of different careers, all in the same day however, Sam Floreani from ‘Code Like A Girl’ exceeded all expectations.
Her ability to present in a fun, light hearted way, and yet still address issues of gender socialisation, is a testament to her emotional intelligence and professionalism.
Sam was inspiring and empowering and a great example of how it’s never too late to try something new and say yes to opportunities. A real inspiration and our delegates spoke very highly of her honesty in sharing her experiences that have led to her being a role model and leader to young girls.