Sona Rai joined Data & Society as Director of Communications in June 2022 and is eager to further the organization’s impact as it advances public understanding of the social and cultural implications of data-centric technologies and automation.

She has more than 15 years of interdisciplinary communications experience in government, academia, media, civil rights, immigration, and criminal justice reform. She recently served as Media Strategy Director at the Vera Institute of Justice and has held the Communications Director role for the City of New York’s NYC Census 2020 campaign and the New York City Mayor’s Office of Immigrant Affairs. Sona has also worked as Communications Director for Quartz (qz.com), where she led communications for both the editorial and business arms of a global media brand and a team of over 200 people.

Sona lives in Brooklyn and enjoys spending time in New York City’s parks, beaches, museums, and music venues when she’s not at work.