Introducing the new Grant for the Web Community Ambassador Lawil Karama

Grant for the Web is committed to diversity, equity, and inclusion. One key strategy to do this is by making sure we include diverse voices in our program and work with them to expand our knowledge, reach, and connectivity to a globally diverse community.

In 2022, we will be building on our commitment to bring diversity and equity to our program. Key to that is making sure we include diverse voices in our program, as well as work with them to expand reach and share knowledge on a global scale. Our previous ambassadors are part of a diverse group of people with passion and dedication to the growth and health of their communities. They take pride in knowing that they can make a difference by connecting people with events, resources and each other.

We're proud to announce that Lawil Karama is joining our team as an ambassador! Lawil is a community builder and networker with extensive experience. Furthermore she is our first female Ambassador from Rotterdam, the Netherlands. Lawil her diverse background means she has a different perspective and filter on what the needs of the users are. With this perspective she will support the GFW team at Interledger Foundation to reach new communities and connect the GFW with fringe communities and niche spaces. Additionally Lawil will help make sure that the GFW attracts more grantees from around the globe.

Lawil describes her motivation to work on Grant for the Web as,

There is an inherent need for equality and equity in the world today. I often feel as if we are still looking for thought leaders to create a new equilibrium and redefine our future.

As a creative person, I am always on the move between different spaces. It is where I feel most at home but personally for me, inspiration comes from being surrounded with people who engage with the world, who know their presence and influence on it and use it to shape it with any form of creativity. To support and expand the communities they engage with.

Ensuring that these voices help shape the Grant for the Web and Web Monetization movement, My goal is to empower a diverse group of thought leaders to share their input on everything from the design of the fund's grant-making process to how we see Web Monetization develop in the coming years. By providing tangible resources such as grant writing support, pre grantee community engagement to strengthen the equity of underrepresented communities.

About Lawil Karama: Born in 1986 to an Ugandan father and a Dutch mother in West Berlin, Germany. Lawil is a multidisciplinary artist currently lives and works in Rotterdam. She originally trained in special make-up effects, But has found her artistic medium in modeling, sculpting, and experimenting with various materials to create installations as a whole. Her artwork touches on a range of topics, but she is mostly focused on highlighting the beauty of marginalized communities, often through the challenges faced by people who live in the "diaspora” - reflected in the themes that inspire her work; this convergence mirrors her experiences in real life.

Her work is confrontational as she is willing to challenge the traditional narrative, by using her omni heritage to step into a neutral space to weave other people's stories and daily observations into her own work. These unheard voices are her guides through the contemporary world.

‍About Web Monetization - Web Monetization is a proposed API standard that allows websites to request a stream of very small payments (e.g. fractions of a cent) from a user. In exchange for payments from the user, websites can provide the user with a “premium” experience, such as allowing access to exclusive content, removing advertising, or even removing the need to log in to access content services.‍
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‍About Grant for the Web - Grant for the Web is a $100 million fund that enables content creators and software developers to adopt and advance Web Monetization and the Interledger Protocol: open-source tools for better, alternative online business models that benefit the public good. Grant for the Web is funded and led by Coil, working in collaboration with founding collaborators Mozilla and Creative Commons. GftW Charter.

Photo Credit: Annemarie de wit @riettie Instagram