About

Intro

My name is José Manuel Alonso, aka Josema. I have been an Internet and Web user since 1993. I have worked most of my professional life on topics related to the Open Web. I reflected on it in detail a couple of years ago on the Web’s 30th anniversary.

After almost 20 years combined at the World Wide Web Foundation and the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C), I concluded such a significant career phase. I went on sabbatical for a year, reconnected with people, learned about new topics and reflected on my next career move. I then returned to work on data governance, interoperability and open standards at SEMIC.EU (European Commission), while also advising CTIC on topics such as data spaces. I’m also a Partner at Firetail.
You can find more details in my LinkedIn profile.

I also love landscape photography and play the drums.

Bio

Josema is a seasoned manager, strategist, and executive with over 25 years of experience in open Web and digital rights. He is currently a senior advisor to the European Commission’s Semantic Interoperability Program (SEMIC.EU), CTIC Technology Centre on data interoperability and governance, and a Partner at strategy firm Firetail.

Josema was a Director and Interim CEO of the World Wide Web Foundation, the organization founded by Sir Tim Berners-Lee, the Web’s inventor, and Rosemary Leith to promote the open Web as a public good and a fundamental right. 

During his 12-year tenure, he played a crucial role in strategy and development and established and managed partnerships and multi-stakeholder networks that united hundreds of organizations.

Josema was also the eGovernment Lead at the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C), the organization developing open standards and guidelines that make the Web work.

He has served on expert groups at the World Economic Forum, the United Nations, the Open Government Partnership (OGP), the European Commission and ICANN.

Educated as a software engineer, he worked as an IT analyst, consultant and trainer early in his career. He even founded his web startup in 1997.

Projects/Initiatives I have participated in or led