Board update: Dickens Onditi Olewe and Jakob Moll enter the Constructive Institute board
Two international profiles join the Constructive Institute board to acclerate our ambitions to change the global news culture.
The program officer at Global Media Partnership at Gates Foundation, Kenyan Dickens Onditi Olewe, and co-founder of the successful digital Danish media startup Zetland, International director Jakob Moll, are now part of the leadership of our NGO with the clear mission to help journalism rethink to help democracy.
Dickens Olewe has worked for The Star in Nairobi and The BBC in London and says:
“I have followed the Constructive Institute’s work with great interest ever since meeting Ulrik nearly a decade ago. At the time, I was a JSK journalism fellow at Stanford University, deeply engaged in exploring the platforms and technologies reshaping the media industry. Ulrik’s book – Constructive News – challenged me to broaden my perspective – toward a form of journalism that listens more deeply, fosters learning, enriches public discourse and builds meaningful connections. The Institute’s commitment to advocating for journalism that sparks curiosity, highlights progress, and promotes solutions to the world’s pressing challenges aligns strongly with my own professional philosophy. I’m excited to bring my experience to this role and contribute to CI’s mission”
Dickens Onditi Olewe, program officer at Global Media Partnership at Gates Foundation
Jakob Moll, who is a former Nieman fellow at Harvard University, says:
“We are living in a very interesting moment in journalism. Awareness is spreading that the news industry desperately needs to evolve to stay trustworthy and relevant. Constructive Institute provides answers to the difficult question of what this change looks like in practice. With Zetland I’ve spent the past 13 years attempting to reimagine journalism for the next generations, and I hope to play a part in the ever rising ambitions of the Institute. The timing couldn’t be more perfect – or the stakes higher. We can’t have societies without a sense of community, and we sometimes underestimate journalism’s role in connecting citizens, including for them to bring about change. We’ve had way too much cynicism in the news business, but the success of Constructive Institute is proof that the tides are finally turning“
Jakob Moll, co-founder and International Director of Zetland
Our board headed by the mediadirector of European Broadcasting Union (EBU) in Geneva Jean Philip De Tender now constists of 4 women and 4 men from 6 countries: Professor Alexandra Borchardt from Germany, news director at Norsk rikskringkasting (NRK) Helje Solberg, head of John S. Knight Journalism Fellowships at Stanford University Dawn Garcia, and Dean of Arts at Danish Aarhus Universitet Maja Horst.