Misako Ito is a technology and information management specialist with 17 years of experience working in the UN and development organizations in Africa, Europe, Arab States and Asia. As Regional Advisor and Chief of Communication and Information Unit at UNESCO Asia-Pacific Regional Bureau for Education, she manages UNESCO’s programme on universal access to information, freedom of expression and digital transformation. She represents UNESCO in the regional Memory of the World Committee for Asia-Pacific and advises on policy and strategy for safeguarding documentary heritage in the region. She is a Japanese national and holds an Engineering Degree from the French National Polytechnic Institute and a Specialized Master’s Degree in Information Systems and Technology Management from HEC and Mines ParisTech in France. Prior to joining UNESCO in Asia, she provided advisory services for the reform of the media sector, the legislation on freedom of information as well as the participation of women and youth in public policies in Morocco, Tunisia, Algeria and Mauritania.