Xena Ni

Co-Founder and Partner, Trestle Collaborative

Washington, District of Columbia

Xena Ni is the co-founder and partner at Trestle Collaborative, a nonprofit that builds technological infrastructure for movements for justice, equity, and progress. Xena and her team ensure resilience of critical digital systems and databases in the face of disruption, protect systems, people, and organizations from major cybersecurity vulnerabilities; and simplify tech for volunteers and organizers. She leads the election technology program, where Trestle has upgraded and secured technology systems for 65 leading movement groups, such as Vote.org. She’s grown Trestle’s tech team to 145 specialists and helped raise over $1 million annually for Trestle programs to ensure free services for movements. Also an artist, Xena created the first art installation about food stamps that went on a national museum tour, in collaboration with artist Mollie Ruskin. She’s dedicated to building an America where organizers can better wield technology and use art for social change to protect democracy and civil rights.