Jeffrey Ding

One Word that Best Represents You:

Wonky

Tell Us One Time You Hacked Something:

When I think of “hack”, I think of haggling. No one specific experience comes to mind, but I take a haggler’s mindset to many things – for instance, getting a burrito bowl and a tortilla on the side at Chipotle since you get so much more food that way.

When Was Your First “Political” Moment:

My first political moment was listening to Barack Obama’s keynote speech at the 2004 Democratic Convention. I remember being in the shower at the time, while my parents were downstairs watching the speech on TV.

Ninjas or Pirates:

Pirates

What’s a Random Topic on Which You are a Pseudo-expert:

I know way too much about League of Legends, which is a multiplayer online video game. Not even from playing the game but mostly from following the rise of the game as a e-sport, and all the drama that takes place on the League subreddit.

Why Reviving Representation Matters to You:

For me, increasing constituent engagement by activating and amplifying the voices of citizen advocates, Represently can increase lawmakers’ accountability to constituents. As a result, broader and deeper channels for civic engagement can both reduce rent seeking and build incentives for legislators to better meet the needs of their constituents.

Jeffrey Ding, a Rhodes Scholar reading for a Master’s degree in international relations at Oxford University, leads the Rhodes Artificial Intelligence Lab, which builds machine learning-powered solutions to social problems.