Dr. Valentina Golunova is an Assistant Professor in Digital Democracy at Maastricht University.
Her research is situated at the intersection of the legal regulation of social media and AI and the effective protection of fundamental rights. Her ongoing projects address the transatlantic dialogue on platform regulation, the EU's legal approaches to mis- and disinformation, and strategic litigation in the field of digital rights.
She holds a PhD from Maastricht University, an LLM (cum laude) in International and European Law from Tilburg University and an LLB from the Saint Petersburg State University. In 2024, her PhD thesis titled ‘Silenced by Default: Algorithmic Content Moderation and Freedom of Expression in the European Union’ was awarded the Special Distinction of the European Group of Public Law (EGPL) Thesis Prize.
Currently, she serves as the Adjunct Coordinator of the Globalisation & Law Network, which brings together scholars studying the role that law plays in a globalising society and is funded by the Dutch Ministry of Education, Culture, and Science. She is also part of the multidisciplinary research group on Education, Citizenship and Democracy, which examines the impact of digitalisation on civic processes.
