Board of Directors
Human Trafficking Front is guided by a Scientific Board of legal and violence prevention experts. The Board of Directors is made up of Beatriz Susana Uitts, J.S.D., Hortensia Núñez, Ph.D., and Enarda Cuni, LL.M. None of the members of the Board of Directors are relatives, by blood, marriage, or external business links. In addition, the Board of Directors has no conflict of interest with management. The qualifications of the Members of the Board are described below.
Beatriz Susana Uitts, J.S.D.
Dr. Uitts is a legal academic, born and raised in Colombia, specializing in law relating to human rights, and is well versed in providing direct comprehensive services and coordinated community responses to support victims of domestic and sexual violence and human trafficking crimes.
Dr. Beatriz Susana Uitts, is the author of the book Sex Trafficking of Children Online: Modern Slavery in Cyberspace, published under the Applied Criminology Across the Globe series, Rowman & Littlefield, 2022. Dr. Uitts has solid experience in human trafficking research, prevention, and advocacy, and in designing and providing training and evidence-informed educational programs.
Dr. Uitts holds a Doctorate of the Science of Law (J.S.D.) degree with an expertise in online child sex trafficking and a Master of Laws (LL.M.) in Intercultural Human Rights from St. Thomas University College of Law. Dr. Uitts' rigorous doctoral research on human trafficking and her work as Graduate Fellow with the Human Trafficking Academy of St. Thomas University College of Law inspired her to found Human Trafficking Front, a research and advocacy organization geared at increasing trafficking prevention efforts.
Her professional experience includes speaking on the topic of human trafficking, commercial sexual exploitation of children, and the role of the internet in facilitating those practices at specialized trainings and seminars on behalf of St. Thomas Law Human Trafficking Academy and Miami-Dade County’s Coordinated Victims Assistance Center (CVAC) where she previously worked. She also assisted in drafting and implementing the Miami-Dade County Human Trafficking Collaborative Project Grant from U.S. Department of Justice Office of Justice Programs in Miami-Dade County, by helping to coordinate a more robust community response to victims of human trafficking via intense case management. She served at Safespace North Domestic Violence Center for battered women and assisted victims in the 11th Judicial Circuit of Florida, Lawson E. Thomas Courthouse Center, Domestic Violence Division. Dr. Uitts co-authored the curriculum for the Empowerment and Support Group for Survivors of Human Trafficking and became the first moderator of the course hosted by Miami-Dade County's CVAC. While serving Miami-Dade County, Dr. Beatriz Susana helped create community awareness materials and resources that support the identification of human trafficking and the provision of coordinated services in the county. In addition, Dr. Beatriz Susana worked for Miami-Dade County Human Trafficking Coalition in the initial stages of its creation, helping to build more effective responses and strengthening anti-trafficking service networks.
Dr. Uitts has served vulnerable populations including children under the His House Children’s Home Unaccompanied Alien Children Program. She is currently an Associated Expert of St. Thomas Law John J. Brunetti Human Trafficking Academy. Dr. Uitts has served as petitioner attorney before the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights in Washington DC, and she taught labor law at the Legal Aid Clinic of the Pontificia Universidad Javeriana in Bogota, Colombia.
Hortensia Núñez, Ph.D.
Dr. Hortensia Núñez is a clinical psychologist who has extensive experience working in both academic and community settings and across mental health, social and criminal justice systems.
During the past 30 years, Dr. Núñez has dedicated her career to working with victims, perpetrators and families affected by domestic violence and human trafficking. In her work with victims of crime, she has focused on fostering their independence through the provision of counseling and education, organizing support groups, and connecting victims to appropriate community resources. She has also served as a liaison between domestic violence and human trafficking service agencies and has worked on maximizing the use of their resources.
While working in the criminal justice system, she focused on the rehabilitation of perpetrators, promoting their ability to comply with the court stipulations, and providing counseling, education and awareness regarding triggers of violent behaviors. Given her background and expertise, Dr. Hortensia Núñez provides effective organizational planning and guidance to the Organization to advance its mission and achieve a sustainable future.
Enarda Cuni, LL.M.
Mrs. Cuni earned her law degree from Luarasi University in Tirana. Enarda completed her Master of Laws in Intercultural Human Rights at St. Thomas University, Miami Gardens, Florida, USA (analyzing the right to vote, election law, its implementation, and comparing different human rights systems). She also studied Transnational Justice, Rule of Laws and Human Rights in Bosnia and Herzegovina (analyzing the human rights violation in Kosovo, the consequences of the conflict, and the country's future).
Mrs. Cuni held the position of Assistant to the Dean of the Law Faculty at the European University of Tirana, teaching seminars in civil procedure law. She has worked as a community officer in the Albanian Red Cross, Lezha Branch. In this office, she was a member of the Board of Directors for four years. During her time with the Albanian Red Cross, Mrs. Cuni participated in many Red Cross projects. Enarda Cuni has published papers and participated in various national and international conferences focusing on human rights. In 2013, the Mediterranean Center of Social and Educational Research evaluated her work for excellence in participation in the third International Conference on Human and Social Sciences, which focused on the case of child soldiers as part of human trafficking. In 2012, Enarda earned the third prize in the Therapeutic Jurisprudence Competition at St. Thomas University School of law, Miami, Florida.
Given Enarda Cuni’s education and expertise in human rights law and human trafficking law and policy, Mrs. Cuni helps set goals in the best interest of the Organization and ensures effective planning and strengthening of programs and services.