Welcome
Overview Workshops
Reinforcing Democracy at Home: Delivering Government Services Digitally
The future of democracy depends on its continued promise to deliver for the people. This seminar will address how democracies can better protect citizens data in a world increasingly shaped by digitalization, how they can provide public services better, faster and more accurately with the help of technology, how citizens can become more resilient against growing threats in the digital space, and how to engage citizens in the act of active public decision-making in the digital age.
Advancing Democracy and Human Rights Online Globally: Our Affirmative Vision for Digital Technologies
In the wake of the Arab Spring, the United States, Germany, and other countries created the Freedom Online Coalition (FOC) to respond to threats to internet freedom. Additional multilateral efforts on the issue were advanced through UNGA, UNHCR, OSCE, and from a technological angle, the OECD. The workshop will look at the leading threats to individuals’ human rights online, address protection and defense mechanisms and assess the complementarity of the different fora working in this space.
Defending Democracy: Countering Digital Authoritarianism and the Misuse of Technology
Cyber threats have increased as a result of the rise in use of technology and the digitalization of many processes during the pandemic. This workshop will focus on the proliferation, acceleration and increasing complexity of cyber threats against all levels of government – and the best strategies protect service delivery and minimize the effect disinformation will have on voting publics. As the internet begins to splinter between open systems and technology deployed to accelerate authoritarian control, this seminar will surface how best to secure, extend and deploy values-led technology across the world.
Extending Democracy: Integrating Technology for Democracy in Development Efforts
The role that foreign assistance can and should play in bolstering the rights-respecting design, development, deployment, and use of technology globally, particularly in countries making strides in democratic progress or facing challenges to democratic governance is at the core of this workshop. How best to prevent “digital colonialism” and data capture, as well as diplomatic measures to prevent and mitigate unintended consequences of technological deployment will also be examined.