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Open America 2024: Multi-stakeholder approaches to govern and design new Digital Public Infrastructure
Date: 9 December 2024
Time: 12:00 PM
Location: Brasília, Brazil
Description: On December 6, 2024, we participated in the event "Multi-stakeholder Approaches to Govern and Design New Digital Public Infrastructure", co-organized by the Centre for Digital Public Infrastructure (CDPI) and Co-Develop in Brasília, Brazil. During the Panel on Participatory Governance of Digital Public Infrastructure, we presented our perspective on how the Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) movement could benefit from adopting the concept of Digital Self-Determination (DSD) as a complement to the dominant narrative of digital sovereignty. Our intervention argued that while digital sovereignty emphasizes state control over infrastructure, DSD expands this framework by centering community agency, shared governance, and responsible data practices.
WatchDSD at the UN World Data Forum
Date: 14 November 2024
Time: 09:00 AM
Description: DSD is at the UN World Data Forum! As the UN World Data Forum kicks off, we’re excited to share that Stefaan Verhulst, Co-Founder and Chief R&D Officer at The GovLab, will be participating in the high-level plenary on Building Trust, Protection, and Ethics in Data under Thematic Area 3. This session will address how we can balance the full value of data use with protecting privacy and rights—an area where Digital Self-Determination (DSD) is vital. At the International Network on Digital Self-Determination, we’re exploring how DSD can guide these discussions, pushing for data practices that serve communities’ needs and amplify marginalized voices. Join the plenary on November 14, 9:00–10:15 AM, to hear insights on creating a fair, secure, and community-centered data ecosystem.
WatchSwiss Data Space Forum
Date: 30 October 2024
Time: 09:00 AM
Description: The Swiss Data Space Forum, organized by the Swiss Data Alliance’s data spaces working group and digitalswitzerland, aims to advance the understanding of dataspaces as a key element of a trustworthy digital infrastructure in Switzerland. The International Network on Digital Self-Determination (DSD) participated in the Forum, sharing insights on how DSD principles can guide the development of ethical, community-centric data spaces that empower individuals with control over their data.
WatchDSD at the Privacy Symposium 2024: Data for Good Panel
Date: 11 June 2024
Time: 12:00 PM
Description: On June 11, 2024, The GovLab participated in the Privacy Symposium at Ca' Foscari University of Venice, contributing to the Data for Good panel session with a focus on Digital Self-Determination (DSD). Held in Aula Mario Baratto, the session explored the importance of empowering individuals and communities to manage their data in ways that benefit both themselves and society. The panel discussed how data-driven insights can address pressing social and environmental challenges, the necessary steps to ensure equitable access to data and its benefits, and the role of public and private partnerships in maximizing data's potential for good. Additionally, the conversation covered potential challenges that may arise in this context. The session highlighted DSD as a critical framework for achieving positive outcomes in data use while managing associated risks, featuring inspiring examples and practical strategies.
WatchSowing Seeds of Digital Self-Determination: Empowering Farmers in the Datafication Era
Date: 30 May 2024
Time: 08:00 AM
Location: https://www.ictforag.com/
Description: The datafication era has transformed the social, environmental, and technological landscape, digitizing multiple areas of human life and offering opportunities for societal progress through the re-use of digital data, including in the agricultural sector. Indeed, the use of information and communication technologies (ICTs) in agriculture promises enhanced efficiency, better yield predictions, and optimized resource management. Yet, this digital promise also harbors a risk: the exacerbation of existing power imbalances through the control and use of data. In this context, digital self-determination (DSD) stands as a transformative principle and practice, offering a pathway towards rectifying narrative asymmetries and empowering individuals and communities to control data and narratives. Drawing on the principles and practices of Digital Self-Determination (DSD), this session aims to explore how ICT for Agriculture can be reimagined to empower farmers, ensuring they are not merely subjects of data but active participants in a digital ecosystem that respects their agency, rights, and livelihoods. Key Themes and Objectives: 1. Understanding Digital Self-Determination (DSD): An exploration of the DSD concept, its roots, and its profound relevance in addressing contemporary challenges in data governance and digital equity, particularly within agrifood systems. 2. Empowering Farmers as Data Stewards: Strategies for enhancing farmer agency in the digital realm, including the development of tools, platforms, and governance models that enable farmers to control, manage, and benefit from their agricultural data. 3. Case Studies of Success: Presentation of real-world examples where the principles of DSD have been successfully applied within agriculture to empower communities, improve livelihoods, and foster a more balanced relationship between technology and agrarian practices. The session will close with a Q&A. Target Audience: This session is designed for a diverse audience, including policymakers, agricultural practitioners, technologists, data governance experts, and, most importantly, farmers themselves. It aims to catalyze a multidisciplinary dialogue on the potential of digital self-determination to foster more inclusive, equitable, and sustainable agrifood systems.
WatchAI Localism - Empowering Communities Through Digital Self-Determination
Date: 17 April 2024
Time: 04:00 PM
Description: As part of AI Week 2024, The Governance Lab and Urban AI are happy to present a panel discussion that delves deep into AI Localism, focusing on how this approach can foster digital self-determination at the local level. AI Week 2024 offers a platform for critical discussions on the role of AI in society, bringing together leaders from the government, tech, and education sectors. This panel is set against the backdrop of a week-long exploration of AI's transformative potential, and aims to deep dive into how AI is governed at the local level, emphasizing empowerment and digital self-determination within communities. Our discussion will spotlight the innovative strategies cities like Bordeaux, Brussels, and Portland are employing to ensure that AI governance is not only inclusive but also empowers residents to have a say in how AI is integrated into their daily lives. By emphasizing digital self-determination, we aim to explore paths toward a governance model that reflects the collective values, expectations, and preferences of communities.
WatchNavigating today's geopolitical landscape through the lens of digital sovereignty and digital self-determination
Date: 17 January 2024
Time: 01:30 PM
Location: digitalswitzerland Village in proximity to the House of Switzerland/Ice stadium in Davos
Description: We are delighted to invite you to the digitalswitzerland Village in Davos during the week of the Annual Meeting of the World Economic Forum 2024 in Davos. On Wednesday 17, we will participate in the third panel discussion on "Navigating today's geopolitical landscape through the lens of digital sovereignty and digital self-determination." Keynote speaker: Roger Dubach (Ambassador, Deputy Director, Directorate of International Law at FDFA). Panelists: Casper Klynge (Senior Vice President, Ambassador of Denmark, Danish Chamber of Commerce); Stefaan Verhulst (Co-Founder, Chief Research and Development Officer, The GovLab); Dita Charanzova (Vice-President of the European Parliament)
RegisterDisability and Digital Self-Determination: What’s the Missing Link?
Date: 13 May 2023
Time: 06:00 PM
Location: Swissnex In India, 26 Rest House Crescent Road Ashok Nagar, Bengaluru
Description: As we increasingly embrace digital tech, we’re also grappling with several new ideas, concepts and questions, including digital self-determination. Who are we as digital beings? How can we determine our ‘selves’ in a data-driven society? How do we re-imagine human autonomy, agency and sovereignty in digital spaces? In collaboration with the Embassy of Switzerland in India and with the support of the International Network on Digital Self-Determination (IDSD) and the Directorate of International Law at the Swiss Federal Department of Foreign Affairs (FDFA), we have run a studio on disability and digital self-determination in India over the last few months. Over 4 studios in 3 cities, together with Point of View and Design Beku, we’ve explored these big questions with people with disabilities, designers, researchers and technologists. We’ve shared lived experiences of being online, pinpointed accessibility pain points, imagined dream machines, and mapped policy gaps – all in the context of disability. Now we bring it all together in a grand finale, to which you are warmly invited, under the umbrella of SwitzerlandIndia 75 – celebrating 75 years of peace and friendship between our two nations.
WatchEmpowering people in the digital age: A conference on digital self-determination
Date: 25 July 2022
Time: 12:00 PM
Location: Switzerland
Watch