Expanded Programming
On this page, you’ll find opportunities in Lusaka to dive deeper into the experience with our Expanded Programming. Go beyond the 550+ sessions scheduled for RightsCon 2026 and explore public Satellite Events, Side Events, and so much more!
Satellite Events
On Tuesday, May 5, we’ll host a series of Satellite Events at our venue in Lusaka. These events will run throughout the day, from 9:00 am to 3:00 pm Lusaka time. Explore the list of events below and sign up – we’re confident you’ll find something exciting to engage with!
Please note that an in-person RightsCon ticket is required to attend these events. Register now and take advantage of everything listed below! Please note that you need to sign up for each individual session to be able to attend!
Reclaiming AI safety & security for the people
WAIE+
Dominant western narratives about AI Safety are focused on existential risks and threats from “rogue” Artificial Super-Intelligence (AGI). This centering of imagined catastrophes of the future deflects attention and resources away from present-day dangers faced by our communities.
At our special convening at RightsCon, we will reclaim the AI safety and security space for the community. We will share our latest research on public’s trust of AI tools and companies that build them, along with expert strategies and resources to keep us safe in this AI age. Don’t miss this opportunity to meet other thinkers, activists, and community leaders who are committed to building an inclusive AI future by and for all of us.
Location: AG01 (KKW) | 1 pm to 3 pm
Feminist activism against technology-facilitated gender-based violence
Association for Progressive Communications
2026 marks two decades since the initial recognition and framing of online gender-based violence. It is also a year where global, digital and human rights threats, both from governments and big tech, are exponentially growing. The goal is to examine past experiences, critically assess and challenge existing power structures, and collaboratively develop a path forward.
Location: Room 2 (Mulungushi)
10 am to 3 pm
Reclaiming the digital commons for Africa
Magamba | JamiiAfrica | Bloggers Of Zambia | Baraza Media Lab
Across Africa, digital spaces have become vital arenas for civic participation, Gen Z movement organizing, and alternative expression. Yet these spaces are increasingly shaped by powerful global tech platforms, rising digital authoritarian practices, and fragile infrastructure systems that leave communities vulnerable. Blending interactive discussions, participatory demos, and collaborative exchanges, the session creates a vibrant and engaging space for critical dialogue and spotlights inspiring African-led approaches to staying connected, resilient, and informed.
Location: A110 (KKW) | 9 am to 3 pm
The Copenhagen Principles for the protection of human rights in the digital age
The Danish Institute for Human Rights | International Commission of Jurists
The Danish Institute for Human Rights (DIHR) and the International Commission of Jurists (ICJ) have established an initiative to elaborate the
Copenhagen Principles and Guidance for the Protection of Human Rights in the Digital Age.
In this session we will present the principles, exemplifying how they can serve as practical legal and policy tools to strengthen advocacy and accountability for human rights violations in digital spaces. Join the discussion to help the implementation guidance for civil society and legal actors.
Location: Room 1 (Mulungushi)
12:30 pm to 3 pm
Child online Safety in Africa: Balancing Protection, Access, and Rights in the Digital Age
Ministry of Technology Zambia I Child Helpline Zambia I UNICEF, Africa Region
Join us to explore a balanced, rights-based digital protection for children across Africa. Participants will discuss policy challenges, risks of restrictive measures, and the importance of platform accountability, youth participation, and African leadership in shaping inclusive, effective online safety frameworks that protect children. It would be an opportunity for countries to learn to share practices that impact the rights and protection of children as they explore the digital space.
Location: AG08 (KKW) | 12:45 pm to 3 pm
From Crisis to Foresight: Futures Thinking Tools for Movement Builders
Amnesty International
We’re hosting a small, interactive side event at RightsCon focused on futures and foresight tools for activism and movement strategy.This workshop is designed for activists, researchers, and civic space leaders interested in moving beyond reactive responses and developing more forward-looking strategies. Participants will be introduced to key futures thinking approaches and will take part in a guided exercise applying these tools to their own work and contexts.
Location: A103 (KKW) | 9 am to 12 pm
Digital security in Eastern Europe: what is happening and how we help CSOs
CYBERHUB.AM | Digital Security Lab Ukraine | Eastern Partnership Digital Security Practitioners Network | RESIDENT.NGO
We are digital security service providers who provide assistance and support to Civil Society and Independent Media organisations in Armenia, Belarus, Georgia, Moldova, and Ukraine.
This year we are hosting a RightsCon satellite event to share our real-life experience, methodologies, and answer any questions you might have about digisec in the region.
Location: A104 (KKW) | 10 am to 1:30 pm
The Future of Data Governance in Africa
Research ICT Africa | Centre for Intellectual Property and IP Law | Local Development Research Institute
The D4D consortium was established to support the operationalisation of the African Union Data Policy Framework (AUDPF). Research from the consortium offers insights into Africa’s data governance landscape and the progress of operationalising the AUDPF at national and regional levels, mapping the gap between the framework’s aspirations for the continent and its current implementation.
Location: AG05 (KKW) | 9 am to 3 pm
SplinterCon
eQualitie
One Shutdown After Another: Control and Resilience in African Networks
This edition will examine how the practices and technologies of network control are increasingly permeating African networks, and how this trend is shaping the evolution of digital control and episodic isolation across the continent.
The inaugural African SplinterCon brings together technologists, researchers, and practitioners to discuss the rising trend of shutdowns in the region, the commercialization of network control technologies supporting this trend, and the work taking place on the front lines to maintain communication and access to information under these evolving conditions.
Location: Banquet Hall 2 (KKW) | 9 am to 3 pm
Diversity & inclusion workshop – media inclusion and responsibility in Zambia
CFI
This session brings together journalists, editors, community representatives, and young professionals to explore what inclusive media really looks like in practice, and what it takes to get there. We’ll discuss Zambia’s inclusion landscape, and examine the editorial decisions and structural barriers that shape how marginalized communities are covered. We’re also hosting a Community Storytelling Corner, to participants share their experiences, challenging preconceived narratives and putting community voices at the centre of the conversation.
Location: AG03 (KKW) | 9 am to 12 pm
South-south digital public infrastructure approaches: challenges and opportunities
Research ICT Africa | Internet Lab
In this roundtable, hosted as a satellite event to RightsCon 2026, experts from across the Global South will explore the topics of competing DPI models and approaches, digital sovereignty, state capacity, funder dependency, digital human rights, resistance and advocacy, cooperation, citizen participation, inequality and empowerment, state capacity, and the roles of third sector organisations. The discussion will seek to close the gap between the technical framing of DPIs and their real-world governance implications by situating these infrastructures within their political, social, and legal contexts.
Location: A116 (KKW) | 9 am to 11 am
The internet without VPNs is not free
VPN Trust Initiative | Fight for the Future
We’re bringing together journalists, activists, technologists, and civil society leaders to examine VPN restrictions as a human rights and democratic governance issue—grounded in lived experience from regions already dealing with these harms. I think your insights would be valuable.
Location: A101 (KKW) | 11 am to 3 pm
Side Events and offerings
Side events are hosted by our partners and trusted participants who use RightsCon 2025 as an opportunity to organize their own gatherings alongside the summit. These events offer a great way to deepen your engagement, connect with peers, and explore key digital rights issues beyond the main program.
Spring Coaching
Free coaching and leadership support for the digital rights community
What’s keeping you up at night? From navigating today’s funding landscape to building resilient teams, digital rights defenders are facing unprecedented challenges in sustaining their missions for the long haul. That’s why, with support from the Ford and Mott Foundations, Spring’s coaches will be onsite at RightsCon to offer complimentary 45-minute coaching sessions in Cantonese, English, French, Mandarin, Portuguese or Spanish. Spring coaches have worked with thousands of changemakers from over 100 countries to address themes like fundraising, stress, transitions and team dynamics.
Information integrity in conflict: the role of radio
United Nations Department of Peace Operations (UNDPO) | UNESCO | RightsCon
Despite the digital overload we experience globally, in war zones, information voids are the order of the day. In many conflict settings, people turn to the affordable, accessible and resilient medium available: radio. From providing lifesaving information to building community, radio plays a critical role in supporting information integrity. But digital uptake is shifting audience habits and exposing radio to attacks. Through a dynamic panel discussion with Radio Okapi (DRC), Radio Miraya (South Sudan), Fondation Hirondelle and UNESCO, this session will explore how radio counters disinformation, supports independent local media ecosystems, and navigates the threats and opportunities of digital transformation.
Date: 2:30pm to 4pm, May 5
Location: Lungwa Room
Are funders listening to you? Cracking the source code of a winning pitch
Spring Coaching
Are funders listening to you? Cracking the source code of a winning pitch
You’ve got two minutes in a corridor with a potential funder. What do you say? How do you make them remember you and feel moved to act? For fundraisers and executive directors in the digital rights community, the hardest part is sometimes talking about the work in a way that really connects with potential supporters.
In this session, you’ll gain the ability to turn data into stories and understand why targeting the “heart” and “gut” is more effective than just targeting the “head.”
PAI and Partners RightsCon 2026 Mixer
Partnership on AI | Code for Africa | BSR
This cocktail reception is a space for researchers, civil society advocates, technologists, policymakers, and practitioners to connect beyond the formal conference setting to continue the important discussions sparked throughout the day.
Whether you’re working on AI policy, media freedom, community-centered technology practices, or emerging questions around AI agents and sensitive domains, this mixer offers an informal space to exchange ideas over drinks and light bites.
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