This category looks into the future and speculates on cutting edge AI and other technologies with the potential to disrupt our social, political, and economic systems. Proposals may explore affective technology and emotion, bioinformatics, quantum computing, technology use in space, extended reality (XR) and wearables, and climate mitigation technology.

Given how it intersects with multiple program categories, we understand that you may need clarification about where to place sessions related to Artificial Intelligence. This category looks at sessions that center on the new or cutting developments in AI, where the focus is more on the tech than on the issues impacted by this. For example, if you are proposing a session on AI and content governance, submit your session in the “Content Governance” category. If you submit a session on AI and military tech, you can submit it under the “Conflict and Humanitarian Action” category.

This category centers on the role of technology in situations of armed conflict, natural disaster, food insecurity, forced displacement, and other crises. Proposals may touch on biometrics and identity management in humanitarian response, war propaganda, online mediation, military tech, the role of tech companies and platforms’ crisis response, and more.

This category explores public regulations, private sector standards and community guidelines to protect personal data. Proposals may explore topics such as data governance mechanisms, rights-based procedures to collect, store, maintain, process, and transfer data, and mechanisms to enforce public and private compliance and ensure proper data breach prevention and notification.

This category scrutinizes the impact of surveillance on our human rights, including the right to privacy, freedom of expression, assembly, movement and autonomy, in different contexts. Mass, community, and individual surveillance through a myriad of technologies, whether through spyware, digital identity systems or facial recognition technology, has impacted society across and on borders, in conflict areas, in authoritarian contexts, but also in democracies. Proposals may explore the differentiated use and repercussions of surveillance especially on highly-impacted communities and individuals.

This category explores the transformative power of creativity, imagination, and play in our digital spaces. Proposals may examine creative and aesthetic forms of activism, the strength of fiction and speculation, future scenarios, authenticity and authorship for digital creators, and the role of AI, data, and emerging technologies in the artistic process, and more.

This category analyzes paths to strengthen democratic governance and processes, foster meaningful public participation, and promote fair and free elections in the digital age. Proposals may address civic technology and education, anti-corruption and accountability in the public sector, political microtargeting and influence campaigns, election security and integrity, international cooperation and the role of intergovernmental authorities, and more.

This category will examine the urgent and multifaceted challenges to connecting the unconnected and ensuring access to an affordable, open, and reliable internet. Proposals may look at efforts to localize and decolonize online spaces, and discuss both “hard barriers” to internet adoption related to infrastructure, accessibility, and “soft divides” tied to literacy, education, and social location.

This category considers technology through the lens of law, justice, and jurisdiction. Proposals may examine trends in strategic litigation and court action, access to legal support and resources, ethical dimensions of legal tech development, open source intelligence (OSINT) techniques, privacy rights in the face of evolving surveillance technology, methods to document human rights abuses, law enforcement and criminal justice reform, and more.

This category explores the internal or institutional factors that enable activists, donors, organizations, and movements to operate effectively, especially in restricted civic spaces. Proposals may consider organizational strategy and sustainability, leadership and management, strategic partnerships, capacity-building and training, funder practices, impact reporting, and more.

This category reviews corporate power and due diligence, sustainable business models, and responsible business conduct in the tech sector. Proposals may discuss corporate accountability, workers’ rights, investor responsibility and advocacy, human rights impact assessments and due diligence, transparency and disclosure, corporate governance, business models, and more.

This category delves into defending freedom of expression and opinion online and offline, strengthen state, community and platform approaches to tackle dissemination of illegal content online or disinformation. Proposals may address different processes deployed in content governance, platform accountability, oversight mechanism, enforcement of community standards, impacts of algorithmic curation and automated decision making on human rights, and more.

This category considers current and emerging digital security practices, in response to multifaceted threats to individuals, organizations, and communities. Proposals may discuss preventative security practices (such as risk assessments, audits, and educational initiatives), reactive security efforts, infrastructure and tools to help security practitioners coordinate with users at risk, and more.

This category looks at the future of journalism, and the importance of data and technology in investigating, reporting and consuming news. Proposals may address whistleblower protections, violence against journalists, revenue models in the media landscape, increasing legal attacks on journalists and media outlets, media ethics, citizen and crowdsourced journalism, the increasing weaponization of technology against journalists, and more.

This category investigates policies, actions, and approaches impacting cybersecurity, and encryption, at the national, regional, and global levels. Proposals may discuss multilateral cooperation, international law development and diplomacy on cyber; state capacity and response to cyber incidents; protection of critical infrastructure in national security contexts; encryption and law enforcement demands for exceptional access or proactive monitoring; efforts to control the use of and access to encryption; impact of innovation and tech on encryption, and more.

This category encourages ideas and new models of product design in the tech sphere that center the rights of people and communities most affected by design decisions driven by business and technical goals. Proposals may explore the process at all phases in tech product development, from user research, production, to maintenance, and delve into best practices for rights-respecting, accessible, ethical, collaborative, and sustainable tool development.

This category explores the profound consequences of internet shutdowns, slowdowns, and other network disruptions on human rights as well as the the lives and livelihoods of people around the world. Proposals may discuss practices to measure and document the impact of shutdowns, methods to circumvent internet censors, blocks, and filters, tools and technical services in offline contexts, and explore insights into emerging challenges and collaborative solutions for fostering resilience in the face of connectivity challenges.

This category unwraps the nature of threats perpetuated or coordinated online and the potential for these threats to translate to offline violence. Proposals may consider the social and emotional dimensions of hate speech, specific cases and concerns for activists and communities at risk, trauma-informed policies and approaches, efforts to combat stalkerware and similar tools of abuse, legal and platform responsibility, and more.

This category examines current and emerging trends in the realm of digital rights activism and advocacy. Sessions will connect and map approaches to mobilize and educate communities, reshape public narratives, influence policies and standards, and build solidarity.