[Workshop] Boost your cyber skills: a cybersecurity event for Nonprofit Organizations

Event description

Event date: 22 June 2022, 9:30–15:00 CEST

The International Geneva Welcome Centre (CAGI) and the CyberPeace Institute jointly curated an all-day cyber skills event for NGOs. The uptake of cloud-based technologies and storage of valuable donor and beneficiary data have made NGOs a frequent target of cyberattacks. The reality for NGOs is that they have to safeguard their cybersecurity as much as private businesses do. The event invites local government representatives, cybersecurity experts, and NGOs to partake in testimonial drafting, roundtable discussions, and awareness raising for boosting NGOs’ cyber skills.

For more information, and to register, please visit the official page.

Geneva Internet Platform

Acronym: GIP

Established: 2014

Address: 7bis, Avenue de la Paix, CH-1202 Geneva

Website: https://www.giplatform.org/

Stakeholder group: NGOs and associations

The Geneva Internet Plaform (GIP) is a Swiss initiative operated by DiploFoundation that strives to engage digital actors, foster digital governance, and monitor digital policies.

It aims to provide a neutral and inclusive space for digital policy debates, strengthen the participation of small and developing countries in Geneva-based digital policy processes, support activities of Geneva-based Internet governance (IG) and ICT institutions and initiatives, facilitate research for an evidence-based, multidisciplinary digital policy, bridge various policy silos, and provide tools and methods for in situ and online engagement that could be used by other policy spaces in International Geneva and worldwide. The GIP’s activities are implemented based on three pillars: a physical platform in Geneva, an online platform and observatory, and a dialogue lab.

DiploFoundation

Acronym: Diplo

Established: 2002

Address: 7bis, Avenue de la Paix CH-1202 Geneva, Switzerland

Website: https://www.diplomacy.edu

Stakeholder group: Academia & think tanks

DiploFoundation (Diplo) is a Swiss-Maltese non-governmental organisation that specialises in capacity development in the field of Internet governance and digital policy. Established in 2002, Diplo, among other things, works to improve the role of small and developing states in global diplomacy by:

  • training officials through online courses, workshops, and simulation exercises;
  • developing capacity on Internet governance, cybersecurity, data, artificial intelligence, and other emerging tech issues;
  • promoting and developing digital tools for inclusive and impactful governance and policy-making.

Diplo’s main activities:

Capacity Development

Diplo’s capacity development support begins with individuals, but through the activities of these individuals, its impact reaches into the larger systems of which they and their organisations are a part. Diplo’s approach includes online training, policy research, policy immersion, and the development of communities of practice, combined in various ways as appropriate to each policy context. Diplo’s capacity development activities center around education, online training, courses, workshops, as well as online events, webinars, and research on topics such as AI, big data, science diplomacy, and cybersecurity.

Events

To address pressing issues in global governance, Diplo’s events bring together people from different perspectives, including diplomats, business professionals, academics, members and staff of international organisations, members of civil society, and members of the technical community. Diplo works to make its events more accessible through e-tools that support remote participation. These events often evolve into teaching activities, publications, or online interactions.

Courses

Diplo offers postgraduate-level academic courses and training workshops on a variety of diplomacy-related topics for diplomats, civil servants, staff of international organisations and NGOs, and students of international relations. Combining a highly developed learning methodology with a unique online learning platform, Diplo’s courses are flexible, personal, interactive, and community-building. Courses are delivered online, face-to-face, and in a blended format.

Research

Diplo’s efforts on capacity development also include research on a variety of digital topics such as AI, big data, science diplomacy, and cybersecurity. This research has been conducted in collaboration with a number of partners, including swissnex and the Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Finland.

Artificial Intelligence

In the area of AI, Diplo has established its AI Lab, a multifaceted initiative that includes research and analysis on AI policy, capacity development in the field of AI and related areas, reports from main events and discussions on AI, and analysis of the impact of AI on diplomacy.

At IGF 2019 in Berlin, Diplo launched its humAInism project as a response to calls for regulation and oversight of AI technologies. The project aims to anchor AI in the core values of humanity by understanding how AI functions and what reasonable policy trade-offs need to be made. It looks under the AI bonnet to understand the technology and analyses the policy, legal, and ethics-related impacts of algorithms and other AI tools.

United Nations Conference on Trade and Development

Acronym: UNCTAD

Established: 1964

Address: Palais des Nations, Av. de la Paix 8-14, 1211 Geneva 10, Switzerland

Website: https://unctad.org/

Stakeholder group: International and regional organisations

UNCTAD is a UN body dedicated to supporting developing countries in accessing the benefits of a globalised economy more fairly and effectively. It provides analysis, facilitates consensus building, and offers technical assistance, thus helping countries use trade, investment, finance, and technology to support inclusive and sustainable development.

UNCTAD also works to facilitate and measure progress towards achieving the sustainable development goals (SDGs), through a wide range of activities in areas such as technology and innovation, trade, investment, environment, transport and logistics, and the digital economy. It places special emphasis on supporting the most vulnerable developing countries, including least developed countries (LDCs), landlocked developing countries (LLDCs), small island developing states (SIDS), and African countries to build resilience to economic shocks and to achieve structural economic transformation.

UNCTAD’s work often results in analyses, statistics, and recommendations that inform national and international policymaking processes, and contribute to promoting economic policies aimed at ending global economic inequalities and generating human-centric sustainable development.

Digital activities

UNCTAD is particularly active in the field of e-commerce, trade, and the digital economy, carrying out a wide range of activities from research and analysis to providing assistance to member states in developing adequate legislative and regulatory frameworks and facilitating international dialogue on the development opportunities and challenges associated with the digital economy.

UNCTAD also works to facilitate and measure progress towards achieving the SDGs, in particular through (but not limited to) its activities in the field of science, technology, and innovation (STI) for development. Consumer protection, gender equality, productive capacity building, and privacy and data protection are other digital policy areas where UNCTAD is active.

Digital policy issues

Data governance

As data has become a key resource in the digital economy, data governance is a fundamental part of the work of UNCTAD. This is illustrated, for example, in the research and analysis work of the Digital Economy Report 2019, which focused on the role of data as the source of value in the digital economy and how it is created and captured and the Digital Economy Report 2021, which analysed cross-border data flows and development. Moreover, some of UNCTAD’s work on e-commerce and digital trade touches specifically on privacy and data protection issues. For instance, the eCommerce and Law Reform work dedicated to supporting developing countries in their efforts to establish adequate legal frameworks for e-commerce also covers data protection and privacy among the key issues addressed. The Global Cyberlaw Trackers offers information on data protection laws in UNCTAD member states.

Also relevant for data governance discussions is UNCTAD’s work on statistics, as the organisation collects and analyses a wide range of data and statistics on issues such as economic trends,  international trade, investment, development, and the digital economy. UNCTAD’s statistical capacity development activities help countries enhance their statistical and data infrastructures and often address issues of data governance, such as statistical confidentiality, access to data, and privacy protection. UNCTAD also contributes actively to global work to enhance data governance in statistics and beyond and to develop universal principles to guide the collection, dissemination, use, and storage of data.

UNCTAD makes its data and statistics available as open-source in the UNCTADstat data centre. Statistics underpin UNCTAD’s analytical work and are featured in many publications. The UNCTAD Handbook of Statistics disseminates key messages from UNCTAD’s statistics including infographics and UNCTAD’s SDG Pulse offers statistical information on developments related to the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. In addition, Development and Globalization Facts and Figures publications provide thematic updates on topical issues with the latest number focusing on SIDS. To provide timely information on the global economy and trade, UNCTAD Statistics publishes a weekly Trade and Economy Nowcast.

UNCTAD is also running several projects focused on improving the efficiency of data management for example by developing a plug-and-play system to compile Trade in Services Statistics, its activities in the Digitising Global Maritime Trade project, and by supporting customs operations with the Automated System for Customs Data. UNCTAD’s own statistical activities are governed by the UNCTAD Statistics Quality Assurance Framework, which is aligned with principles governing international statistical activities.

E-commerce and trade

UNCTAD’s work programme on e-commerce and the digital economy (ECDE Programme), encompasses several research and analysis, consensus-building, and technical assistance activities, as follows:

Research and analysis

UNCTAD conducts research and analysis on e-commerce and the digital economy and their implications for trade and development. These are mainly presented in its flagship publication, the Digital Economy Report (known as the Information Economy Report until 2017), and in its Technical Notes on ICT for Development. The Technology and Innovation Report, another flagship publication, highlights the need to build science, technology, and innovation capabilities as prerequisites to enabling developing countries and LDCs to adopt and adapt frontier technologies, including digital technologies.

Consensus building on e-commerce and digital economy policies

UNCTAD’s Intergovernmental Group of Experts on E-commerce and the Digital Economy meets regularly to discuss ways to strengthen the development dimension of e-commerce and the digital economy. The group’s meetings are usually held in conjunction with UNCTAD eWeek an annual event hosted by UNCTAD featuring discussions on development opportunities and challenges associated with the digital economy.

UNCTAD also serves as a knowledge partner to the deliberations of the G20 Digital Economy Working Group on Data Free Flow with Trust and Cross-border Data Flows.

Under the auspices of the UN Commission on Science and Technology for Development (CSTD), UNCTAD provides substantive work on the follow-up to the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) – a unique two-phase UN summit that was initiated to create an evolving multistakeholder platform to address the issues raised by information and communications technologies (ICTs) through a structured and inclusive approach at the national, regional, and international levels.

To that end, the CSTD:

  • Reviews and assesses progress at the international and regional levels in the implementation of action lines, recommendations, and commitments contained in the outcome documents of the Summit.
  • Shares best and effective practices and lessons learned and identifies obstacles and constraints encountered, and actions and initiatives to overcome them alongside important measures for further implementation of the Summit outcomes.
  • Promotes dialogue and fosters partnerships, in coordination with other appropriate UN funds, programmes and specialised agencies, to contribute to the attainment of the Summit.
  • Monitors objectives and the implementation of its outcomes and the use of ICTs for development and the achievement of internationally agreed development goals, with the participation of governments, the private sector, civil society, the UN, and other international organisations in accordance with their different roles and responsibilities.

E-Commerce assessments and strategy formulation

The eTrade Readiness Assessments (eT Readies) assist LDCs and other developing countries in understanding their e-commerce readiness in key policy areas to better engage in and benefit from e-commerce. The assessments provide recommendations to overcome identified barriers and bottlenecks to growth and enjoying the benefits of digital trade.

UNCTAD’s work on ICT policy reviews and national strategies involves technical assistance, advisory services, diagnostics, and strategy development on e-commerce, and national ICT planning at the request of governments. Through an analysis of the infrastructural, policy, regulatory, institutional, operational, and socio-economic landscape, the reviews help governments to overcome weaknesses and bureaucratic barriers, leverage strengths and opportunities, and put in place relevant strategies.

Legal frameworks for e-commerce

UNCTAD’s e-commerce and law reform work helps to develop an understanding of the legal issues underpinning e-commerce through a series of capacity-building workshops for policymakers at the national and regional levels. Concrete actions include assistance in establishing domestic and regional legal regimes to enhance trust in online transactions, regional studies on cyber laws harmonisation, and the global mapping of e-commerce legislation through its Global Cyberlaw Tracker.

Measuring the information economy

UNCTAD’s work on measuring the information economy includes statistical data collection and the development of methodology, as well as linking statistics and policy through the Working Group on Measuring E-commerce and the Digital Economy, established by the Intergovernmental Group of Experts on E-Commerce and the Digital Economy. Figures are published in the biennial Digital Economy Report and the UNCTADstat Data Centre. Technical cooperation here aims to strengthen the capacity of national statistical systems to produce better, more reliable, and internationally comparable statistics on the following issues: ICT use by enterprises, size and composition of the ICT sector, and e-commerce and international trade in ICT-enabled services.

Smart partnerships through eTrade for all

The eTrade for all initiative (eT4a) is a global collaborative effort of 35 partners to scale up cooperation, transparency, and aid efficiency towards more inclusive e-commerce.  Its main tool is an online platform (etradeforall.org), a knowledge-sharing and information hub that facilitates access to a wide range of information and resources on e-commerce and the digital economy. It offers a gateway for matching the suppliers of technical assistance with those in need. Beneficiaries can connect with potential partners, and learn about trends,  best practices,  up-to-date e-commerce indicators,  and upcoming events all in one place. The initiative also acts as a catalyst of partnership among its members for increased synergies. This collaboration has concretely translated into the participation of several eT4a partners as key contributors to the various UNCTAD e Week organised by UNCTAD and in the conduct and review of eTrade Readiness Assessments.

Market access and rules of origin for least developed countries

LDCs are granted preferential tariff treatment in the markets of developed and developing countries under several schemes and arrangements. Since its inception, UNCTAD has assisted governments in developing preferential rules of origin (RoO). UNCTAD assists governments and regional economic communities, as well as the AfCFTA Secretariat, in negotiating and drafting their RoO. Most recently, UNCTAD’s technical assistance has focused on the implementation of the World Trade Organization’s (WTO’s) 2005 Hong Kong decision on Duty-free, Quota-free (DFQF) market access, and understanding and drafting RoO.

UNCTAD has undertaken extensive research on DFQF and RoO. The UNCTAD Database on the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) provides information on trade statistics, rules of origin, and tariff offers under AfCFTA at the Harmonized Commodity Description and Coding System (HS) subheading (6-digit) level The Harmonized Commodity Description and Coding System – commonly known as the Harmonized System or HS – is an internationally standardised nomenclature for the description, classification, and coding of goods.. The database enables automatic data visualisation to create a snapshot of the object of interest and matching trade statistics within the AfCFTA tariff offers, and product-specific rules of origin where available.

The UNCTAD Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) utilisation database provides information on the utilisation of the GSP schemes as well as other trade preferences granted to developing countries and LDCs under GSP, DFQF arrangements, and trade preferences under reciprocal free trade agreements (FTAs).

UNCTAD serves as co-lead of the

Consumer protection Consumer protection and competition are jointly addressed in the work of UNCTAD

Through its Competition and Consumer Policies Programme, UNCTAD works to assist countries in improving their competition and consumer protection policies. It provides a forum for intergovernmental deliberations on these issues; undertakes research, policy analysis and data collection; and provides technical assistance to developing countries. The Intergovernmental Group of Experts on Consumer Protection Law and Policy monitors the implementation of the UN Guidelines for Consumer Protection, and carries out research and provides technical assistance on consumer protection issues (including in the context of e-commerce and the digital economy). UNCTAD’s work programme on consumer protection is guided, among others, by the UN Conference of Competition and Consumer Protection (held every five years).

Given the significant imbalances in market power in the digital economy, competition policy is becoming increasingly relevant for developing countries. UNCTAD addresses this issue in the Intergovernmental Group of Experts on Competition Law and Policy.

UNCTAD also runs the Research Partnership Platform, aimed at contributing to the development of best practices in the formulation and implementation of competition and consumer protection laws and policies.

UNCTAD serves as co-lead of the

Geneva Centre for Security Policy

Acronym: GCSP

Address: Chemin Eugene-Rigot 2D, CH - 1211 Geneva 1, Switzerland

Website: https://gcsp.ch

The Geneva Centre for Security Policy (GCSP) is an international foundation governed by a 54-member State Foundation Council serving a global community of individuals and organisations. Our mission is to advance peace, security, and international cooperation. We provide the knowledge, skills and network for 360° effective and inclusive decision-making.

The GCSP believes that effective and forward-thinking leaders and organisations need to build a broad picture of what is happening in an increasingly connected world. We unravel the intricacies of geopolitics and help leaders develop new skills and the agility to lead in times of tumultuous change. The GCSP creates an inclusive environment for their global community from 174 nations and across sectors who come together to exchange ideas and develop sustainable solutions for a more peaceful future. Building Peace Together through Education, Dialogue, Policy, Creativity and Community since 1995.

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Digital activities

The GCSP provides analysis that covers several digital topics, including cybersecurity and transformative technologies. Its executive education is offered online and in blended formats. In response to COVID-19, the GCSP launched a series of webinars titled Global Crisis, GlobalRisk and Global Consequences.

Digital policy issues

Artificial intelligence

As part of its Transformative Technologies cluster, the GCSP looks at AI and several ‘disruptive technologies’; the term refers to synthetic biology, neuro-morphic chips, big data, quantum computing, 3D and 4D printing, brain-computer interfaces, hypersonic technology, and cognitive enhancement. In particular, the GCSP focuses on the dual-use character of these technologies, their potential use in warfare and the future of warfare, and the existing legal provisions among warfare and humanitarian rules in relation to such technologies. Overall, activities as part of this cluster aim to alert policymakers to both the challenges and opportunities associated with these technologies. These aims are also reflected in associated educational activities, such as the course on Transformative Technologies and the Future of Geopolitics.

As part of its Global Risk and Resilience Cluster (GRRC), the GCSP has positioned itself as a thought leader on risks at the nexus of geopolitics and technology. To that purpose, it particularly monitors, analyses, and interprets the impact that emerging technologies such as AI, synthetic biology, neuroscience, quantum computing, and nanotechnologies will have on international politics, geopolitics, warfare, and conflicts. In addition to identifying emerging risks and future trends that will impact international security and warfare, the GRRC also promotes new responses that can be brought to deal with these emerging risks, notably through the concept of resilience.

Cybersecurity

The GCSP tackles cybersecurity issues through education and training activities, as well as policy analysis and events. It also provides a platform for dialogue and exchanges on cyber challenges among cyber experts from the public, private, and civil society sectors. The training and education activities cover areas such as cybersecurity strategy formulation, international law relating to cyber issues, cyber diplomacy, and broader capacity-building initiatives (e.g. workshops and student challenges). Policy papers published by the GCSP focus on the nature of cybersecurity, developing norms in the digital era, international legal analyses, and developing holistic solutions. The flagship course is Cyber Security in the Context of International Security; other bespoke courses cater to public and governmental staff and private and non-governmental employees. The  GCSP’s flagship annual cybersecurity event is the Cyber 9/12 Strategy Challenge. In partnership with the Atlantic Council, this strategy and policy competition pits over 200 students from around the world in a strategy and policy competition. Teams are judged by experts, high-level policymakers, thought leaders from industry and the public sector (including NATO and the EU), and government representatives. The challenge normally takes place at the GCSP headquarters in Geneva, but in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the 2022 competition took place entirely online.

Capacity development

Many of the GCSP’s activities fall into the category of capacity development activities. The GCSP offers courses and other educational and training programmes related to the internet and digital policy, such as cybersecurity, transformative technologies, and strategic foresight.

In addition to capacity building through its executive education programmes, the GCSP leverages its considerable intellectual and networking resources (i.e. its fellows and alumni) to engage with communities worldwide and foster trust between regions. The GCSP’s cybersecurity dialogues aim to remove barriers to communication and encourage the uptake of the opportunities today’s digital landscape has to offer.

In partnership with the Swiss Federal Department of Foreign Affairs (FDFA), the GCSP convenes a Track 1.5 dialogue process to ensure there is as much communication as possible between parties who are often in conflict with one another. This process provides a platform and a mechanism for the exchange of ideas to build consensus on topics as diverse as international norms, agreement on legal paradigms, and regional socio-economic development.

Digital tools

Several other events organised by the GCSP also have a capacity development focus; one example is the annual Cyber 9/12 Strategy Challenge, a student competition in international cybersecurity strategy and policy. The challenge was held entirely online in 2022 in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. In addition, the publications produced by the organisation can help inform various stakeholders about the challenges and concerns in the area of cyber governance.

GCSP offers online courses, webinars, and an online dialogue series.

Social media channels

Facebook @thegcsp

Instagram @thegcsp

LinkedIn @thegcsp

Podcasts

X @TheGCSP

YouTube @Geneva Centre for Security Policy (GCSP)

Internet Governance Forum

Acronym: IGF

Established: 2006

Address: Palais des Nations, 1211 Geneva 10, Switzerland

Website: https://www.intgovforum.org

Stakeholder group: International and regional organisations

The IGF provides the most comprehensive coverage of digital policy issues on the global level. The IGF Secretariat in Geneva coordinates both the planning of IGF annual meetings (working together with the Multistakeholder Advisory Group (MAG) and the wider IGF community) and a series of intersessional activities (run all year long). These activities could be summarised in three ‘multi’ initiatives:

  • Multistakeholder participation: It involves governments, business, civil society, the technical community, academia, and other actors who affect or are affected by digital policy This diversity is reflected in IGF processes, events, and consultations.
  • Multidisciplinary coverage: It relates to addressing policy issues from technological, legal, security, human rights, economic, development, and sociocultural perspectives. For example, data, as a governance issue, is addressed from standardisation, e-commerce, privacy, and security perspectives.
  • Multilevel approach: It spans IGF deliberations from the local level to the global level, through a network of over 165 national, subregional, and regional IGF (as of November 2023). They provide context for discussions on digital policy like the real-life impact of digitalisation on policy, economic, social, and cultural fabric of local communities. The IGF Secretariat supports such initiatives (which are independent) and coordinates the participation of the overall network.

The IGF ecosystem converges around the annual IGF, which is attended by thousands of participants. The last few IGFs include Paris (2018), Berlin (2019), online edition due to the pandemic (2020), Katowice (2021), Addis Ababa (2022), and Kyoto (2023), which engaged over 11,000 participants, and more than 1,000 speakers in over 300 sessions.

The intersessional work includes best practice forums (on issues such as cybersecurity, local content, data and new technologies, and gender and access); dynamic coalitions (on issues such as community connectivity, network neutrality, accessibility and disability, and child safety online etc.); policy networks (on AI, environment, meaningful access and Internet fragmentation); and other projects such as Policy Options for Connecting and Enabling the Next Billion(s) (which ran between 2015 and 2018) as well as a number of capacity development activities.

IGF mandate

The IGF mandate was outlined in the Tunis Agenda for the Information Society of the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS, November 2005). It was renewed for another 10 years by the UN General Assembly (UNGA) on 16 December 2015, (70/125).

The main functions of the IGF are specified in Article 72 of the Tunis Agenda. The mandate of the Forum is to:

  • Discuss public policy issues related to key elements of Internet governance in order to foster the sustainability, robustness, security, stability, and development of the internet.
  • Facilitate discourse between bodies dealing with different cross-cutting international public policies regarding the internet and discuss issues that do not fall within the scope of any existing body.
  • Interface with appropriate inter-governmental organisations and other institutions on matters under their purview.
  • Facilitate the exchange of information and best practices, and in this regard, make full use of the expertise of the academic, scientific, and technical communities.
  • Advise all stakeholders in proposing ways and means to accelerate the availability and affordability of the Internet in the developing world.
  • Strengthen and enhance the engagement of stakeholders in existing and/or future internet governance mechanisms, particularly those from developing countries.
  • Identify emerging issues, bring them to the attention of the relevant bodies and the general public, and where appropriate, make recommendations.
  • Contribute to capacity building for internet governance in developing countries, drawing on local sources of knowledge and expertise.
  • Promote and assess, on an ongoing basis, the embodiment of WSIS principles in internet governance processes.
  • Discuss, inter alia, issues relating to critical internet resources.
  • Help to find solutions to the issues arising from the use and misuse of the internet, of particular concern to everyday users.
  • Publish its proceedings.

In fulfilling its mandate, the Forum is institutionally supported by the UN Secretariat for the Internet Governance Forum placed with the Department of Economic and Social Affairs (DESA). Its working modalities also include MAG and most recently the Leadership Panel, both appointed by the UN Secretary-General.

Digital policy issues

Until 2019, IGF annual meetings used to host sessions tackling a wide range of digital policy issues (for instance, IGF 2018 had eight themes: cybersecurity, trust, and privacy; development, innovation, and economic issues; digital inclusion and accessibility; human rights, gender, and youth; emerging technologies; evolution of internet governance; media and content; and technical and operational issues). In 2019, in an effort to bring more focus within the IGF, the MAG decided (considering community input) to structure the IGF programme around a limited number of tracks: security, safety, stability, and resilience; data governance; and digital inclusion. This approach was kept for IGF 2020, which saw four thematic tracks: data, environment, inclusion, and trust. The thematic approach did not mean that the IGF saw some digital policy issues as being less relevant than others, but rather that it encouraged discussions at the intersection of multiple issues. The Geneva Internet Platform (GIP) Digital Watch hybrid reporting (IGF 2023) illustrates this trend, showing that the IGF discussed a wide range of policy issues (across all seven internet governance baskets of issues) within the limited number of thematic tracks.

The leadership panel

In line with the IGF mandate and as recommended in the Secretary-General’s Roadmap for Digital Cooperation, the UN Secretary-General established the IGF Leadership Panel as a strategic, empowered, multistakeholder body, to address urgent, strategic issues, and highlight Forum discussions and possible follow-up actions to promote greater impact and dissemination of IGF discussions.

More specifically, the Panel provides strategic inputs and advice on the IGF; promotes the IGF and its outputs; supports both high-level and at-large stakeholder engagement in the IGF and IGF fundraising efforts; exchanges IGF outputs with other stakeholders and relevant forums; and feeds input from these decision-makers and forums to the IGF’s agenda-setting process, leveraging relevant MAG expertise.

The 15-member Panel with ex-officios meet at least three times a year in person, in addition to regular online meetings.

Future of meetings

Since its first meeting in Athens (2006), the IGF has been a pioneer in online deliberation and hybrid meetings. In addition to individual online participation, the IGF has encouraged the development of a network of remote hubs where participants meet locally while following online deliberations from the global IGF. In this way the IGF has created a unique interplay between local and global deliberations through the use of technology. For hybrid meetings delivered in situ and online, the IGF developed the function of remote moderator, who ensures that there is smooth interplay between online and in situ discussions.

The 19th annual IGF meeting will be hosted by the Government of Saudi Arabia in Riyadh in December 2024. The 2025 host is yet to be announced.

Social media channels

Facebook @IGF – Internet Governance Forum

Flickr @IGF

Instagram @intgovforum

LinkedIn @intgovforum

X @intgovforum

YouTube @Internet Governance Forum (IGF)

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