IGF 2025 Day 0 Event #172 Environmental Defenders Building Networked Resilience

Building digital trust and resilience requires sustainable collective action and collaboration across diverse perspectives, experiences, and interests. The global IGF in June 2025 is an opportunity to build collaborative responses in solidarity with human rights and environmental defenders around the world. The communities that support the IGF consistently raise environmental justice and sustainability as critical issues for internet governance and policy, including the impact of rapidly increasing mining, resource consumption and waste from the ever increasing so-called “digital society”. Human rights bodies and mechanisms of the UN have recognized the links between rapid digitalisation and increased violations of the rights of local communities, Indigenous communities and workers. While discussions continue to take place in formal conference rooms, there are many marginalized communities that are defending their rights and sovereignty while simultaneously continuing to face extreme violence, surveillance, and campaigns of disinformation. Information and communication technologies pose serious risks for environmental defenders, however they can also offer opportunities for resistance and resilience, including communities protecting their families, homes, livelihoods and land from extractivism. A 2-hour hybrid pre-event to the global IGF aims to contribute to building digital trust and resilience through collaboration, creativity and shared commitment. The event will bring together key findings from the in-depth research with Indigenous and local communities in Brazil, Mexico, Kenya and the Philippines which will share deep insights on the scope and impacts of disinformation and technology-facilitated violence. After brief presentations, participants will be invited to work with speakers and organizers of the event, in small groups online and onsite, to collectively reflect on the findings of the research, and what action is needed to address identified challenges. The event is co-organised by the Association for Progressive Communications (APC), Indigenous Peoples Rights International (IPRI),Intervozes – Coletivo Brasil de Comunicação Social, KLIMA Centre at the Manila Observatory, and Ogiek Peoples Development Program (OPDP).

A fully hybrid pre-event to the IGF is a critical opportunity to build trust and collaboration among diverse stakeholders participating online and onsite. APC will work with the IGF to prepare and facilitate the event, using a combination of tools hosted by APC, with permission of the IGF Secretariat and Host Country. Small group discussions, hosted in round tables of 8-10 participants, will be facilitated by organizers and speakers of the event, who will be present online and onsite.