Session
Organizer 1: Technical Community, Western European and Others Group (WEOG)
Organizer 2: Government, Western European and Others Group (WEOG)
Organizer 3: Civil Society, Latin American and Caribbean Group (GRULAC)
Organizer 2: Government, Western European and Others Group (WEOG)
Organizer 3: Civil Society, Latin American and Caribbean Group (GRULAC)
Speaker 1: Sabrina Wilkinson, Technical Community, Western European and Others Group (WEOG)
Speaker 2: Allison O'Beirne, Government, Western European and Others Group (WEOG)
Speaker 3: Alexandre Barbosa, Civil Society, Latin American and Caribbean Group (GRULAC)
Speaker 4: Steinhauer-Mozejko Phil, Civil Society, Western European and Others Group (WEOG)
Speaker 5: Roonjha Qaisar, Civil Society, Asia-Pacific Group
Speaker 2: Allison O'Beirne, Government, Western European and Others Group (WEOG)
Speaker 3: Alexandre Barbosa, Civil Society, Latin American and Caribbean Group (GRULAC)
Speaker 4: Steinhauer-Mozejko Phil, Civil Society, Western European and Others Group (WEOG)
Speaker 5: Roonjha Qaisar, Civil Society, Asia-Pacific Group
Format
Classroom
Duration (minutes): 60
Format description: A sixty-minute session provides sufficient time for the speakers to provide their regional and stakeholder perspectives on solutions to universal access and acceptance, as well as facilitate a discussion with the audience to learn their experiences. The classroom format enables speakers to provide their respective regional perspectives and allows sufficient interactivity with audience participants.
Duration (minutes): 60
Format description: A sixty-minute session provides sufficient time for the speakers to provide their regional and stakeholder perspectives on solutions to universal access and acceptance, as well as facilitate a discussion with the audience to learn their experiences. The classroom format enables speakers to provide their respective regional perspectives and allows sufficient interactivity with audience participants.
Policy Question(s)
A. How can governments develop and implement policies that ensure equitable access to high-quality internet infrastructure in rural, remote and Indigenous communities?
B. What role can multistakeholder partnerships play in accelerating the deployment of digital infrastructure in underserved areas?
C. What progress has been made towards Universal Acceptance, what challenges remain, and what further opportunities are there to promote linguistic diversity and inclusion on the internet?
What will participants gain from attending this session? - A better understanding of how Canadian, Brazilian, Pakistani and Indigenous stakeholders have closed digital divides by advancing universal access and a multilingual internet, as well as what challenges remain;
- An identification of what solutions the various stakeholder groups can apply in their local contexts;
- A chance to connect and meet with stakeholders from different regions with shared goals.
Description:
Despite progress in global connectivity, one-third of the world’s population still isn’t online. For those who are, many struggle with poor internet quality or language barriers. Canada, Brazil and Pakistan, with their rich regional and linguistic diversity, show how complex digital divides can be. Numerous rural, remote, Indigenous, and/or low-income communities continue to be unserved or underserved, showing the ongoing struggle to achieve to achieve universal broadband access. Additionally, many minority-language communities, including many Indigenous communities, find their first languages underrepresented on the internet, further exacerbating the digital divide. These problems are replicated in the emerging technologies that impact how we use the internet, such as artificial intelligence. In this workshop, stakeholders will discuss approaches to closing digital divides. They will do so by discussing: - Regional experiences to improve internet infrastructure and expand access; - Promoting a multilingual internet; - The remaining challenges and opportunities in closing these digital divides. This session will include remarks from stakeholders from Canada, Brazil, Pakistan, and the Saddle Lake Cree Nation. CIRA and the Government of Canada will showcase progress on expanding broadband access and promoting a multilingual internet, respectively. CETIC.br will discuss efforts to close the digital divide from the Brazilian perspective, and the founder of Urdu AI will discuss efforts to make AI accessible in Urdu. The session will also feature a discussion on developing community networks in Pakistan from WALI Community Network. Additionally, a member of the Saddle Lake Cree Nation from the Indigenous Connectivity Institute (ICI) in Canada will explore the topic of Indigenous self-determination through digital connectivity. This will be followed by an open, structured discussion with participants about their experiences promoting universal access and universal acceptance in their regions.
Despite progress in global connectivity, one-third of the world’s population still isn’t online. For those who are, many struggle with poor internet quality or language barriers. Canada, Brazil and Pakistan, with their rich regional and linguistic diversity, show how complex digital divides can be. Numerous rural, remote, Indigenous, and/or low-income communities continue to be unserved or underserved, showing the ongoing struggle to achieve to achieve universal broadband access. Additionally, many minority-language communities, including many Indigenous communities, find their first languages underrepresented on the internet, further exacerbating the digital divide. These problems are replicated in the emerging technologies that impact how we use the internet, such as artificial intelligence. In this workshop, stakeholders will discuss approaches to closing digital divides. They will do so by discussing: - Regional experiences to improve internet infrastructure and expand access; - Promoting a multilingual internet; - The remaining challenges and opportunities in closing these digital divides. This session will include remarks from stakeholders from Canada, Brazil, Pakistan, and the Saddle Lake Cree Nation. CIRA and the Government of Canada will showcase progress on expanding broadband access and promoting a multilingual internet, respectively. CETIC.br will discuss efforts to close the digital divide from the Brazilian perspective, and the founder of Urdu AI will discuss efforts to make AI accessible in Urdu. The session will also feature a discussion on developing community networks in Pakistan from WALI Community Network. Additionally, a member of the Saddle Lake Cree Nation from the Indigenous Connectivity Institute (ICI) in Canada will explore the topic of Indigenous self-determination through digital connectivity. This will be followed by an open, structured discussion with participants about their experiences promoting universal access and universal acceptance in their regions.
Expected Outcomes
The session's outcomes will include:
-Broadened, holistic view of digital divides during different stages of connectivity (e.g., infrastructure access vs. multilingual content through universal acceptance and AI).
-Exchange of best practices for improving bridging digital divides that can be applied in participants' local contexts.
The session's discussion may feed into blogs or other communications materials about the IGF by participants.
Hybrid Format: There will be a mix of both in-person and online speakers to support a hybrid discussion that is equally engaging for those in the room and those online. The session will be facilitated over Zoom or a similar web conferencing platform that enables online participants to speak, comment, and ask questions. The online moderator will be on-site and be able to communicate with the onsite moderator to advance the engagement and views of those online. The polling and other interactivity features of Zoom will be leveraged to ensure engagement.