Words to action: the road to IGF 2026
Building on the momentum from a milestone year of the 20-year review of implementation of the outcomes of the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS+20) and the significance of the Internet Governance Forum (IGF) with a permanent mandate, our compass is now set with a steady aim to lay the foundation for the next stage where the building blocks of possibilities we have crafted over 20 years can create the reality of what a strengthened, evolved, multistakeholder, permanent IGF is for us all.
Fresh off the first open consultations and MAG meeting in Nairobi, Kenya and online, the IGF Multistakeholder Advisory Group (MAG) and our 2026 Host country Kenya have agreed upon a bold, forward-looking overarching theme “Governing the Internet in the Age of Intelligence: Our Shared Responsibility”.
The condensed preparation timeline is a golden opportunity for us to achieve and implement the recommendations that call for a streamlined, cohesive, relevant IGF. A chance for us to focus and distill 20 years of lessons learned and take on the responsibilities tasked to the IGF from the WSIS+20 outcomes and “apply innovative and inclusive collaboration methods” to bring all the work across the broader IGF ecosystem closer together with targeted impact, guiding and informing the WSIS policy cycle and implementation architecture.
Part of these efforts include a refocused framework for IGF intersessional work. Best Practice Forums are now rebranded and merged into the umbrella of Policy Networks, where each network will be informed with elements of the community proposals received (another first for 2026):
- Policy Network on Artificial Intelligence
- Policy Network on Cybersecurity
- Policy Network on Digital Inclusion
- Policy Network on Open Digital Infrastructure
Two MAG working groups are approved this year: one on IGF Strategy and one on Youth Engagement will continue important work in a new focused, action-oriented modality that will enhance the 2026 IGF cycle outputs. The MAG will work even closer with the community-led, multistakeholder, bottom-up, 180+ strong National, Regional, Subregional and Youth Initiatives (NRIs) and the topic-focused Dynamic Coalitions to create a cohesive agenda. We invite the global IGF community to contribute to all intersessional work and help build a multi-year strategic direction.
The Call for Proposals is now out - all submissions are welcome. We will be hosting an informational webinar on workshop proposal criteria which aims to demystify how evaluation criteria is applied across all the submissions - stay tuned for information on how to join.
The permanent IGF is our collective achievement and shared responsibility. The strength of the IGF is rooted in its open, inclusive multistakeholder dialogue and the global multistakeholder community. Just as the MAG will lean on community expertise to build the annual IGF agenda, as the MAG chair, I invite all input, questions and feedback throughout the process. Let’s shape the 2026 IGF together.
