Fighting climate change with emerging technologies – for good or ill? – Flash 13 2019

Consolidated programme 2019 overview

To follow the current discussion on this topic, see the discussion tab on the upper left side of this page

---

Final title of the session: Please send the final title until 25 April 2019 latest to wiki@eurodig.org. Do not edit the title of the page at the wiki on your own. The link to your session may otherwise disappear.

Working title: ICT role in fighting against climate change

Fighting Climate Change with Emerging Technologies: For Good or Ill?

1) Is the next generation of internet-dependent technologies providing technologically viable and sustainable responses to the issues of around global environmental degradation, or are they actually adding to these problems? 2) As municipalities invest in digital – smart – city policies that depend on data-driven, and energy-intensive infrastructures and platforms is adequate attention being paid to both human rights compliance and environmental sustainability in the design and roll-out of these systems?

The question for this flash session is twofold:

1) Is the next generation of internet-dependent technologies providing technologically viable and sustainable responses to the issues of around global environmental degradation, or are they actually adding to these problems?

2) As municipalities invest in digital – smart – city policies that depend on data-driven, and energy-intensive infrastructures and platforms is adequate attention being paid to both human rights compliance and environmental sustainability in the design and roll-out of these systems?

The work has only just begun to unpack both the positive and the negative relationships between R&D into the latest generation of digital and networked technologies (CCTV, Wifi tracking, 5G, IoT, AI), the long-term prospects for ‘Green City’ initiatives and how our increasing dependence on internet access may actually contribute to the symptoms of Climate Change (rising sea-levels, inner-city pollution, the degradation of the online environment) through inadequate human rights compliance.

The session continues conversations from the 2018 Internet Governance Forum meeting in Paris with the Internet Rights and Principles Coalition, and representatives from the Digital Cities Coalition (Amsterdam, Barcelona, New York). Join us for 30 minutes, 16.00-16.30 on Day 2 of EuroDIG for an open-mic session, with invited speakers.

All ages, strong views and clear arguments welcome.

Links and Resources

School Strike 4 Climate ChangeItalic text https://www.schoolstrike4climate.com/

Charter of Human Rights and Principles for the Internet http://internetrightsandprinciples.org/site/charter/

Sustainable Futures: The Internet, Human Rights, and Environmental Issues - IGF 2018 - Day 1 - Salle XII: DC Internet Rights and Principles Meeting http://www.intgovforum.org/multilingual/content/igf-2018-day-1-salle-xii-dc-internet-rights-and-principles-sustainable-futures-the-internet

Digital Cities Coalition – Cities for Digital Rights Declaration https://citiesfordigitalrights.org/#declaration

The Basel Convention: Technical Guidelines on Transboundary Movements of Electrical and Electronic Waste http://www.basel.int/Implementation/TechnicalMatters/DevelopmentofTechnicalGuidelines/Ewaste/tabid/2377/Default.aspx

People

Until 15 May 2019: Key participants

Please provide name and institution for all people you list here.

Example for a list:

• Person 1
• Person 2