Here you can watch or re-watch the six sessions of the Tech for Democracy conference 2021. Together, we want to build momentum for action.

On 18 November 2021, the international conference Tech for Democracy took place in the UN City in Copenhagen and virtually. The goal of the conference was to power up a multi-stakeholder push for protecting and promoting democracy and human rights in an era of rapid technological development. You can find the full programme and learn more about the speakers further down the page.

 

Meet the speakers

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  • 30 All
  • 16 Civil society
  • 4 Tech industry
  • 4 Multilateral organisations
  • 4 Government representatives
  • 2 Artists
  • Achim Steiner is Administrator of UNDP, United Nations Development Programme.
    Achim Steiner
  • Andrew Sushko is a lawyer, an expert in the fields of human rights, public administration and digital transformation.
    Andrew Sushko
  • Anne Marie Engtoft Larsen is Denmark’s Tech Ambassador.
    Anne Marie Engtoft Larsen
  • Arthur Larok is Federation Development Director ActionAid International.
    Arthur Larok
  • Aya Chebbi is a multi award-winning Pan-African feminist, former African Union Youth envoy and founder and chair of Nala Feminist Collective.
    Aya Chebbi
  • Brett Solomon is the co-founder and Executive Director of the organisation Access Now.
    Brett Solomon
  • Cecilie Waagner Falkenstrøm is an award-winning artist working with artificial intelligence.
    Cecilie Waagner Falkenstrøm
  • Eileen Donahoe is working with digital and cyber policies at Stanford University.
    Eileen Donahoe
  • Eric H. Loeb is the Executive Vice President of Global Government Affairs
    Eric H. Loeb
  • Farida Bemba Nabourema is the Executive director of Togolese Civil League.
    Farida Bemba Nabourema
  • Flemming Møller Mortensen is Denmark's Minister for Development Cooperation.
    Flemming Møller Mortensen
  • Journalist Ikenna Azuike is a lawyer, journalist and the host of the Tech for Democracy conference 2021.
    Ikenna Azuike
  • Jeppe Kofod is Denmark's Minister for Foreign Affairs.
    Jeppe Kofod
  • Julie Owono is the Executive Director of the Content Policy & Society Lab (CPSL) and a fellow of the Program on Democracy and the Internet (PDI) at Stanford University.
    Julie Owono
  • Lea Kaspar is the Executive Director of GPD, a UK-based organization working to develop a digital environment underpinned by human rights.
    Lea Kaspar
  • Liv Marte Nordhaug serves as a Co-Lead of the Digital Public Goods Alliance (DPGA)
    Liv Marte Nordhaug
  • Maria Ressa is co-founder of the Philippine news network Rappler and winner of the Nobel Peace Prize 2021.
    Maria Ressa
  • Maria-Francesca Spatolisano is the Assistant Secretary-General for Policy Coordination and Inter-Agency Affairs, UN DESA.
    Maria-Francesca Spatolisano
  • Nanajira Sambuli is a fellow at the Technology and International Affairs Program, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.
    Nanjira Sambuli
  • Sir Nick Clegg is Vice President of Global Affairs and Communications at Meta.
    Nick Clegg
  • Niels Tanderup Kristensen is the Director of Global Affairs at the tech-company cBrain.
    Niels Tanderup Kristensen
  • Rebecca MacKinnon is Vice President at Wikimedia.
    Rebecca MacKinnon
  • Sara Katrine Brandt is Policy Advisor at the Danish platform for NGOs, Global Focus,
    Sara Brandt
  • Senel Wanniarachchi is Co-founder & Director of Hashtag Generation - an organisation led by a group of young tech-savvy Sri Lankans.
    Senel Wanniarachchi
  • Shanthi Kalathil is Deputy Assistant to the President and Coordinator for Democracy and Human Rights on the National Security Council in the US. She coordinates democracy policy and oversees the work of the democracy and human rights directorate.
    Shanthi Kalathil
  • Sinéad McSweeney is Vice President of Public Policy and Philanthropy at Twitter Ireland.
    Sinéad McSweeney
  • Chief Executive Officer at South Africa Human Rights Commission.
    Tseliso Thipanyane
  • Věra Jourová is the Vice President of the European Commission for Values and Transparency.
    Věra Jourová
  • CEO of the Institute of Analysis & Advocacy think tank and Generation17 young leader.
    Yurii Romashko
  • Yvette Alberdingk-Thijm is Executive Director of the organisation WITNESS.
    Yvette Alberdingk-Thijm
2:00 pm18 Nov

Opening session

Welcome to the virtual conference by host Ikenna Azuike and the Danish ministers Jeppe Kofod, Minister for Foreign Affairs, and Flemming Møller Mortensen, Minister for Development Cooperation.

The ministers will in brief set the scene and stress Denmark’s commitment with the Tech for Democracy initiative.
2:00 pm18 Nov

Opening session

Welcome to the virtual conference by host Ikenna Azuike and the Danish ministers Jeppe Kofod, Minister for Foreign Affairs, and Flemming Møller Mortensen, Minister for Development Cooperation.

The ministers will in brief set the scene and stress Denmark’s commitment with the Tech for Democracy initiative.
Speakers
  • Journalist Ikenna Azuike is a lawyer, journalist and the host of the Tech for Democracy conference 2021.
    Ikenna Azuike
  • Jeppe Kofod is Denmark's Minister for Foreign Affairs.
    Jeppe Kofod
  • Flemming Møller Mortensen is Denmark's Minister for Development Cooperation.
    Flemming Møller Mortensen
2:08 pm18 Nov

Session 1: Making tech work for, not against, democracy and human rights

Moderated by Denmark’s Tech Ambassador Anne Marie Engtoft Larsen, key stakeholders from civil society, the tech industry and the EU will discuss and outline the key challenges and opportunities for democracy and human rights in the digital era. The session will discuss questions such as:

How can technology enhance democratic values and practices such as inclusion, transparency and accountability to restore trust in democracy? What are the tools at hand for paving a way forward, and what is the emancipatory potential for tech in present day democracies around the world? How can democratic governments, parliaments, and the people they represent get back in the driver’s seat of technological development?
2:08 pm18 Nov

Session 1: Making tech work for, not against, democracy and human rights

Moderated by Denmark’s Tech Ambassador Anne Marie Engtoft Larsen, key stakeholders from civil society, the tech industry and the EU will discuss and outline the key challenges and opportunities for democracy and human rights in the digital era. The session will discuss questions such as:

How can technology enhance democratic values and practices such as inclusion, transparency and accountability to restore trust in democracy? What are the tools at hand for paving a way forward, and what is the emancipatory potential for tech in present day democracies around the world? How can democratic governments, parliaments, and the people they represent get back in the driver’s seat of technological development?
Speakers
  • Anne Marie Engtoft Larsen is Denmark’s Tech Ambassador.
    Anne Marie Engtoft Larsen
  • Andrew Sushko is a lawyer, an expert in the fields of human rights, public administration and digital transformation.
    Andrew Sushko
  • Journalist Ikenna Azuike is a lawyer, journalist and the host of the Tech for Democracy conference 2021.
    Ikenna Azuike
  • Yvette Alberdingk-Thijm is Executive Director of the organisation WITNESS.
    Yvette Alberdingk-Thijm
  • Eileen Donahoe is working with digital and cyber policies at Stanford University.
    Eileen Donahoe
  • Maria Ressa is co-founder of the Philippine news network Rappler and winner of the Nobel Peace Prize 2021.
    Maria Ressa
  • Sinéad McSweeney is Vice President of Public Policy and Philanthropy at Twitter Ireland.
    Sinéad McSweeney
  • Julie Owono is the Executive Director of the Content Policy & Society Lab (CPSL) and a fellow of the Program on Democracy and the Internet (PDI) at Stanford University.
    Julie Owono
  • Věra Jourová is the Vice President of the European Commission for Values and Transparency.
    Věra Jourová
2:41 pm18 Nov

Session 2: Democratic Values In a Digital Future  

Following the first session, this session introduces a geopolitical perspective on the issue of tech, democracy, and human rights. We find ourselves between one side working for a more democratic global governance of technological development, and on the other side the global rise of authoritarianism becoming increasingly more digital.

The opening keynote by Eileen Donahoe will address the issue of the rising geopolitical tensions anchored in the technological development, and what democratic states need to do differently in charging the way forward for a democratic digital future and to combat the spread of digital authoritarianism. Then, in a fireside chat, participants will address the role and responsibilities of civil society and tech companies in navigating this new geopolitical landscape. How do we build in democratic values in the development, dissemination and application of new technologies?
2:41 pm18 Nov

Session 2: Democratic Values In a Digital Future  

Following the first session, this session introduces a geopolitical perspective on the issue of tech, democracy, and human rights. We find ourselves between one side working for a more democratic global governance of technological development, and on the other side the global rise of authoritarianism becoming increasingly more digital.

The opening keynote by Eileen Donahoe will address the issue of the rising geopolitical tensions anchored in the technological development, and what democratic states need to do differently in charging the way forward for a democratic digital future and to combat the spread of digital authoritarianism. Then, in a fireside chat, participants will address the role and responsibilities of civil society and tech companies in navigating this new geopolitical landscape. How do we build in democratic values in the development, dissemination and application of new technologies?
Speakers
  • Journalist Ikenna Azuike is a lawyer, journalist and the host of the Tech for Democracy conference 2021.
    Ikenna Azuike
  • Brett Solomon is the co-founder and Executive Director of the organisation Access Now.
    Brett Solomon
  • Niels Tanderup Kristensen is the Director of Global Affairs at the tech-company cBrain.
    Niels Tanderup Kristensen
  • Eileen Donahoe is working with digital and cyber policies at Stanford University.
    Eileen Donahoe
  • Maria-Francesca Spatolisano is the Assistant Secretary-General for Policy Coordination and Inter-Agency Affairs, UN DESA.
    Maria-Francesca Spatolisano
3:06 pm18 Nov

Session 3: Artificial Intelligence - A Human Creation with Human Impact

This section dives deeper into the humanistic aspect of the technological development, and in this discussion we highlight artificial intelligence (AI) - the new and most important technologies of today. Technology is not just about coding, machine learning, hardware, raw materials, policy papers and regulation. It is about people. Humans. Those that have created, designed, developed and innovated the codes and algorithms, but also those whose lives are affected by the very same technologies.

We dive into specific concerns such as biases, inadequate representation and digital inequality. But also how AI can contribute to a more democratic digital future. Through the artistic space, AI-artist Cecilie Falkenstrøm shows the utopia and dystopia of our digital future and extend the human imagination showing human fears and hopes for the future of tech and democracy.
3:06 pm18 Nov

Session 3: Artificial Intelligence - A Human Creation with Human Impact

This section dives deeper into the humanistic aspect of the technological development, and in this discussion we highlight artificial intelligence (AI) - the new and most important technologies of today. Technology is not just about coding, machine learning, hardware, raw materials, policy papers and regulation. It is about people. Humans. Those that have created, designed, developed and innovated the codes and algorithms, but also those whose lives are affected by the very same technologies.

We dive into specific concerns such as biases, inadequate representation and digital inequality. But also how AI can contribute to a more democratic digital future. Through the artistic space, AI-artist Cecilie Falkenstrøm shows the utopia and dystopia of our digital future and extend the human imagination showing human fears and hopes for the future of tech and democracy.
Speakers
  • Cecilie Waagner Falkenstrøm is an award-winning artist working with artificial intelligence.
    Cecilie Waagner Falkenstrøm
  • Journalist Ikenna Azuike is a lawyer, journalist and the host of the Tech for Democracy conference 2021.
    Ikenna Azuike
  • Nanajira Sambuli is a fellow at the Technology and International Affairs Program, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.
    Nanjira Sambuli
3:19 pm18 Nov

Session 4: New Solutions for tech for democracy and human rights: bringing in global and local voices

This session highlights voices from a range of stakeholders from around the world. Civil society, youth representatives, and other non-state actors from across governance eco-systems will present their experiences and evidence on challenges and opportunities on how to drive a progressive agenda for an open, safe, and inclusive digital world where technology works for democracy and human rights.

The session is jointly facilitated by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and Global Focus and will be kicked off by Executive Director of the Togolese Civil League, Farida Nabourema, followed by a message from the UNDP Administrator, Achim Steiner. Based on a series of roundtables with Southern Voice, a network of +50 think tanks in the Global South, and a scan of the horizon for some of the most promising pro-democracy digital projects taking place today, the session takes the audience on a roundtrip across the globe to present key challenges and approaches on how to make digital technology a vehicle for democracy and human rights.
3:19 pm18 Nov

Session 4: New Solutions for tech for democracy and human rights: bringing in global and local voices

This session highlights voices from a range of stakeholders from around the world. Civil society, youth representatives, and other non-state actors from across governance eco-systems will present their experiences and evidence on challenges and opportunities on how to drive a progressive agenda for an open, safe, and inclusive digital world where technology works for democracy and human rights.

The session is jointly facilitated by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and Global Focus and will be kicked off by Executive Director of the Togolese Civil League, Farida Nabourema, followed by a message from the UNDP Administrator, Achim Steiner. Based on a series of roundtables with Southern Voice, a network of +50 think tanks in the Global South, and a scan of the horizon for some of the most promising pro-democracy digital projects taking place today, the session takes the audience on a roundtrip across the globe to present key challenges and approaches on how to make digital technology a vehicle for democracy and human rights.
Speakers
  • Achim Steiner is Administrator of UNDP, United Nations Development Programme.
    Achim Steiner
  • Flemming Møller Mortensen is Denmark's Minister for Development Cooperation.
    Flemming Møller Mortensen
  • Journalist Ikenna Azuike is a lawyer, journalist and the host of the Tech for Democracy conference 2021.
    Ikenna Azuike
  • Senel Wanniarachchi is Co-founder & Director of Hashtag Generation - an organisation led by a group of young tech-savvy Sri Lankans.
    Senel Wanniarachchi
  • Liv Marte Nordhaug serves as a Co-Lead of the Digital Public Goods Alliance (DPGA)
    Liv Marte Nordhaug
  • Chief Executive Officer at South Africa Human Rights Commission.
    Tseliso Thipanyane
  • CEO of the Institute of Analysis & Advocacy think tank and Generation17 young leader.
    Yurii Romashko
  • Farida Bemba Nabourema is the Executive director of Togolese Civil League.
    Farida Bemba Nabourema
4:04 pm18 Nov

Session 5: How do we make change and inspire action?

In this session, we focus on the need for action and demonstrate how to “walk the walk and talk the talk”. What initiatives, partnerships and actions can bring about real change to make tech work for democracy and human rights? The two central pillars of the Tech for Democracy initiative, the Copenhagen Pledge, and Action Coalitions will be presented to guide and inspire action. Other initiatives and partners will present their visions and actions with the aim of inspiring further action and displaying how the Tech for Democracy initiative complements existing efforts.
4:04 pm18 Nov

Session 5: How do we make change and inspire action?

In this session, we focus on the need for action and demonstrate how to “walk the walk and talk the talk”. What initiatives, partnerships and actions can bring about real change to make tech work for democracy and human rights? The two central pillars of the Tech for Democracy initiative, the Copenhagen Pledge, and Action Coalitions will be presented to guide and inspire action. Other initiatives and partners will present their visions and actions with the aim of inspiring further action and displaying how the Tech for Democracy initiative complements existing efforts.
Speakers
  • Anne Marie Engtoft Larsen is Denmark’s Tech Ambassador.
    Anne Marie Engtoft Larsen
  • Journalist Ikenna Azuike is a lawyer, journalist and the host of the Tech for Democracy conference 2021.
    Ikenna Azuike
  • Shanthi Kalathil is Deputy Assistant to the President and Coordinator for Democracy and Human Rights on the National Security Council in the US. She coordinates democracy policy and oversees the work of the democracy and human rights directorate.
    Shanthi Kalathil
  • Rebecca MacKinnon is Vice President at Wikimedia.
    Rebecca MacKinnon
  • Lea Kaspar is the Executive Director of GPD, a UK-based organization working to develop a digital environment underpinned by human rights.
    Lea Kaspar
  • Sara Katrine Brandt is Policy Advisor at the Danish platform for NGOs, Global Focus,
    Sara Brandt
4:21 pm18 Nov

Session 6: Where do we go from here?

This final session will focus on what we need to do individually and collectively as the tech industry, civil society, multilateral organisations, and governments to make tech a tool for democracy and human rights, while also confronting any challenges that may arise. Learning from past mistakes, what do we need to do differently, and how?

The session opens with the Danish Minister for Foreign Affairs, Mr. Jeppe Kofod, giving a short recap of the conference: What are the most important takeaways from the conference sessions; why the Tech for Democracy initiative matters; and hopes for the way forward. The subsequent panel focuses on how to take action and committing to make tech work for, not against, democracy and human rights.
4:21 pm18 Nov

Session 6: Where do we go from here?

This final session will focus on what we need to do individually and collectively as the tech industry, civil society, multilateral organisations, and governments to make tech a tool for democracy and human rights, while also confronting any challenges that may arise. Learning from past mistakes, what do we need to do differently, and how?

The session opens with the Danish Minister for Foreign Affairs, Mr. Jeppe Kofod, giving a short recap of the conference: What are the most important takeaways from the conference sessions; why the Tech for Democracy initiative matters; and hopes for the way forward. The subsequent panel focuses on how to take action and committing to make tech work for, not against, democracy and human rights.
Speakers
  • Jeppe Kofod is Denmark's Minister for Foreign Affairs.
    Jeppe Kofod
  • Journalist Ikenna Azuike is a lawyer, journalist and the host of the Tech for Democracy conference 2021.
    Ikenna Azuike
  • Sir Nick Clegg is Vice President of Global Affairs and Communications at Meta.
    Nick Clegg
  • Aya Chebbi is a multi award-winning Pan-African feminist, former African Union Youth envoy and founder and chair of Nala Feminist Collective.
    Aya Chebbi
  • Arthur Larok is Federation Development Director ActionAid International.
    Arthur Larok