Session
Organizer 1: Civil Society, Asia-Pacific Group
Speaker 1: Bridgette Ndlovu, Civil Society, African Group
Speaker 2: Tripathi Gyan Prakash, Civil Society, Asia-Pacific Group
Speaker 3: Pranav Bhaskar Tiwari, Civil Society, Asia-Pacific Group
Speaker 2: Tripathi Gyan Prakash, Civil Society, Asia-Pacific Group
Speaker 3: Pranav Bhaskar Tiwari, Civil Society, Asia-Pacific Group
Format
Classroom
Duration (minutes): 60
Format description: The classroom format, with participants seated facing the presenters, fosters a focused, dialogue-driven environment that aligns well with a 60-minute session. It allows speakers to present concise, structured insights while still encouraging active Q&A and brief interactive exercises. Given the complexity of digital public infrastructures and the need to unpack diverse cultural and rights-based dimensions, this setting ensures clear visibility, efficient information flow, and a coherent learning experience. Sixty minutes strikes the right balance—long enough to share robust findings and facilitate meaningful discussion, yet short enough to maintain attendees’ engagement.
Duration (minutes): 60
Format description: The classroom format, with participants seated facing the presenters, fosters a focused, dialogue-driven environment that aligns well with a 60-minute session. It allows speakers to present concise, structured insights while still encouraging active Q&A and brief interactive exercises. Given the complexity of digital public infrastructures and the need to unpack diverse cultural and rights-based dimensions, this setting ensures clear visibility, efficient information flow, and a coherent learning experience. Sixty minutes strikes the right balance—long enough to share robust findings and facilitate meaningful discussion, yet short enough to maintain attendees’ engagement.
Policy Question(s)
A. How can adopting a rights-based framework guide efforts to “rewild” the Internet and protect user autonomy, privacy, and freedom of expression?
B. What role should governments, private companies, and civil society each play in shaping governance structures that prioritize decentralization and inclusion?
C. What mechanisms or principles can ensure that rewilding does not exacerbate existing digital divides but instead fosters equitable access and participation?
What will participants gain from attending this session? Attendees will walk away with a deeper understanding of how rewilding the Internet fosters resilience, diversity, and user empowerment, all guided by fundamental human rights. They will discover how core principles like decentralization, open standards, and strong encryption can protect freedom of expression and privacy across different contexts. Through case studies and shared experiences, participants will gain practical strategies for challenging monopolistic structures and building community-led digital infrastructures. The session’s multi-stakeholder lens offers a unique opportunity to hear from policymakers, activists, and technologists, ensuring a balanced perspective that acknowledges diverse needs and interests. Attendees will also be equipped with a rights-based evaluation framework for assessing policy initiatives and corporate practices, enabling them to advocate more effectively within their own spheres. Additionally, participants will be connected to a network of peers, forging new partnerships and collaborations at the intersection of digital rights and governance.
Description:
In an age of rapid digital consolidation, “rewilding the Internet” offers a transformative vision: returning our online ecosystems to a more open, diverse, and democratic state. Drawing inspiration from ecological restoration, this approach seeks to dismantle the barriers erected by centralized governance, monopolistic business models, and exclusionary practices. By embracing decentralization, robust encryption, open standards, and inclusive participation, we can nurture an Internet that respects and reinforces fundamental human rights. A rights-based perspective on rewilding foregrounds values such as privacy, freedom of expression, and equitable access. It challenges top-down, corporate-led models that erode user agency and fragment global connectivity. Instead, it emphasizes structural changes that empower communities and end-users, ensuring the Internet remains a platform for innovation, creativity, and social good. As with ecological rewilding, this digital “restoration” cannot be dictated by any single stakeholder. Policymakers, civil society, technical communities, and private entities must collaborate, guided by frameworks that promote transparency, accountability, and interoperability. This panel will explore how a restored Internet—rooted in open protocols, peer-to-peer networks, and strong human rights safeguards—can catalyze economic opportunity, foster civic engagement, and protect vulnerable voices worldwide. Speakers will address emerging challenges, from state-led censorship to algorithmic discrimination, and highlight the promise of grassroots initiatives that build resilient local infrastructures. The discussion will underscore the necessity of sustained multi-stakeholder efforts to maintain a pluralistic digital commons. Ultimately, rewilding the Internet is not a retreat to a bygone era, but a progressive, rights-aligned blueprint for a future where technology serves humanity rather than subjugates it.
In an age of rapid digital consolidation, “rewilding the Internet” offers a transformative vision: returning our online ecosystems to a more open, diverse, and democratic state. Drawing inspiration from ecological restoration, this approach seeks to dismantle the barriers erected by centralized governance, monopolistic business models, and exclusionary practices. By embracing decentralization, robust encryption, open standards, and inclusive participation, we can nurture an Internet that respects and reinforces fundamental human rights. A rights-based perspective on rewilding foregrounds values such as privacy, freedom of expression, and equitable access. It challenges top-down, corporate-led models that erode user agency and fragment global connectivity. Instead, it emphasizes structural changes that empower communities and end-users, ensuring the Internet remains a platform for innovation, creativity, and social good. As with ecological rewilding, this digital “restoration” cannot be dictated by any single stakeholder. Policymakers, civil society, technical communities, and private entities must collaborate, guided by frameworks that promote transparency, accountability, and interoperability. This panel will explore how a restored Internet—rooted in open protocols, peer-to-peer networks, and strong human rights safeguards—can catalyze economic opportunity, foster civic engagement, and protect vulnerable voices worldwide. Speakers will address emerging challenges, from state-led censorship to algorithmic discrimination, and highlight the promise of grassroots initiatives that build resilient local infrastructures. The discussion will underscore the necessity of sustained multi-stakeholder efforts to maintain a pluralistic digital commons. Ultimately, rewilding the Internet is not a retreat to a bygone era, but a progressive, rights-aligned blueprint for a future where technology serves humanity rather than subjugates it.
Expected Outcomes
By attending this session, participants can expect a stronger grasp of how to incorporate a rights-based framework into Internet governance, drawing directly on decentralized and inclusive strategies for rewilding the digital ecosystem. They will also forge lasting connections with stakeholders across the policy, civil society, and tech spheres, creating vibrant networks poised to drive sustained advocacy. Through in-depth examinations of real-world projects, attendees will collect practical tools, case studies, and methodologies that can be adapted and replicated in their local contexts. Ultimately, this newfound perspective on human rights in Internet governance will embolden participants to champion open, diverse, and community-driven online environments wherever they work or advocate, catalyzing a collective movement toward a more equitable, participatory, and resilient digital future.
Hybrid Format: We will use a hybrid approach to guarantee that both onsite and online presenters are visible to all attendees, with a dedicated moderator overseeing live Q&A from each group. To ensure a balanced conversation, the moderator will alternate between in-person and virtual contributions, encouraging brief, focused comments or questions. Complementary digital technologies, such as a common chat and polling platforms (e.g., Mentimeter), will provide real-time feedback, interactive surveys, and rapid exchange of ideas. This arrangement allows individuals to provide insights regardless of their actual location. Furthermore, brief breakout conversations or polls will provide structured chances for participation, while on-screen representations of online participants promote inclusivity and equality in discussion.