Find out more about 2024 UK IGF event.
| Timing Schedule | Session Title | Session Overview |
|---|---|---|
| 09:00 – 09:15am | Welcome and Opening of IGF | Introduction to the day and overview of key sessions and themes. |
| 09:15 – 09:55am | Keynote address | By Baroness Jones, DSIT Minister for Online Safety and the Future Digital Economy |
| 10:00 – 10:55am | Panel discussion: How can we foster digital inclusion in the UK? | The Covid-19 pandemic changed the way that we engage with – and rely upon – technology, exposing the digital divide in the UK. Digital inclusion is now an essential part of everyday life – as more vital services go online, those without access to the internet or an appropriate device to get online are disproportionately affected. Moreover, the online world is becoming increasingly complex, and it’s important that the internet is accessible and easy to navigate to everyone. This panel will explore how industry, government and the third sector can work together to achieve this. |
| 11:00 -11:20am | Break | |
| 11:25 – 12:25pm | Panel discussion: How can we achieve effective multistakeholder cooperation on digital governance? | The nature of the global Internet requires effective multistakeholder governance, continued efforts by all stakeholders to address digital issues and the promotion of greater cooperation. This panel discussion will identify ways to strengthen and support the open, transparent, inclusive and bottom-up governance process related to the use and evolution of the Internet, working towards the vision of achieving the Internet We Want. |
| 12:20 -1:15pm | Lunch | |
| 1:20 – 2:15pm | Panel discussion: The governance and regulation of AI | With increasing emergence of ML and generative AI tools and more widespread adoption, this session will focus on how AI can be regulated – or in fact whether it should be – whilst exploring any potential policy concerns or immediate actions needed. Panellists will discuss the governance and / or regulation of AI between themselves before opening up questions to the audience for consideration. |
| 2:20 – 3:15pm | Panel discussion: What is the impact of misinformation and disinformation on democracy and what can we do to prevent it? | One of the biggest potential threats to our democracy and values is the spread of misinformation and disinformation. This could be news created for profit or other gain, disseminated through state-sponsored programmes, or the deliberate distortion of facts by groups with a particular agenda, including the desire to influence outcomes of political elections. This discussion is more relevant than ever given the number of significant national elections taking place this year, including the US election taking place on the same day as UK IGF. |
| 3:20 – 3:40pm | Break | |
| 3:45 – 4:40pm | Panel discussion: 20 years on from WSIS – where are we now and where should we go next? | The UN World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) process is focused on the digital development agenda with the goal of building a “people-centred, inclusive and development-oriented Information Society”, tracking progress against action lines established in two phases: Geneva in 2003 and Tunis in 2005. The WSIS process also gave the UN Internet Governance Forum its mandate, which will come up for renewal in 2025 as the UN undertakes a 20-year review of WSIS. This panel provides the opportunity to reflect on the successes of WSIS over the past 20 years and to consider the future beyond 2025. |
| 4:45 – 5:15pm | Keynote speaker | |
| 5:20 – 5:30pm | Closing remarks | Closing remarks from the comperes to sum up the discussions of the day |