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Hello everyone,
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<p>APC and partners are hosting their ninth Disco-tech event in
conjunction with the 2019 Internet Governance Forum in Berlin,
on the evening of 26 November. We invite you to join us for this
peer-learning event about utlising the potential of ICTs in
strategies to mitigate and adapt to the climate crisis.<br>
<br>
<b>Event details</b></p>
<ul>
<li>Date and time: <b>Tuesday 26 November 2019 from 19:00 to
22:00</b></li>
<li>Venue: <b>TBC</b></li>
<li>Food: Refreshments will be served at 19:00 and a light
dinner will be provided during the break.</li>
</ul>
<p><b>An RSVP message will be sent once the venue is confirmed.<br>
</b></p>
<p><b>Disco-tech on ICTs and environmental sustainability</b></p>
<p>The Association for Progressive Communications (APC) and
partners are hosting their ninth Disco-tech event in conjunction
with the 2019 Internet Governance Forum (IGF) in Berlin, on the
evening of 26 November, in this ocassion with a focus on the
environmental impact of information and communications
technologies (ICTs).</p>
<p>Environmentally sustainable ICTs are past due. In recent
decades, predictions that capitalist innovations and ICTs would
automatically solve critical environmental issues such as
climate change have not only not been fulfilled, we have seen
the opposite. The expansion of ICTs has spurred production,
consumption and disposal of computers, mobile phones and
networking devices, increased energy consumption and increased
usage of transport and commerce, all of which are having adverse
effects on the Earth’s natural resources and on humanity.</p>
<p>Sustainability relates to the environmental and social
implications of the materials, energy and labour involved in
digital devices throughout the whole ICT cycle and ecosystem
(including formal and informal workers in the tech and e-waste
sectors, end-users, servers, network devices, cables,
radiation). A circular economy makes the most of resources and
minimises waste and pollution: used resources that become new
resources, keeping materials and products in use, and
regenerating natural systems.</p>
<p>Historical data, simulations and real-time satellite
observations can be processed quickly to track patterns and
inform decision making. Yet access to environmental datasets is
uneven at best, and many civil society groups around the world
continue to experience barriers to access this information,
despite improvements and commitments by governments to open
data.</p>
<p>We want to share, highlight, coordinate and find ways to scale
up best practices of electronics producers and consumers, policy
makers and civil society organisations who are doing something
to achieve lasting environmental and social justice about and
through technology and circular economy processes. We need to
create more resilient societies that mitigate environmental and
social impacts before climate change reaches crisis dimensions.</p>
<p>While many initiatives have succeeded in creating individual
and local awareness about the environmental impactof ICTs, much
greater understanding is needed about how the tech industry can
build more durable and environmental friendly devices, how our
own devices work or can be repaired, modified or enhanced, and
how devices can be reused and recycled for the benefit of our
neighbours.</p>
<p>Around the world, activists, engineers, researchers, social
enterprises and others are acting to make ICTs part of the
solution to the environmental emergency, and a great deal can be
learned from them.<br>
<br>
<b>What will we do?</b></p>
<p>In this edition, Disco-tech will provide a safe space for
participants to share their experiences in mitigating the
environmental and social impacts of ICTs, and facilitate the
cross-regional collaboration with key actors who can link local
struggles and global action.<br>
</p>
<p>Disco-tech 2019 will:</p>
<ul>
<li>Explore the indicators, challenges and opportunities that
define the situations we are facing and ways we can mitigate
environmental impacts and improve social resilience.</li>
<li>Bring to light personal and collective stories of ways to
handle the environmental impact of ICTs and improve people’s
lives at an individual, national or regional level.</li>
<li>Share related strategies, initiatives and actions, including
tech demos, policy ideas and advocacy strategies.</li>
</ul>
<p>Disco-tech is proactive. Presenters and participants will share
best practices and visionary ideas and make connections that
will have direct impact on their work. IGF attendees will be
able to access our work at an exhibition booth throughout the
conference. The booth is an exploratory space that will be used
for formal and informal meetings and to amplify key actions from
the evening event.<br>
<br>
<b>Provisional list of speakers</b></p>
<p>• Leandro Navarro, Pangea, Spain<br>
• Pavel Antonov, BlueLink, Bulgaria<br>
• Manfred Santen, Greenpeace, Germany<br>
• Alexandra Lutz, working at the European Parliament, France<br>
• Florencia Roveri, Nodo TAU, Argentina<br>
• Anulekha Nandi, Digital Empowerment Foundation, India<br>
• Kemly Camacho, Sulá Batsú, Costa Rica<br>
<br>
<br>
<b>About Disco-tech</b></p>
<p>Disco-techs are informal evening events that are designed as
learning exchanges, to bridge the gaps between technical and
political solutions to attacks on internet rights and freedoms.
In order to ensure meaningful exchanges between techies,
activists and policy advocates, informal discussions in a
comfortable setting are sparked by stimulating short
presentations during an evening event the day before a major
forum like the IGF or RightsCon.</p>
<p>Disco-techs have been held at the IGF since 2013 and have
focused on Counter-surveillance and Cybersecurity (2013), the 16
Days of Activism to End Violence Against Women and Girls
campaign (2013), Internet Censorship, Blocking and Filtering
(2014), Privacy and Anonymity as Fundamental Rights (2015),
Community Networks (2016), Criminalisation of Tech Expertise
(2017), and Disability and Accessibility to the Internet (2018).
A special Disco-tech on internet shutdowns in Africa was held on
the eve of RightsCon Tunis in June 2019.</p>
<p>Best regards, <br>
</p>
<p>Valeria Betancourt<br>
APC<br>
</p>
<br>
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