SDGs
In this contribution to the thematic report of the Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of the right to freedom of opinion and expression to the UN Human Rights Council, APC emphasises how meaningful access to the internet impacts social and environmental justice and development.
Our columnist reflects on how digitalisation has transformed, or at least changed the parameters, of our lives since the 1950s and where ‘digital transformation’ could head next.
We call on governments, industry, multilateral institutions, civil society and international financial institutions to close the digital divide by putting people at the centre of our approach to achieving meaningful connectivity for everyone.
APC welcomes the opportunity to comment on the First Draft Outline of the Report by the ITU Secretary-General for WTPF-21. In particular, we welcome WTPF-21’s emphasis on the potential contribution of information and communication technologies to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
If we’re worried about the volume of data that’s gathered about us every time we click a mouse or tap a smartscreen, surely there must be more than enough to tell us all we need to know about how the Information Society’s evolving. Not so, and especially not so when it comes to measuring the impact of ICTs on sustainable development.
Gender and internet governance emerged as one important takeaway for consideration and reflection during the IGF main session “Development, Innovation and Economic Issues: Focus on the SDGs”.
A new resource launched by GSMA, in collaboration with the Alliance for Affordable Internet, the World Wide Web Foundation and APC, provides an introductory guide for researchers to collect comparable and accurate data on women’s and men’s internet access and use.
Women are not a homogenous group and our access to technology is also affected by a number of other factors such as age, class, caste, race, ethnicity, income, culture, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity, abilities, urban or rural locality, etc.
Access to information and knowledge has been recognised as a key principle for achieving the WSIS vision since 2003. Information and knowledge for all are key for achieving the Sustainable Development Goals because they link to empowerment and mobility, enabling people to improve their lives.
Through a feminist lens that brings together economic justice and gender justice concerns, this paper traces the key elements of the right to access, right to knowledge and right to development in the network society, and chalks out strategic directions for feminist advocacy in relation to ICTs.
Association for Progressive Communications (APC) 2022
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