Historically, digital rights communities have largely focused on the impacts of technology on civil and political rights, mobilizing rapidly in response to the violation of the rights to privacy, freedom of expression, and access to information. The climate crisis is an urgent call to action for the digital rights community to apply a climate justice lens to technology issues, expand the scope of its work, and learn and act in solidarity with environmental defenders, workers and impacted communities.
Through this wider scope of work, digital rights communities can help ensure that false tech solutions do not override meaningful action to address the root causes of environmental crises. Exploring potential points of collaboration to push for better governance is one crucial area of opportunity: environmental policy, principles and mechanisms for environmental governance offer frameworks for policy and standards to address the impacts of digital technologies. Some of the EU principles on environmental policy are already applied in the field of technological production and use, such as the management of electronic waste and polluter pays principle, which has driven calls for extended producer responsibility. On our panel, we will use the opportunity to explore where digital rights and climate justice advocates might combine forces to push for more effective governance mechanisms at the intersection of technology and climate issues.
Moderators:
- Becky Kazansky, The Engine Room and the University of Amsterdam
- Shawna Finnegan, Association for Progressive Communications (APC)
Speakers:
- Lili Fuhr, Center for International Environmental Law
- Paz Peña, Independent activist and researcher, gato.earth, Latin American Institute of Terraforming
- Plamen Peev, BlueLink Bulgaria