IGF 2023 | “Leveraging the FOC at International Organizations”

As Internet Freedom continues to decline globally, the Freedom Online Coalition (FOC) has a vital role to play in promoting values of democracy and human rights online. The FOC, established in 2011, is a group of 38 countries committed to protecting and promoting human rights online, including freedoms of expression, association, and peaceful assembly, and privacy rights. The FOC, the only multilateral organization solely dedicated to promoting and protecting human rights online, facilitates multistakeholder engagement at the intersection of technology and human rights by bringing government members into dialogue with technology companies, civil society organizations, and academics through the FOC Advisory Network (FOC-AN). The FOC is thus uniquely positioned to empower a diverse range of stakeholders to collaborate in ensuring the Internet and digital technologies remain free, open, interoperable, secure, and reliable.

In this session, Canada, the U.S. and the Netherlands, the past, current, and future government Chairs of the FOC, will be joined by two non-governmental FOC-AN stakeholders to discuss opportunities and challenges of using the FOC to advocate for human rights defenders (HRDs), civil society, journalists, and other stakeholders in multilateral institutions and processes. FOC advocacy tools include issuing joint statements and engaging in international organizations and multilateral processes and fora. Canada, the 2022 FOC Chair, will speak to the FOC’s engagement at the United Nations (UN), including in shaping UNESCO’s recommendations for “Ethics of Artificial Intelligence.” The United States, as the current chair of the FOC, will highlight capacity building efforts within the FOC to strengthen existing coordination efforts in diplomatic networks. The Netherlands will reflect on how to use the lessons learned over the past two years to enhance the FOC’s ability to shape global norms. FOC-AN stakeholders will share their perspectives from the civil society and/or private sector on the FOC’s advocacy efficacy within the UN system.

Read more by visiting https://intgovforum.org/en/content/igf-2023-open-forum-109-leveraging-the-foc-at-international-organizations.