GPPi will launch forum on digital freedom in Budapest
GPPi is helping to organize a 17 – 21 June 2013 forum in Budapest that brings together 40 undergraduate students from 20 countries for the final stage of the Global Debate and Public Policy Challenge (GDPPC)
. In Budapest the students will sharpen their public policy advocacy skills and compete for up to five $10,000 scholarships.
GDPPC is an annual program implemented by GPPi in collaboration with the International Debate Education Association, the European Council of Foreign Relations and the Central European University School of Public Policy. Open Society Foundations fund the project.
GDPPC offers undergraduates across disciplines and continents an opportunity to explore issues of global importance. The theme of this year’s challenge is “Digital Freedom and its Limits.” It focuses on questions of Internet governance, online censorship and freedom of expression. Students were asked over the course of the last nine months to explore in two written assignments what policies governments or other groups should adopt to enhance the potential of digital technology to benefit individuals and societies, and what limits on Internet freedom are legitimate and/or desirable. The Budapest Forum participants were selected based on the exceptional quality of their written submissions.
During the June forum, participants will discuss the most critical issues surrounding digital freedom with international experts and attend workshops on op-ed writing, public speaking and advocacy training. During the final two days of the competition, students will compete for the scholarships.
The keynote address for the forum will be delivered by Marietje Schaake, member of the European Parliament and rapporteur for the first EU strategy on digital freedom in foreign policy. In a public event on June 17, she will speak about “Digital Freedom in a Hyper-connected World.”
During another public event on June 18, Chair of the Global Network Initiative Jermyn P. Brooks will talk about “The Global Network Initiative, Freedom of Expression and Privacy Rights.”
Students will also discuss digital freedom and online censorship with Walid Al-Saqaf, a well-known Yemeni journalist and human rights activist.
Please visit the official project website for more details.