The 1st Global Digital Rights Forum

The beautiful Llotja de Mar in Barcelona recently played host to the 1st Global Digital Rights Forum (Encuentro Derechos Digitales), an open forum dedicated to exploring the challenges of the modern digital landscape. The event focused on core themes such as cybersecurity, artificial intelligence, algorithmic accountability and how we can best guarantee an open and responsible public debate in an era of massive information and disinformation flows.

As digital spaces increasingly become the primary arena where we exercise our citizenship, ensuring that digital rights are treated with the same weight as fundamental human rights is at the absolute core of INNOVADE's mission.

INNOVADE in Action: Digital Rights and Vulnerable Groups

We were represented at the forum by María Ruiz de Assín de los Santos from our partner organisation, Cibervoluntarios. María took the stage to discuss her work to ensure vulnerable groups are meaningfully included in participatory processes during a dedicated panel session focused on digital rights, inclusion, and participation, with a powerful emphasis on addressing digital inequalities and safeguarding vulnerable groups.

The session brought together a panel of five female leaders representing various municipalities, NGOs, and European networks who are actively working on the ground to foster critical digital literacy, youth participation, and democratic governance in digital environments.

The panel highlighted a critical reality that mirrors the core objectives of INNOVADE: technical access alone is not enough. To build a resilient digital public sphere, we must intentionally design participation tools that break down structural inequalities and prevent the exclusion of marginalized voices.

The presentation sparked a high level of interest among the attendees, with many researchers, policymakers, and civic tech advocates eager to learn more about how INNOVADE is translating these high-level digital rights principles into practical, inclusive frameworks.

Thank you to the organizers and to everyone who joined the conversation in Barcelona!