Day 1 - Wednesday 6 March
8.00 Registration and light breakfast
9.00 Opening Plenary
The event was called to order with a friendly and fast-paced kickoff that includes words of welcome from hosts, brief participant introductions, along with overviews of the agenda, participation guidelines and meeting logistics.
9.30 Sharing and Comparing Leadership Journeys
We kicked off the program with interactive small-group storytelling that invites a number of participants to share their lived experiences, analysis, and perspectives including lessons learned and challenges they’ve had to overcome along their policy journeys.
Topics discussed included:
- Overcoming imposter syndrome by denying its existence
- Being effective as a generalist amongst issue experts
- Getting results within reformist structures
- Allies for professional development: finding the right mentor
- Effectively navigating bureaucratic constraints to drive influence
- Bridging policy contexts from Kenya to Hungary
- Cultivating a niche as an independent voice in policy
- Bringing leadership from other movements into digital rights
- Transitioning from research into policy
- Best practices in bridging movements
10.45 Break
11.00 Interactive Policy Spotlights
Building on the stories and shared conversations started, we explored a range of ongoing and key policy issues. These sessions were interactive and designed to allow participants to exchange ideas, collectively strategise and find ways to collaborate to advance policy outcomes. Sessions include:
- Finding equity, empowerment in “Algorithmic love”
- Fixing harmful recommender systems
- Amplifying youth perspectives on digital rights
- Online gender based violence from a black feminist perspective
- Developments on the EU security agenda and impact on marginalised voices
- Mapping opportunities and pathways to incorporate environmental perspectives in digital policy: the DSA and beyond
- Applying a racial justice lens on the AI Act
- Broadening the policy landscape to include grassroots movements
- Identifying and countering election disinformation in the age of AI
12.30 Lunch
Participants were encouraged to sit with those who they have not yet met or engaged.
14.00 Lenses on Digital Policy Leadership
These breakout sessions invited participants to explore and share knowledge on topics identified in pre-event engagement. Facilitators briefly introduced the objective of each session, and participants elected to join the session of their choice. Report-backs were done at the end of the session slot.
Sessions on offer were:
- Breaking the digital rights bubble: the need for an intersectional approach to digital policy
- Essential tactics for engaging Big Tech in 2024
- Applying feminist perspectives on Lobbying
- Forging shared leadership models
- Practicing Digital Self Care
- Overcoming the “Cruelty of Policy Work”
- Measuring policy impact even when we don’t get the outcome we want
- Forging equitable partnerships with Global Majority regions
- Bridging policy and grassroots to enhance citizen voices
15.30 Break
15:45 Deepening our Collective Connections
We closed Day 1 in a format that allows participants to better connect with one another and explore areas of shared interest and common passion by forming into pairs and taking a walk in the local neighborhood.
16.30 Closing Plenary
The closing session invited participants to weigh in on what has been most useful during the course of Day 1, and refine their goals and priorities for the agenda of Day 2.
17.00 Adjourn to Apéro
The apéro was hosted in the foyer area of La Tricoterie.
19.00 Apéro ends
Participants were encouraged to self-organise small-group dinner outings.
Day 2 – Thursday 7 March
8.00 Coffee and Light Breakfast
9.00 Opening Plenary
The day started with a summary of Day 1 outcomes and a Day 2 Agenda Overview.
9.15 Doing the Work: Exploring the skills of digital policy leadership
Focus at the start of Day 2 turned to the day-to-day aspects of digital policy leadership. Sessions included:
- Being radical in reformist environments
- Bringing the disruption and fun into policy work
- Key tactics and strategies for engaging tech companies in 2024, Part II
- Advancing language justice in policy contexts
- Incorporating a climate lense on digital policy
- Sharing mistakes and lessons learned in our work
- Exploring labour perspectives in digital policy
- Strategically and coherently engaging with companies and governments
- Civil society responses to facilitate global actions of solidarity
10.45 Break
11.00 Participant Peer Skill Share
Participants were encouraged to request or share any skill they consider relevant to the meeting scope. The session was structured so as to minimise group size and maximise 1-on-1 sharing opportunities.
12.30 Lunch
Participants were again encouraged to sit with those who they have not yet met or engaged.
13.30 Collaborative Working Sessions
The final round of collaborative learning dialogues was populated with topics proposed by participants during the event. Some discussions went deeper on topics already explored, while others will move in new and different directions. Sessions included:
- Towards more effective enforcement of EU laws
- Equitable Brussels effect
- Bridging research and policy development
- Exploring dimensions of the European Health data space
- Developing privacy preserving approaches to age verification and protecting encryption: what we can do right now?
- Sharing and exchanging leadership styles and approaches
- Enhancing cross-movement solidarity
- Collectively Influencing the new EU mandate
15.00 Break
15.15 Mapping Where From Here
The group paused before the final session to take stock of the progress made to this point in the week and to inventory action items, next steps and other bridges to post-event collaboration.
16.15 Closing Plenary
Participants summarised key outcomes from the event, shared appreciations, and discussed next steps for continuing collaboration after the meeting.
17.00 Adjourn to Apéro
The apéro was hosted in the foyer area of La Tricoterie.
19.00 Apéro ends
Participants were encouraged to self-organise small-group dinner outings.