David Kaye is a clinical professor of law at the University of California, Irvine, and current Independent Chair of the Global Network Initiative. He is the former United Nations Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of the right to freedom of opinion and expression (2014-2020). His 2019 book, Speech Police: The Global Struggle to Govern the Internet (Columbia Global Reports), explores the ways in which companies, governments and activists struggle to define the rules for online expression.
Sessions
Beyond Pegasus: Improving Transparency, Rights Protection and Accountability in the Surveillance Tech Space
This session will explore lessons that can be learned from the Global Network Initiative’s history and work to promote responsible business conduct in the broader ICT sector, including the extent to which these initiatives may provide lessons for how (and how not) to improve transparency, rights protection, and accountability in the surveillance tech space.
FOC Task Force on Internet Shutdowns and Defending Democracy Online
This event will serve as the launch of the FOC’s Task Force on Internet Shutdowns. It will begin with a brief description of the task force’s structure and mission, led by speakers from the U.S. Department of State, Access Now, and the Global Network Initiative (GNI). These organizations are the task force’s founding chairs. The session will also feature breakout rooms engaging participants in answering two questions: How can well-intentioned governments protect individuals and democratic values online without resorting to Internet shutdowns? And what levers of influence can FOC members and partners use to influence the behavior of states that engage in Internet shutdowns?