Debate with the EC about Next Generation Internet hot topics and calls for proposals (Paris, 21 June)

Manuella PORTIER, Director of European Affairs at Cap Digital, Member of NEM Steering Board and NGI French Contact Point

Jean-Dominique MEUNIER, NEM Chairman

In an age when interactive technologies such as AR / VR transform our social interactions by redefining our digital identities, how do we protect our personal data online?

Data openness and transparency are becoming a growing trend among tech industries and governments in view of creating a more human-centric and open Internet. Furthermore, actions are being taken to restore the users’ trust in the Internet. While international cooperation and decentralization of governance over personal data is thought to give control back to the users, how and when do we consider the openness to be too much?

Taking into consideration that companies have recently aligned with GDPR, data protection has to be taken into account at the early stages of creation, or as it is called in tech, “privacy by design”. Companies now have to adapt their policies to two conflicting trends: data openness and protection.

Jean-Paul Sartre once said “my freedom ends where the others’ begin”. We ask you, does open data end where data protection begins?

Panelists

Marta Arniani is a Horizon 2020 and technology social impact expert. She supports ecosystems of stakeholders and individual companies in designing open innovation projects, strategies and events to stay ahead of the digital transformation. Her interests lie in Digital Social Innovation, diversity and ethics in emerging technologies and innovation management. Marta curates a newsletter about tech and innovation social impact, called futuribile / curating futures.

Tristan Nitot, Advocacy Vice-President, Qwant

Tristan Nitot, 51 years, is an entrepreneur, author and renown speaker. He currently the VP for Advocacy at Qwant, the European search engine, where he brings his expertise in matters of privacy and Open Source communities. Before joining Qwant, Tristan was the Chief Product Officer of Cozy Cloud for three years. Cozy Cloud is a French start-up providing a personal Cloud Open Source solution respecting privacy. He has also been part of the non-profit project Mozilla (known for the browser Firefox) since the very beginning in 1998. He has initiated the creation of Mozilla Europe and has then been its president. In October 2016 he has published a book on surveillance and challenges of digital freedom. He has been a member of the National Digital Council where he has been focused on digital freedom. Since September 2015, Tristan is also a member of the prospective committee of the French Data Protection Authority (CNIL).

Régis Chatellier, Innovation & Foresight Project Manager, French Data Protection Authority (CNIL)

Régis Chatellier is member of LINC (Laboratoire d’Innovation Numérique), the new innovation and foresight laboratory of the CNIL: a triple project based on an online media (https://linc.cnil.fr), a physical space (for workshop, conferences, demos), and a research and experimentation platform. In 2017, LINC has published a report on “Smart City” and the need for new models for regulating city data that respect individuals and their freedoms.

Open data represents an opportunity in many sectors, but can’t go without respect of privacy, which remains a fundamental right for individuals. That doesn’t mean that privacy and open data have to be seen as “enemies”, which is sometimes the case. On the contrary, it’s possible to find a balance between open data and privacy. First of all, when data sets involve personal data, data can be opened after an anonymization process (in such a way that it can no longer be used to identify a natural person). In the same times, open data can’t be the only way of sharing data. More accurate data can sometimes be needed. In our last report, The Platform of a City, available online in French only) we explore four scenarios to organize the circulation of data, including personal data, in order to restore public and private spheres. These scenarios that can be useful to think beyond open data.

Paul Fehlinger, Deputy Director, Internet & Jurisdiction

Paul Fehlinger is the Deputy Director and Co-founder of the Internet & Jurisdiction Policy Network, a multistakeholder organization engaging over 200 key entities from governments, Internet companies, civil society, and international organizations around the world. Paul was appointed as a member of the Advisory Network of the Global Commission on Internet Governance, as well as of the Working Group on Rule of Law of the Freedom Online Coalition. He was also a participant in the Council of Europe’s Committee of Experts on Cross-border Flow of Internet Traffic and Internet Freedom, and the World Economic Forum’s Future of the Internet Initiative. Paul will address the future of Internet Governance. New digital technologies require new regulation – but how can we maintain the cross-border internet for future generations, given that laws are national, based on the principle of territorial sovereignty? He will also talk about the need for policy coherence and legal interoperability to maintain an open Internet, and why it is important to involve all stakeholder groups in the design of the governance frameworks for the digital society we want. Finally, he will highlight in this context the outcomes of our 2nd Global Conference of the Internet & Jurisdiction Policy Network.

Rehana SCHWINNINGER-LADAK, Head of  Data Application and Creativity Unit, DG Connect, European Commission

Rehana SCHWINNINGER-LADAK was appointed Head of the Unit “Data Applications and Creativity” in January 2018. The Unit ’s mission is to support the digital transformation of cultural and education institutions by i) promoting the digitisation of cultural heritage and its wider access and reuse through new technologies and the further development of Europeana as Europe’s platform for digital cultural heritage and ii) fostering the modernisation of education and training systems in an age of rapid technological changes.
To this end, the unit supports policy, research, innovation and the wider take up of interactive technologies, learning technologies and connectivity to allow European citizens to have a richer experience of cultural and educational content and to allow European businesses to create value from digital cultural heritage.
In her previous position at the European Commission, Rehana was the deputy Head of the Unit responsible for Learning, Multilingualism and Accessibility. Prior to it, she was closely involved in the development and follow-up of the European regulatory framework on audiovisual media and the Commission’s strategy on Data.

[12:30-13:30]

Networking Buffet