Ethical Principles for Responsible Technology: Consultations come to Europe
By Constance de Leusse, Paul Fehlinger
Following successful consultations in Latin America (Costa Rica, June 2023) and Africa (Kenya, July 2023), the global multi-stakeholder initiative on Ethical Principles for Responsible Technology, spearheaded jointly by Project Liberty’s Institute and Aspen Digital, continued its worldwide engagement tour in Europe. On September 18, 2023, esteemed experts convened in Paris at Project Liberty's Institute's European headquarters, located on the new campus of Sciences Po.
How to build, invest in, deploy, regulate new technologies? Multistakeholder insights on the future of responsible innovation
Gathering over 40 stakeholders from governments, businesses, civil society and academia, the consultations enabled participants to explore complex questions around ethics, norms, governance and disruptive technologies.
Embracing an innovative format, the day-long session allowed participants to delve deeply into discussions, providing organizers with invaluable perspectives for this effort from mapping existing efforts, gathering insights, identifying shortcomings in the contemporary ecosystem, to identifying best practices.
Important points were raised by the participants regarding the interplay of ethical norms and the need for better processes for responsible innovation, as well as crucial challenges posed by business models, current governance frameworks and disruptive technologies. Participants agreed on the need to build frameworks that are both aspirational and operational.
What’s next?
Having conducted three successful consultations across South and Latin America, Africa, and Europe, the Ethical Principles for Responsible Technology initiative has reached its halfway mark. The initiative now sets its sights on the Asian continent and convenes consultations in Japan in early October on the sidelines of the United Nations Internet Governance Forum in Kyoto.
This global endeavor culminates in the anticipated open consultations on first draft principles and recommendations at the end of 2023, marking an important milestone in advancing responsible technological innovation. With each consultation, we inch closer to our collective efforts paving the way for a positive future where ethics and technological innovation work hand in hand.
Taking a 360-degree view on how we ‘build, invest in, deploy, and regulate’ across the entire innovation lifecycle. They emphasized the need for concrete operational guidance for policymakers, entrepreneurs, technologists, and investors. There was consensus that a diverse toolkit beyond just regulation is needed to steer the technology ecosystem towards a positive future.