Internet Governance: IGF Italia 2012

Internet Governance: IGF Italia 2012
Status: 
concluded
Period: 
October 2012 - October 2012
Funding: 
mainly in kind by the organizers (about 4 Nexa men-months), + about 25,000 € from sponsors
Funding organization: 
Nexa Center for Internet & Society, Top-Ix Consortium, CSP – Innovazione nelle ICT, Fondazione Torino Wireless, Camera di Commercio di Torino, Regione Piemonte, Google (main sponsor), Vodafone (sponsor)
Person(s) in charge: 

Juan Carlos De Martin (scientific coordinator); Raimondo Iemma (Nexa project manager).

Executive summary: 

IGF Italia 2012 was held in Torino between October 18 and 20, 2012, with the Nexa Center acting as scientific coordinator. Aimed at preparing the Italian participation in the global IGF held in Baku three weeks later, IGF Italia encompassed 400 registered attendants, 60 speakers, and 8 thematic sessions, ranging from Network Neutrality to Open Data.

Background: 

Promoted by the UN since 2006, the Internet Governance Forum (IGF) is a multi-stakeholder forum for discussions on public policy issues related to key elements of Internet Governance. Besides an annual global meeting, national fora are autonomously organized. Since its first edition (Cagliari, 2008), IGF Italia is supported by core group of institutions, including the Institute of Informatics and Telematics of the National Research Council, the Internet Society Italy, and the Nexa Center. On the occasion of IGF Italia 2011, the Nexa Center published the work of Antonella Pizzaleo Giulia, entitled Internet Governance - Analysis of technological and regulatory assumptions, of theoretical principles, and goals of historical development.

Objectives: 

Consistently with the previous editions, the main objective of IGF Italia 2012 has been to prepare the Italian participation in the global IGF scheduled for November 6-9 in Baku, Azerbaijan. IGF Italia 2012 focused on four main thematic domains: The Italian digital divides; Infrastructures; eGovernment; Digital Agendas. All stakeholders were involved on an equal basis, with the entire process designed to be inclusive.

Results: 

IGF Italia 2012 hosted an average of 100 attendants during each of the three days of the conference works. In total, 60 speakers were involved within 8 parallel sessions, and keynote speeches were given by selected guests such as Janis Karklins (Assistant Director-General for Communication and Information Sector at UNESCO), Francesco Profumo (Italian Minister for Education, University and Research), Stefano Rodotà (former chairman of the Italian Data Protection Authority), Vinton Cerf (Chief Internet Evangelist at Google), and Constance Bommelaer (Director of Public Policy at Internet Society). Amongst the topics discussed in thematic roundtables (with a constant participation from the audience), network neutrality, open data, and the interplay between the digital agendas promoted at the different administrative levels.