Environmental sustainability is a widely discussed issue, but how much do we really know about the impact of the technologies we use on the environment? To promote better understanding of the impact of digital technologies on the environment and the importance of respecting planetary boundaries, APC is hosting a special edition of our #EcoThursday initiative.
Join us this #EcoThursday, 25 May, to engage with experts from the global South working with rural and Indigenous communities on sustainable approaches to the design, production and use of technology.
When? Thursday, 25 May, 13.00-16.00 UTC
Where? On social media: mostly Twitter, but also Facebook, Instagram and Mastodon, with the hashtags #EcoThursday and #PlanetaryBoundaries.
Discussing planetary boundaries
The convening will include a Twitter chat, where you will have the opportunity to engage with civil society organisations from different parts of the world working on digital technologies with an environmental justice perspective: Sulá Batsú in Costa Rica, Intervozes in Brasil, Digital Empowerment Foundation in India and TEDIC in Paraguay. They will be joined by journalists, academics, technologists and environmentalists.
Since this conversation will be taking place just a few days before the 2023 RightsCon event happening in Costa Rica on 5-8 June, the environmental sustainability priorities that participants plan to address at RightsCon will also be discussed during this EcoThursday.
In the words of Costa Rican organisation Sulá Batsú, which works with young Latin American women on imagining and designing new technologies, “governments and corporations should listen to Indigenous communities’ concerns and see whether technology serves their needs. In this context, repair and a circular economy are key.”
According to TEDIC, which works with the Comité de Mujeres Kuña Aty de Táva Guaraní and Chile’s Instituto Terraformación in Paraguay, “any sustainable approach needs to consider the intersections between digitalisation, rural communities, environmental justice and gender equality.”
More information
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Follow #EcoThursday and #PlanetaryBoundaries on social media
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See this article for more background on EcoThursday
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Engage with APC through our main accounts on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and Mastodon (@apc@mastodon.social)
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For interviews, media coverage and other press inquiries, contact APC’s media outreach lead Leila Nachawati at leila@apc.org.