The Internet Governance Forum (IGF) Multistakeholder Advisory Group (MAG) has announced calls for session proposals for the IGF 2024 scheduled to hold in Riyadh, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, from December 15 to 19, 2024. Proposals are expected to focus on any of the four sub-themes of the meeting, which will be held under the overarching theme, “Building our Multistakeholder Digital Future”.
The IGF 2024 will be organized in a hybrid format: physical and virtual, and welcomes participants at the physical venue in Riyadh as well as online. The goal is for all participants, whether onsite or online, to engage in an equally meaningful way in IGF sessions. It is therefore imperative that workshop and session organizers should consider elements of interactivity and accommodate the hybrid format in their proposals as the MAG will consider these elements of hybrid interactivity as a factor in a proposal’s overall rating.
The four subthemes of IGF 2024 programme are:
- Harnessing innovation and balancing risks in the digital space
- Enhancing the digital contribution to peace, development, and sustainability
- Advancing human rights and inclusion in the digital age
- Improving digital governance for the Internet We Want
These subthemes were agreed on during the IGF 2024 First Open Consultations and MAG Meeting, after review of inputs from the IGF 2024 thematic and stocktaking calls. The IGF’s thematic inputs and stocktaking processes are usually open to everyone as they form the basis of the MAG’s discussions and ensure programme topics are those deemed most critical and timely to Internet governance stakeholders and societies at large.
Stakeholders who plan to hold session at the IGF 2024 are strongly encouraged to look through the session types carefully and consider which is most suitable for their purposes. Workshops are the main substantive session type and are evaluated competitively by the MAG, due to space restrictions. Interested stakeholders should browse the session types and click on Learn more & Apply to be directed to the dedicated page where online applications can be submitted.
Sessions types at the IGF 2024 include Workshops, Open Forums, Launches and Awards, Lightning Talks, Networking Sessions, Dynamic Coalition Sessions, and National, Regional and Youth IGF Initiatives (NRIs) Collaborative Sessions open to different stakeholders who can use any of them.
Pre-events sessions will take place on the day before the IGF official programme begins and requesters are given the space to hold the events if their content is IG-relevant and appropriate. The MAG-IGF allocate space for these sessions on a first-come, first-serve basis and requested durations are granted based on availability, also taking into consideration regional and stakeholder balance as well as relevance.
The deadline for submitting proposals is April 30, 2024, 23:59 UTC.
For detailed information and to submit a proposal, please visit the IGF Session Proposal page.
