Description:

Digital technologies, applications, social media, AI and algorithms effect our daily lives, make our work more efficient, connect people and communities in real time and provide new business opportunities. Especially during the current Covid-19 crises, several communication tools and platform bring us closer together. However – there still are huge gaps in the digital era. Gaps in terms of gender, in terms of access, in terms of content, in terms of wealth, Hack the Gap will discuss in an interactive manner, how these gaps can be addressed and solved. Very concrete examples by digital social entrepreneurs from all regions world-wide will demonstrate solutions and approaches to involve more women in the development of digital solutions – provide access and new opportunities for people with disabilities – empower micro entrepreneurs with no digital knowledge from emerging markets or focussing on local digital content to reach new audiences. The workshop will be facilitated by the WSA – a global community and awards system initiated in 2003 in the framework of the UN World Summit on the Information Society. Since this time, WSA reaches out to all UN member states in order to highlight and compare best practice solutions in high quality digital, local content serving society and implementing the global goals for sustainable development. Hack the Gap will select proven digital solutions in the areas of gender, accessibility and local content from all world-regions and will use these examples for a multi-stakeholder dialogue, in order to come up with new ideas and perspectives how to make the Internet and the digital economy more inclusive and diverse.