Organised by the Executive Education programme at the Geneva Graduate Institute, this webinar offers international actors a timely briefing on the evolving landscape of global digital and AI governance.
Framed around recent developments from the AI for Good Summit and the WSIS+20 review, the session will unpack key outcomes and emerging expectations, ranging from potential regulatory frameworks and international cooperation to ethical considerations in AI deployment.
Beyond the substance of the summits, the discussion will also delve into their geopolitical significance, exploring how countries and stakeholders are positioning themselves on issues such as digital trust, AI regulation, and inclusive multistakeholder participation.
Designed as a concise explainer, the webinar provides an opportunity to better understand what’s at stake—and how to engage effectively in shaping the future of digital governance.
On July 6-7, 2025, Brazil will host the BRICS Summit at the Museum of Modern Art (Museu de Arte Moderna/MAM) in Rio de Janeiro. The BRICS partnership is based on three pillars of cooperation: political and security, economic and financial and cultural, and people-to-people exchanges. The annual summit will also see countries discuss environment, energy, science and technology, health and the inclusion of more civil society actors.
As the Chair of BRICS, Brazil is focusing on the theme, ‘Strengthening Global South Cooperation for More Inclusive and Sustainable Governance’. Brazil’s BRICS presidency outlines six priority areas.
First, Brazil aims to strengthen global health cooperation through joint projects that ensure access to medicines and vaccines, and by launching a partnership to eliminate socially determined and neglected tropical diseases.
Brazil supports reforming financial markets, promoting local currencies, and advancing industrial innovation through the 2030 Strategy and the Partnership for the New Industrial Revolution.
On climate change, it proposes a BRICS Climate Leadership Agenda and a Leaders’ Framework on Climate Finance to drive structural change in financial systems.
In the realm of AI, Brazil advocates for inclusive and responsible international governance to harness AI for development.
It also calls for reform of the multilateral peace and security system to better prevent conflicts and humanitarian crises, restore trust, and promote diplomacy.
Brazil seeks to improve the cohesion and operational effectiveness of the BRICS.
The Open-Ended Working Group (OEWG) will hold its eleventh substantive session on 7-11 July 2025 in New York, the USA. This will be the final session of the group’s work.
The OEWG was established in 2021 by UN General Assembly resolution A/RES/75/240. The group is tasked to continue to develop the rules, norms, and principles of responsible behaviour of states; discuss ways for their implementation, and to study the possibility of establishing a regular institutional dialogue with broad participation under the auspices of the UN. Also included in the group’s mandate is a study of existing and potential threats to information security and possible confidence-building measures and capacity development. Its composition is declared as open, allowing all UN member states that express a desire to participate.
For more information about the OEWG, please visit our dedicated page.
In 2025, the annual WSIS Forum is branded as the WSIS+20 High-Level Event, to marks the 20th anniversary of the original World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS), which was held in two phases: Geneva (2003) and Tunis (2005). The forum will take place from 7 to 11 July 2025 in Geneva, Switzerland, hosted by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) and co-organized by ITU, UNESCO, UNDP, and UNCTAD.
The event will serve as a platform for multistakeholder discussions on the implementation of WSIS Action Lines and on related progress, challenges, and opportunities since the adoption of the Geneva Plan of Action in 2003.
The Agenda and Programme for the WSIS+20 High-Level Event are being developed based on official submissions received during the Open Consultation Process (OCP). OCP is an open and inclusive consultation involving WSIS stakeholders, designed to help prepare the event by shaping its programme, identifying gaps in implementing the WSIS Action Lines and the Geneva Plan of Action, and contributing to the overall WSIS+20 review process. The final agenda and programme will be published shortly after the conclusion of the OCP.
The forum will be held ahead of the UN General Assembly High-Level meeting on the overall review of the implementation of the WSIS outcomes (the WSIS+20 review), to be held on 16-17 December 2025.
