Change in Motion: APC's Quarterly Digest on Global Digital Justice

• APC’s latest digest highlights global initiatives to promote digital justice, human rights, and environmental sustainability while countering corporate-driven AI risks.
• The network focuses on building community-centred infrastructure, advocating for rights-based AI regulation, and supporting digital rights activists amid shrinking civic space.

Key Issues in AI and Digital Rights

• APC is actively advocating for a human rights-based, feminist approach to AI governance at the UN, emphasizing transparency and accountability.
• Concerns persist regarding the environmental and human rights impact of extractive corporate AI models.
• Joint advocacy efforts, such as the statement regarding 7amleh’s report on Meta’s enablement of settlement activity, underscore the need for platform accountability.

Community-Centred Connectivity

• Initiatives like the LocNet project focus on local governance, funding mechanisms, and skill-building in Latin America, Africa, and Asia.
• Recent developments include the South Africa School of Digital Policy, community network bootcamps, and national strategies for connectivity in countries like Colombia, Nigeria, and the Philippines.

Protecting Rights and Promoting Justice

• Research initiatives are documenting technology-facilitated gender-based violence (TFGBV) and systemic digital inequalities, notably in Uganda, Kenya, South Africa, and the Philippines.
• Reports highlight digital repression and censorship in conflict zones, particularly in Myanmar and Palestine.
• New tools and platforms, such as Reportrix in Nigeria and Areopagítica for digital security, aim to provide grassroots organizations with essential protection and resources.

Sustaining Collective Resilience

• Organizations are shifting focus toward building commons-based digital infrastructure as an alternative to profit-driven Big Tech services.
• Strategic collaborations, such as the position paper on sustainable funding for the Global South, address the financial and operational challenges faced by digital rights defenders in an increasingly restrictive political climate.