Event summary
Diplo Week in Geneva featured a series of open-door events for participants to learn about cutting-edge AI applications and data analysis tools that Diplo has developed, as well as other exciting findings from Diplo’s research factory.
Between 7 and 11 November, Diplo focused on a different crucial theme pertinent to digital technologies each day: digital development and inclusion, AI and data management, humanitarian diplomacy, and cybersecurity.
Diplo Week in Geneva also featured:
- a pre-release presentation of Diplo’s study Stronger African Digital Voices;
- the official launch of the Geneva Digital Atlas 2.0 which comprehensively maps out the digital policymaking and internet governance ecosystem in International Geneva;
- opening of an art exhibition featuring the work of Prof. Vladimir Veljašević.
Event recording
Event description
We’re celebrating our 20th anniversary with Diplo Week in Geneva!
Throughout Diplo Week, we’ll offer a series of open-door events where you can learn all about the latest AI applications and data analysis, how to use them in online meetings, and discover brand new online teaching methods!
All time in CET
7 November – Digital Development and Inclusion Day
The main focus of this day will be on digital inclusion and development in Africa.
9.00 – 13.00
Digital economy and innovation in Africa
This session is only open to UNOG permanent mission heads of African Union member states.
Pre-release presentation of ‘Stronger African Digital Voices’
The African study will be pre-released to ambassadors of African countries in Geneva. The official launches will take place during two high-level events:
- Summit on Digital Diplomacy and Governance in Malta on 18 November (English)
- Francophone Summit at Djerba on 19-20 November (French)
Reserved only for African Permanent Missions to the UN in Geneva
15.00 – 16.30
Digital inclusion: from cables to skills and multilingualism
Digital inclusion starts with telecom infrastructure and access that should be affordable. However, effective digital inclusion requires much more, including digital skills, local content in local languages, policy frameworks, and economic empowerment.
This session will address 12 aspects of digital inclusion holistically. It is particularly relevant for actors and officials in development.
Venue: WMO building, Attic | 7bis Avenue de la Paix, Geneva
17.00 – 18.00
Press conference: Find answers that aren’t on Google
- If you’re cyberattacked, who do you call?
- Why is more than half of digital governance happening in Geneva?
- Will AI replace journalists and diplomats?
- Is bottom-up AI possible while protecting personal and communal data? Is amassing big data by tech giants the only way to develop AI?
- Will the internet fragment due to the current geopolitical climate?
- Can AI draft a peace treaty?
- Why are 1998 and 2025 so important for digital governance?
Can’t find the answers to these questions with Google? Then join us for the Press Conference & Diplo Week!
Venue: WMO building, Attic | 7bis Avenue de la Paix, Geneva
8 November – Geneva Digital Atlas and Arts Day
11.00 – 12.30
Launch of Geneva Digital Atlas 2.
The Geneva Digital Atlas is the comprehensive map of the digital policy and internet governance ecosystem in International Geneva. It provides in-depth coverage of the activities of 50 actors, analysis of policy processes, and a catalogue of all core instruments and events.
The digital policy issues and processes in the atlas are analysed by the GIP Digital Watch Observatory.
12.30 – 13.30 – Lunch Reception
Venue: WMO building, Attic | 7bis Avenue de la Paix, Geneva
13.30 – 14.00
Opening exhibition | Diplomacy through the eyes of the artist
The exhibition features 50 selected illustrations drawn from the work of Prof. Vladimir Veljasevic over the last two decades. He created these illustrations for Diplo’s courses, awareness-building activities, and research. They focus on the practice of diplomacy, AI, internet governance, climate change, and other issues addressed by diplomats worldwide.
For exhibition visitors, Prof. Vladimir Veljasevic will be available for discussions until 18.00.
9 November – AI and Data Day
The AI debate needs to move beyond fear and hype. Understanding how AI works is essential to tackle AI governance in informed and effective ways. It is the first step toward establishing AI within the core human values as promoted by our humAInism initiative.
Against this backdrop, you can learn more about practical AI and data tools developed by Diplo for use in diplomacy. Diplo’s experts will explain the basics behind AI and data management, using concrete examples related to your work.
If your interest is in more technical and epistemological issues, you can learn about Diplo’s management of three types data: structured (databases), semistructured (knowledge graphs), and unstructured (machine-learning).
As always, walking the talk, our team has used AI to draft this text and develop the visuals, sound, t-shirts, and organising other aspects of the meetings.
10.00 – 11.15
Can data help us make better decisions?
Data support is becoming an indispensable part of current policy discussions. During this session, you can look inside diplomacy and data management systems by using the practical applications of particular relevance for International Geneva.
11.15 – 11.45 – Coffee break
11.45 – 13.00
Can AI draft peace treaties?
Negotiating and drafting peace treaties is one of the most challenging tasks in diplomacy. It involves various societal, security, economic, and personal interplays among negotiators. During this session, you will learn more about what AI can do and what its limits are in building peace agreements. You will also learn how to use non-structured text (free text) to generate new texts using machine learning and neural networks during this session.
13.15 – 14.00 Brown-bag lunch: Ask everything you want to know about AI and data!
14.30 – 15.45
Can AI report from diplomatic meetings and conferences?
Hundreds of meeting and negotiation reports are drafted every day. Diplomats, international officials, and media experts spend much time reporting to capitals, superiors, and the general public.
This session will discuss how AI can help the reporting processes. Diplo will share experiences from years of reporting from the UN General Assembly, UN Cybersecurity processes (UN GGE and OEWG), and the UN Internet Governance Forum. On a more technical side, you can learn how Diplo approaches reporting as a semi-structured data task with some structured data (meta info of events, participants, agenda, policy context) and some non-structured data (transcripts of discussions).
15.45 – 16.15 – Coffee break
16.15 – 17.30
Can AI organise a conference?
You can learn how AI can help the preparations of conferences, meetings, and other events by following all phases in an event cycle:
- selection of theme for event (relevance, presence) and speakers,
- drafting of agenda, summary, and background note,
- preparations of visuals (logo, backdrops, accessories)
- preparations of jingle and video
- reporting and follow-up
We will ‘walk the talk’ by presenting how we used AI and other tools to organise this AI and Data Day!
Venue: Attic, WMO building, 7bis Avenue de la Paix, Geneva
19.00
AI Developers dinner
(Reserved for AI developers)
This session is intended for developers and researchers working on AI and data. You will get the most out of the discussion if you understand the basic concepts of data analysis and machine learning. Diplo’s AI and Data team looks forward to joint research activities and projects with other organisations and researchers in the field.
10 November – Humanitarian Diplomacy Day
10.00 – 13.00 (hybrid event)
The Humanitarian Diplomacy Day is designed to encourage in-person and online discussion around these and other pertinent questions:
- Can humanitarian diplomats contribute to workable solutions in an environment of mistrust in multilateralism?
- How to address the challenges of safeguarding digital humanitarian data?
- How to conduct humanitarian diplomacy in practice?
The event will also highlight the 10 years of cooperation between Diplo and the International Federation of the Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) delivering the Humanitarian Diplomacy online course, including the promotion of the collection of best research papers produced by the course participants during the past 10 years in a booklet titled Humanitarian Diplomacy Course: Reports on Action.
Hybrid event with speakers and audience on the spot, at the WMO building, and registered online participants.
Ten years of cooperation between Diplo and IFRC: Humanitarian Diplomacy
10 Years Statistics
Graduates from 122 countries
593 participants (334 from RCRC, 89 NGO, 50 IGO, etc)
Research themes of significance are OD/HD (127), Migration (108), Conflict (143) and more
Promotion of the HD booklet and discussion
Closing remarks
Informal reception
Venue: WMO building, Attic | 7bis Avenue de la Paix, Geneva
Negotiations and mediation in the Digital Era (tbc)
The session will discuss the use of data, AI, and social media in negotiations and mediation.
Venue: WMO building, Attic | 7bis Avenue de la Paix, Geneva
11 November – Cybersecurity Day
11.00 – 12.30
Cyberattacked: Who do you call?
Is there a single telephone number where we can call for effective help during or after cyberattacks as we have with physical security? Are there corporate and government help desks and call centres to deal with cyber emergencies?
Venue: WMO building, Attic | 7bis Avenue de la Paix, Geneva
