PDAF2024: 7amleh Launches Agenda and Opens Registration for the Forum’s 8th Edition

May 2, 2024, 7amleh - the Arab Center for the Advancement of Social Media, launched the agenda for the Palestine Digital Activism Forum 2024 (PDAF) in its 8th edition, under the theme "Artificial Intelligence (AI): Revolutionary Promises & Discriminatory Realities." Registration for the forum - which will take place online on June 4th and 5th, is now open. The forum aims to put Palestinian digital rights in the spotlight both regionally, and globally, as it discusses various aspects of AI technologies’ impact on Palestinian digital rights and its permeation into various aspects of life, especially during times of crises and the war on Gaza.

The forum is organized in collaboration with 45 partner organizations, and will host over 60 local, regional, and international speakers and trainers who will be integral parts of the forum. Speakers include Sam Gregory- Executive Director of WITNESS, which supports human rights defenders and civic journalists worldwide using video and technology. Gregory will discuss ensuring a globally-inclusive response to deceptive AI technologies including deepfakes and synthetic media. The forum will also be joined by Antony Loewenstein, author of “The Palestine Laboratory: How Israel Exports the Technology of Occupation Around the World” and one of the foremost experts on how the state of Israel uses technological advancements to further its occupation of the Palestinian Territory, and recently during the war on Gaza. Additionally, the Palestinian Minister of Telecommunications and Digital Economy, Dr. Abdul Razzaq Natsheh will join the forum to address the situation in the devastated Gaza Strip, including the ministry's vision for rebuilding the telecommunications infrastructure after the destructive war in the Strip; From Spain, we will be joined by Tish Sidi, Member of the Spanish Congress and a Human Rights Defender and spokesperson for digital transformation and economy for Sumar, who currently leads a specialized team in Big Data. From the US, Senator Elizabeth Warren-will join us to speak on protecting the public and developing ethical AI; Last but not least, Dr. Timnit Gebru- Founder and Executive Director of The Distributed AI Research Institute (DAIR), will lead a session on Technological Exacerbated Oppression. In the forum, speakers from major tech companies will participate, such as Dr. Rida Qadri, Researcher at Google. From TikTok, we will be joined by Malak Jaafar- Outreach and Partnerships Manager for the Middle East, North Africa and Turkiye, Fergal Browne- Outreach and Partnerships Manager focusing on Hate and Hateful Behavior as well as Kathryn Grant- Policy Transparency Manager, Trust & Safety,  Research API Outreach Lead.

Therefore, the 8th edition of the PDAF 2024 aims to open a platform for discussion, dialogue, and suggestion of policy and practical proposals on AI and Palestinian digital rights. This year, for the 8th consecutive year, we will meet at PDAF 2024, for Palestinian human rights supporters, activists, human rights defenders, journalists, civil society workers and social media companies, and governments aiming to study, understand and discuss the different impacts of AI. On the first day of the forum, we will discuss policies related to AI and their impact on human rights. The second day will include workshops led by specialized trainers in various fields on information analysis and combating technological and political deception, such as: “AI-Assisted Iterative Development of Social Impact Projects” and "Natural Language Processing (NLP) Frontiers: Diverse Experiences in Combating Hate Speech Through AI” in addition to other fields where the AI can improve daily life and protect privacy and human rights, such as “The impact of AI’s commercialisation on Gender” and "Social Media Intelligence Gathering (SOCMINT) as a tool of repression and how to regulate for the protection of human rights ." 

We invite you to view the agenda of PDAF 2024 by visiting the forum's website.