Thirty participants came together to identify key issues and develop creative, hitherto unimagined and bold solutions to challenges to gender equity and digital inclusion.
From April 28 - April 30th, under the aegis of the multi-sectoral, international EQUALS-EU project, the Gender Centre hosted a gender equity and digital inclusion Innovation Camp. The Innovation Camp focussed on “Feminism and Women’s Leadership in International Law and Policy", in locations from Maison de la Paix, to the United Nations Library and Archives, to the Impact Hub, Geneva. Around thirty participants from different walks of life came together to identify, unpack, and dive into key issues under EQUALS-EU’s key thematics – gender equity and digital inclusion – and then, through an innovation process, work together in seven teams to workshop and ideate creative, hitherto unimagined and bold solutions to those same challenges and problems which they had identified as dear to them.
Thanks to the joint efforts and dedication of experts and volunteers involved in the Innovation Camp, each team was able to present truly potent, empowering solutions for a better world.
The EQUALS-EU Innovation Camp opened with a panel discussion entitled To Solve or Not to Solve?... Critical Approaches to Advancing and Innovating for Gender Equity and Digital Inclusion held in collaboration with the IHEID Feminist Collective. The discussion was deeply inspiring and particularly comprehensive in its elucidation of existing, desired, and utopic pathways and needs for forging gender equity and digital inclusion. The discussion served the second purpose of critically unpacking and distancing participants from a technocratic approach to innovation: What are the challenges we must be mindful of in identifying and fashioning solutions and pathways for gender equity and digital inclusion? How can intersectional identities be built into new digital tech and how do we ensure inclusive gender norms in ways we design tech? These were some of the motivating questions guiding this panel.
The next day, participants undertook a series of interactive workshops including one focussed on intersectionality, to another led by the UNHCR’s Innovation Team. Having already interacted with experts throughout the morning, their day finally culminated in intimate discussions with subject-area experts, whereby participants were able to refine and garner feedback on their budding ideas from theorists, policy-makers, and an artist.
The final morning of the Innovation Camp, teams were invited to finalise their ideas and pitches before presenting these to a panel of judges: from the gaming industry, to voice recognition technologies, innovative pedagogical methods and tackling revenge porn, the ideas were varied. Following a key-note speech by Lili Ben Ami, the winning team composed of Juliette Miatello, Meike Lenzer and Laura Cestaro, with their solution tackling revenge porn, was announced. Inspired by a deep desire to support those women and people whose lives had been forever altered by this harassment, the team invented an incredible, winning solution.
Over the course of two and half intensive days, the Innovation Camp produced a potent, truly felt experience of sisterhood and togetherness amongst a group of dedicated, energising people who had only met a few days prior. We cannot wait to bolster, and build up this unparalleled network of women and minority genders.