|

Asia Pacific Regional Internet Governance Forum 2026 Synthesis Document – Draft 0

The Process 

The APrIGF 2026 Synthesis Document shall bring together key discussions, ideas, and outcomes emerging from the Asia Pacific Regional Internet Governance Forum meet, held during October 4-7, 2026, in Kathmandu, Nepal, in hybrid mode. With the overarching Forum theme of “Safeguarding a Resilient Internet in Times of Crisis”, it shall capture issues that matter to the region and contribute to wider discussions on the future of Internet governance. APrIGF 2026 will take place against the backdrop of recent natural catastrophes in Nepal, causing widespread loss of life, displacement, and infrastructure damage. Over the years, the Synthesis Document has become an important knowledge resource of APrIGF and has encouraged similar documentation efforts by other national and regional Internet governance initiatives.

The document is being prepared by the 2026 Drafting Committee, with support from the APrIGF Secretariat. Contributions from the wider APrIGF community will be invited through two public input rounds and the APrIGF 2026 Townhall sessions. Participants may share their comments and suggestions through the APrIGF online consultation platform https://comment.aprigf.asia during the input periods, helping to strengthen and reflect the diverse regional perspectives in the final document.

Preamble

The Asia Pacific Regional Internet Governance Forum (APrIGF) 2026 will bring together stakeholders from the Asia-Pacific region to discuss key issues shaping the future of the Internet and digital governance. The Forum is being held in Nepal at a time when Internet resilience is being challenged on multiple fronts, including during the recent natural catastrophe in Nepal and the efficacy of subsequent  crisis response mechanisms.

APrIGF 2026 focuses on the overarching theme: “Safeguarding a Resilient Internet in Times of Crisis.” The theme recognises the need to keep the Internet available, reliable, secure, trusted, and inclusive during crises such as natural disasters, conflicts, cyber threats, and infrastructure disruptions.

The 2026 discussions will focus on four key sub-themes:

  1. Future of APrIGF & Multistakeholder Ecosystem
  2. AI Governance for Good
  3. Digital Resilience and Building of Trust
  4. Universal and Meaningful Connectivity

APrIGF 2026 will provide an equitable space for governments, civil society, the technical community, private sector, academia, youth, and other stakeholders to share experiences and collectively contribute to a resilient and inclusive digital future for the Asia-Pacific region.

Relevant inputs from other sessions and Town Halls will be incorporated as the Synthesis Document develops.

Track 1: Future of APrIGF & Multistakeholder Ecosystem

With the permanent mandate of the Global Internet Governance Forum (IGF) under the UN aegis, the APrIGF is entering a period in which its institutional role, methods of participation, and regional relevance require renewed attention. The IGFs’ permanent mandate provides greater continuity, but it also raises questions about how APrIGF can remain representative, connect national, sub-regional, and youth Internet governance initiatives, and convert Asia-Pacific (APAC) priorities into sustained participation with useful and sustainable outcomes. 

A total of three sessions and a special track, an Open Dialogue Roundtable, are scheduled under this sub-theme:

  1. The Algorithmic Breach: Brevity Bias, Cognitive Sovereignty, and the Case for a Duty of Care in South and Southeast Asia
  2. From Local Evidence to Regional Dialogue: Trust, Inclusion, and an Open Internet in the Age of AI
  3. Special Track: APrIGF-WGIGP Open Roundtable on “Role of APrIGF in Implementing the Permanent Mandate of the IGF”

Considering the discussions that are expected to be held during these sessions, Track 1 approaches this wider institutional agenda through two key major connected governance challenges as priorities: shared responsibility for child safety online, and the preservation of an open, inclusive and trustworthy Internet as artificial intelligence increasingly mediates online experiences. The Track also considers APrIGF’s role in connecting local and regional evidence with the wider IGF ecosystem, including the evolving post-WSIS agenda, the permanent IGF mandate and coordination among national, sub-regional and regional initiatives. 

Therefore, two general topics can be derived under this thematic track: (1) A Safer Internet for Children in APAC; and (2) Trust, Inclusion and an Open Internet in the Age of Artificial Intelligence in Asia-Pacific. 

1. A Safer Internet for Children in APAC

1.1 The Algorithmic Breach: Brevity Bias, Cognitive Sovereignty, and the Case for a Duty of Care in South and Southeast Asia

This fireside chat explores how ultra-short-form content and algorithmic pacing may affect children and youth across South and Southeast Asia, shifting the focus from harmful content alone to the way platforms design and deliver it. The session contributes to APrIGF’s wider discussions on human rights, child safety, and platform accountability by bringing locally produced evidence into regional policy dialogueDrawing on metadata analysis of more than 180 content units and a review of child-protection laws in Nepal and India, the session will discuss the harms inherent to current approaches and the limitations of existing frameworks. To address these gaps, the session proposes a Cognitive Duty of Care and an Asian Digital Safety Accord, alongside measures on algorithmic transparency, pacing controls and regional cooperation.

2. Trust, Inclusion and an Open Internet in the Age of Artificial Intelligence in Asia-Pacific

2.1 From Local Evidence to Regional Dialogue: Trust, Inclusion, and an Open Internet in the Age of AI

This panel discussion examines how artificial intelligence is reshaping trust, inclusion, and openness on the Internet across the Asia-Pacific. Using findings from the Taiwan Internet Report as a starting point, the session will compare local experiences, rather than treat one national context as representative of the region. This session directly considers how APrIGF can turn local evidence into regional dialogue, strengthening cooperation across Internet governance communities.The discussion will bring together registries, civil society, technical organisations, and local Internet communities to explore digital inclusion, AI literacy,, privacy, platform dependency, user agency, and the role of language and culture in shaping meaningful access. It will also examine how these groups can cooperate in practice and how local evidence can strengthen user agency, trust, and inclusive participation.

Special Track: Open Roundtable on the Role of APrIGF in Implementing the Permanent Mandate of the IGF

The open roundtable organised by the APrIGF Working Group on Global Internet Governance Processes (AP-WGIGP) explores how APrIGF can support implementation of the IGF’s permanent mandate by strengthening the link between local, national, regional, and global Internet governance processes. The session directly addresses the future role of APrIGF under the permanent IGF mandate: bringing Asia-Pacific priorities into the global IGF process while translating global discussions into regional cooperation, research, partnerships and policy action.

Using Internet resilience during natural disasters as its central case, it will draw on experiences from Nepal and other disaster-prone countries to examine preparedness, continuity of service, and recovery when essential communications are disrupted.

The discussion will focus on how Asia-Pacific countries can move from reactive emergency connectivity to long-term preparedness. Key issues for discussion will include fibre and mobile networks, Internet exchange points, data centres, resilient power systems, satellite connectivity, community networks, early-warning systems and emergency communication plans along with the needs of remote and vulnerable communities. The roundtable will consider how governments, operators, technical organisations, civil society, humanitarian agencies and communities can coordinate before crises, share lessons across countries and turn regional evidence into practical policy recommendations and action.

Track 2: AI Governance for Good

AI is emerging as a key enabler for sustainable development, yet its governance for the public good remains a critical challenge. This sub-theme invites contributions from the APAC region on advancing AI responsibly while addressing its broader societal, economic, cultural, and ethical implications. It explores how to bridge AI divides by improving digital skills and capacity and emphasizes the importance of safe, secure, and trustworthy systems. Central to this is building public trust by embedding human rights into the development of AI governance through transparency and accountability. It also examines AI’s role in sustainability, crisis response, and peacebuilding, alongside the need for robust data governance and regulatory readiness to support inclusive innovation. 

A total of seven sessions are scheduled under this sub-theme:

  1. AI in the Kill Chain: Accountability, Human Control, and the Case for a Binding Regime in Asia Pacific 
  2. From Compliance to Confidence: How Asia’s Startups Are Shaping the Future of AI Governance
  3. Governing AI Training Data in the Asia-Pacific: Transparency, Verifiability, and Creator Rights 
  4. The Right to Be Forgotten by AI: Who Owns Human Knowledge in the Age of Foundation Models? 
  5. Seeing the Bias: A Regional Interactive Ideation Workshop on AI Bias, Misinformation, and Inclusive Digital Futures 
  6. Governing Generative AI in South Asia and Southeast Asia: Addressing Electoral Manipulation and Political Campaign Risks & Ensuring Electoral Integrity through Resilient Digital Practices 
  7. Assistive Technology for Meaningful Participation and Successful Integration in Education and the Workplace 

Considering the discussions that are expected to be held under this thematic track, there are three possible general topics: (1) Responsible AI Governance; (2) AI and Information Integrity; and (3) Bridging the AI Divide: Access, Skills, and Capacity. 

1. Responsible AI Governance

1.1 . AI in the Kill Chain: Accountability, Human Control, and the Case for a Binding Regime in Asia Pacific 

This lightning talk examines the use of artificial intelligence in military and conflict settings, focusing on AI-enabled targeting and autonomous weapons. It explores how AI is used in active conflicts with an absence of binding international rules fueling the challenge of ensuring meaningful human control and accountability. The session highlights the urgency for Asia-Pacific given geopolitical tensions, gaps in domestic regulatory frameworks, and limited representation of youth and civil society. 

1.2. From Compliance to Confidence: How Asia’s Startups Are Shaping the Future of AI Governance

This fireside chat examines how Asia-Pacific’s fragmented AI governance landscape affects startups and smaller digital businesses. Drawing on research across India, Malaysia, and South Korea, this session  will discuss how compliance requirements can disadvantage smaller innovators compared with larger incumbents. The discussion will explore regulatory sandboxes, common audit frameworks, and mutual recognition arrangements to build trust in AI systems. Participants will also consider how emerging APAC economies can contribute to shaping AI governance norms and share their experiences.

1.3. Governing AI Training Data in the Asia-Pacific: Transparency, Verifiability, and Creator Rights 

This showcase examines the transparency and verifiability of AI training data in the Asia-Pacific region. It explores challenges creators face in determining whether their works have been used to train AI models through the lens of three real-life examples: the Books3 dataset controversy, Japan’s copyright exceptions, and Korea’s AI Basic Act. The session considers the broader governance question of why existing international copyright instruments and technical tools may fall short.. Presenters will invite participants to share views and identify possible regional principles around transparency, creator rights, opt-out mechanisms and multistakeholder oversight.

1.4. The Right to Be Forgotten by AI: Who Owns Human Knowledge in the Age of Foundation Models? 

This panel discussion examines whether the “right to be forgotten” remains meaningful once personal data, cultural records, and community knowledge have been used to train foundation models. It explores questions of ownership, consent and accountability in AI training, including whether AI systems can or should “forget,” and what safeguards are needed when knowledge cannot realistically be removed from a trained model. The issue is especially relevant to Asia Pacific given the region’s linguistic diversity, indigenous knowledge systems, and cultural archives. Speakers from Canada, India, and Pakistan will explore this topic through a variety of stakeholder perspectives., 

2. AI and information integrity

2.1. Seeing the Bias: A Regional Interactive Ideation Workshop on AI Bias, Misinformation, and Inclusive Digital Futures 

This interactive workshop explores how AI-generated misinformation amplifies stereotypes and discrimination against women, LGBTQI+ persons, persons with disabilities, minorities, journalists, and human rights defenders. Participants will work in small groups to analyse AI-generated images, text and case studies, identify hidden bias, and create visual posters illustrating their findings. The session will generate co-designed practical recommendations on AI transparency, platform accountability, AI literacy, and inclusive AI design.

2.2. Governing Generative AI in South Asia and Southeast Asia: Addressing Electoral Manipulation and Political Campaign Risks & Ensuring Electoral Integrity through Resilient Digital Practices  

This roundtable examines how generative AI is reshaping elections across South and Southeast Asia, from deepfakes to automated influence operations, and the risks these pose to electoral integrity.. It draws on recent experiences such as Nepal’s 2026 election and emerging challenges elsewhere in the region.The session will bring together civil society, media, academic, and election management perspectives on how the region can detect and respond to AI-enabled manipulation. The session will explore practical recommendations for strengthening electoral integrity while protecting freedom of expression and political participation.

3. Bridging the AI Divide: Access, Skills and Capacity

3.1. Assistive Technology for Meaningful Participation and Successful Integration in Education and the Workplace 

This panel discussion explores how assistive technologies and AI-enabled tools can support the meaningful participation of persons with disabilities in education and work across Asia Pacific. It explores barriers to meaningful participation in education, training, and employment, including a lack of accessible and affordable digital tools… Guided by the principle of “Nothing About Us Without Us,” speakers from throughout Asia Pacific will cover education, employment, policy, technology, innovation and community perspectives.

Track 3: Digital Resilience and Building of Trust

This sub-theme examines how to strengthen the Internet’s ability to withstand disruption while sustaining user confidence in an increasingly complex environment. Discussions will cover cybersecurity, infrastructure resilience, and responses to information disorder, alongside security and privacy by design. Relevant topics include child safety, cyberscams, surveillance, freedom of expression, platform governance and the roles of digital actors, and digital sovereignty, as well as resilience issues such as infrastructure and human capacity caused by fragmentation, natural disasters and geopolitical conflicts.

A total of sixteen sessions are scheduled under this sub-theme: 

  1. Community Wi-Fi and Cyclone Alert Systems for Marginal Fisher Villages Barguna, Coastal Bangladesh to Improve Internet and Save Lives
  2. Who Gets a Say? A Regional Dialogue on Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) Governance in Asia-Pacific
  3. Connected but Not Safe? Rethinking Digital Inclusion Through the Experiences of Young Women in Taiwan
  4. From Shutdown to Solidarity: Co-Designing a South Asia Rapid-Response Protocol for Internet Shutdowns
  5. EcoInternet Index (EII): APAC Leads the Way
  6. Backdoors, Blackouts, and Big Tech: Mapping Encryption Rules Across the Asia Pacific — and Filling the Southeast Asian Gap
  7. Community Radio in the Digital Era: Strengthening Internet Resilience and Trusted Communication in South Asia
  8. From Technical Debt to Strategic Liability: Artificial Intelligence, Cyber Resilience, and Internet Governance in the Asia-Pacific
  9. A Guide to Integrating Gender to Cybersecurity Policy
  10. Let’s Measure the Internet: RIPE Atlas for APAC Digital Resilience
  11. When An Energy Crisis Becomes a Connectivity Crisis
  12. Surveillance by Design: Digital ID, Data Protection and the Trust Crisis in South Asia
  13. Drawing the Line: Online Harm, Queer Expression, and Platform Governance in Asia-Pacific
  14. Building the Next Generation of Pacific Cybersecurity Professionals: Partnerships, Skills and Regional Resilience
  15. When Submarine Cables Go Dark: From Public Fear to Internet Governance through Open Research and Community Engagement
  16. Appealing Hate Speech- Using the Grievance Appellate Committee to Hold Platforms Accountable

Under this thematic track, there are five general topics:(1) resilient infrastructure in conditions of disruption; (2) measuring and sustaining Internet resilience; (3) cybersecurity as a technical, governance and capacity challenge; (4) governing digital public infrastructure and personal data; and (5) safety, rights and resilience in contested digital environments.  

1. Resilient infrastructure in conditions of disruption

1.1 Community Wi-Fi and Cyclone Alert Systems for Marginal Fisher Villages Barguna, Coastal Bangladesh to Improve Internet and Save Lives
This lightning talk presents findings from a project in coastal Bangladesh where fishing communities face communication gaps both offshore and during cyclones.  It will introduce a four-part response combining solar-powered community Wi-Fi, integrated cyclone alerts, satellite connectivity for deep-sea boats, and community-based “Digital Risk Responders”, alongside questions of affordability and long-term sustainability.

1.2 Community Radio in the Digital Era: Strengthening Internet Resilience and Trusted Communication in South Asia
This roundtable examines how community radio can complement Internet-based communication before, during, and after crises. The discussion will explore how broadcasting can be combined with online streaming, social media, messaging, and mobile technologies to provide trusted and locally relevant (including local language) information, particularly where digital access is disrupted or limited. The session will also explore challenges faced by community broadcasters, including affordability, digital literacy, infrastructure and enabling policy frameworks.

1.3 When An Energy Crisis Becomes a Connectivity Crisis
This panel examines how energy disruptions can affect Internet and telecommunications resilience, particularly in remote, rural, and island communities. The session examines the issue of how connectivity should be treated within national crisis frameworks through learnings from past disruption scenarios and exploration of resilient infrastructure approaches. 

The discussion will expose participants to community, communication, and infrastructure approaches to resilience, while raising questions about how connectivity can be maintained for vulnerable communities when energy disruptions impact critical telecommunications systems.

2. Measuring and sustaining Internet resilience

2.1 EcoInternet Index (EII): APAC Leads the Way

This showcase introduces the EcoInternet Index (EII), which compares Internet infrastructure and climate-related data across the Asia-Pacific to examine the sustainability of Internet growth. The session will share the Index’s Energy, Efficiency and Economy framework, its application through APAC case studies, the relationship between AI, Internet infrastructure and sustainability, and ongoing work to refine the EII and its 2027 report.

2.2 Let’s Measure the Internet: RIPE Atlas for APAC Digital Resilience

This showcase demonstrates how RIPE Atlas and other open measurement approaches can be used to understand Internet resilience during disruptions. It introduces measurements of reachability, latency, packet loss, routing changes and IPv4/IPv6 connectivity, using APAC examples to explore both what technical measurements can reveal and the limits of interpreting them without local context. 

2.3 When Submarine Cables Go Dark: From Public Fear to Internet Governance through Open Research and Community Engagement

This showcase examines how the effects of submarine-cable disruption can be understood from the perspective of the digital services people actually use. Starting from questions such as whether commonly used websites or online services would remain available, it will show how website dependencies on non-local resources can be analysed and translated into open data, public-facing research, and a measurable resilience index. The session will also explore how technical evidence can support wider public discussion and multistakeholder engagement on Internet resilience. It explores the value of the technical community focusing on communicating important information in simple, non-technical language during times of crisis.

3. Cybersecurity as a technical, governance and capacity challenge

3.1 Backdoors, Blackouts, and Big Tech: Mapping Encryption Rules Across the Asia Pacific — and Filling the Southeast Asian Gap

This showcase presents findings from a comparative study of end-to-end encryption regulation across 20 jurisdictions, which classifies national approaches into five types. It examines issues including backdoor mandates, traceability, scanning and shutdowns, while considering the study’s limited coverage of Southeast Asia and opportunities to develop a shared regional encryption-policy dataset.

3.2 From Technical Debt to Strategic Liability: Artificial Intelligence, Cyber Resilience, and Internet Governance in the Asia-Pacific

This panel examines how ageing and end-of-life infrastructure can become a strategic cybersecurity risk as AI accelerates vulnerability exploitation. Through perspectives on threat intelligence, infrastructure governance and criminal procedure, panellists will explore lifecycle management, the reliability of digital evidence, and governance approaches to infrastructure renewal and future risks, including post-quantum cryptography. 

3.3 A Guide to Integrating Gender to Cybersecurity Policy

This workshop presents a preliminary guide for integrating gender into the formulation, implementation, and evaluation of cybersecurity strategies. Participants will explore how cyber incidents, surveillance and technology-facilitated violence can affect women, gender-diverse people and other marginalized groups differently, and provide Asia-Pacific input on how cybersecurity policy and incident response can better account for these impacts.

3.4 Building the Next Generation of Pacific Cybersecurity Professionals: Partnerships, Skills and Regional Resilience

This panel examines how Pacific Island Countries can address shortages of cybersecurity professionals and limited training and career pathways. The session will  explore practical approaches to build local capability, such as cybersecurity education, certification, workforce development, youth engagement, and regional partnerships. The criticality of emerging capacity needs in the AI and critical infrastructure space is highlighted as a key motivator for expanding the skilled cybersecurity workforce in the Pacific.

4. Governing digital public infrastructure and personal data

4.1 Surveillance by Design: Digital ID, Data Protection and the Trust Crisis in South Asia

This panel addresses how the rapid rollout of digital identity systems and data infrastructures across South Asia acts as state surveillance, eroding public trust and undermining digital public infrastructure (DPI) resilience. By examining evidence from at least four countries, the panel will highlight tensions between national security framing and fundamental privacy rights, while demonstrating that trustworthy AI cannot be built on opaque, unaccountable data foundations without amplifying risks of mass profiling and exclusion. 

4.2 Who Gets a Say? A Regional Dialogue on Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) Governance in Asia-Pacific

This workshop explores governance of Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) in APAC, with particular emphasis on accountability, participation, inclusion, privacy and trust. The session shares regional research conducted by youth on emerging DPI governance patterns and gaps.It explores the winners and losers of DPI, who could be left out, and how governance decisions affect public trust. Participants will be invited to jointly discuss interoperability, regional cooperation and digital resilience in different national contexts. The conversation will serve to refine APPO’s regional DPI research and inform APPO’s report and policy recommendations in November 2026.

5. Safety, rights, and resilience in contested digital environment

5.1 Connected but Not Safe? Rethinking Digital Inclusion Through the Experiences of Young Women in Taiwan

This lightning talk argues that digital inclusion cannot be measured by access, connectivity, and skills alone, since it must also account for safety: women with connected devices and digital skills still withdraw from online spaces when participation feels risky to their safety or peace of mind. Drawing on a  case study of cyberstalking, impersonation, and privacy violations among young women in Taiwan, the session shows how self-protective disengagement forms a gap between technical access and meaningful participation. It calls for safety-by-design standards, digital literacy education, and effective reporting mechanisms to be delivered cooperatively by a variety of stakeholders, in order to ensure that the responsibility for online safety is not offloaded to women themselves. 

5.2 From Shutdown to Solidarity: Co-Designing a South Asia Rapid-Response Protocol for Internet Shutdowns

This workshop examines Internet shutdowns in South Asia and the fragmented responses that follow them. Through a collaborative drafting process, participants will explore what a regional rapid-response protocol could include, including documentation, legal response, advocacy and cooperation across borders. This will generate a shared practical framework which can be easily adapted to a variety of local and regional contexts.

5.3 Drawing the Line: Online Harm, Queer Expression, and Platform Governance in Asia-Pacific

This panel examines how online-safety regulation and platform governance can affect freedom of expression and cultural participation, particularly for LGBTIQ+ and other marginalised communities. Through the introduction of  the Drawing the Line Watchlist and regional examples from across Asia-Pacific, participants will explore how legal systems and platforms distinguish between content that involves genuine harms, and that which is fictional, artistic or consensual., It will explore the question of what safeguards are needed to protect privacy, anonymity and expression while addressing online harms.

Track 4: Universal and Meaningful Connectivity


The concept of Universal and Meaningful Connectivity establishes that every individual must be able to access and use the internet in ways that are impactful, safe, and inclusive. This sub-theme emphasizes moving beyond basic access to systematically address the availability, quality, and affordability of connectivity. It also highlights access to appropriate devices, the importance of security and trust online, and the skills needed to use digital technologies effectively. Achieving meaningful connectivity across the Asia-Pacific requires policies and solutions that enable all individuals, especially underserved communities, to not just be connected, but to meaningfully participate and benefit from the digital ecosystem.

A total of four sessions are scheduled under this sub-theme:

  1. The Cost of a Click: Unboxing AI and Internet Infrastructures to Shape a Greener Internet in the APAC
  2. From Barrier to Enabler: Rethinking Policy for Community-Driven Internet Access
  3. Closing the Last-Mile Gap: A Civil Society Approach to Internet Quality Measurement in Rural Indonesia
  4. Beyond Access: Who Keeps Children Safe Online Once They Are Connected?

Under this thematic track, there are two general topics that can be derived: (1) Community-Driven Access and Meaningful Participation; and (2) Sustainable Infrastructure and the Environmental Footprint of Connectivity. 


1. Community-Driven Access and Meaningful Participation

1.1 From Barrier to Enabler: Rethinking Policy for Community-Driven Internet Access

This panel examines the regulatory and policy barriers that impede community-driven connectivity initiatives across South and Southeast Asia. Participants will explore the limitations of traditional, top-down telecommunications rollouts, which frequently neglect low-density or economically marginalised regions due to high deployment costs and low commercial returns. The discussion will focus on enabling mechanisms to support decentralized infrastructure, and consider how governments, civil society, and the technical community can collaborate to empower local communities to deploy and sustain their own internet access.

1.2 Closing the Last-Mile Gap: A Civil Society Approach to Internet Quality Measurement in Rural Indonesia

This showcase presents empirical findings from civil society deployments of open-source measurement tools in rural archipelagic settings. Participants will be introduced to grassroots methodologies used to track throughput, latency, and service reliability, which often challenge the accuracy of provider-reported coverage data.   The session raises critical questions about how official national broadband planning can formally integrate community-generated quality of service data to reflect the true state of last-mile connectivity, ensuring that policy interventions are based on actual user experiences rather than theoretical network reach.

1.3 Beyond Access: Who Keeps Children Safe Online Once They Are Connected?

The workshop assesses what happens after children gain Internet access, focusing on the role of trusted community institutions in helping them participate safely and meaningfully online. Drawing on experiences from Cambodia, Vietnam, India, and the wider Asia-Pacific, the session will discuss how libraries, community learning centres, and other local institutions can support digital literacy, online safety, resilience to misinformation, and youth participation. It will also consider how these institutions can complement families, schools, governments, and platforms. The workshop will identify the conditions needed to sustain and scale community-based approaches and develop practical recommendations on whether trusted community institutions should be recognised as part of the infrastructure for meaningful connectivity and digital resilience.

2. Sustainable Infrastructure and the Environmental Footprint of Connectivity

2.1 The Cost of a Click: Unboxing AI and Internet Infrastructures to Shape a Greener Internet in the APAC

This workshop addresses the urgent need to align regional connectivity goals with environmental sustainability as compute-intensive technologies and digital infrastructures rapidly expand across the Asia-Pacific. Participants will examine the environmental lifecycle of the internet, analyzing the immense energy demands of regional data centers, the compute overheads of emerging technologies such as generative artificial intelligence, and the ecological impacts of submarine cable landings.

By grounding digital infrastructure expansion in environmental accountability, this session exposes participants to the trade-offs between rapid digital economic growth and net-zero carbon commitments. It emphasises that universal connectivity initiatives  should be cautious not to exacerbate regional climate vulnerabilities.

Page 21

Source: https://comment.rigf.asia/?replytopara=35