Peacetech Lab leads tech and human rights experts in call for bold action to counter misinformation during Nobel Prize Summit

Experts include Internet Pioneer & Google’s Chief Internet Evangelist, Vint Cerf; Economist and Professor of Globalization and Development at Oxford, Ian Goldin; Director of the Oxford Internet Institute, Phil Howard; Nobel Laureate and Human Rights Activist, Tawakkol Karman; and former CEO of Wikipedia, Katherine Maher.

Washington, D.C (May 06, 2021) – PeaceTech Lab (PTL) marked its presence during the first-ever Nobel Prize Summit, “Our Planet, Our Future.” The summit, hosted by the Nobel Foundation, the U.S. National Academy of Sciences and partners on April 26th, brought together Nobel laureates and leaders in sciences, policy, business and the youth movement to explore the question: What can be achieved in this decade to put the world on a path to a more sustainable, more prosperous future for all of humanity?

PeaceTech Lab joined the Summit on the third day during the Solution Sessions, wherein organizations put forth ideas for tackling humanity’s greatest challenges, from climate change to creating more inclusive technological innovation.

In response to the existential threat posed by the proliferation of misinformation across online and offline media, PeaceTech Lab spearheaded the idea of forming an Intergovernmental Panel on the Information Environment (IPIE), modeled after the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, to analyze our global information environment and provide governments with science-based recommendations for achieving vital information integrity in a rapidly changing digital ecosystem.

The panel, “A Call for an Intergovernmental Panel on the Information Environment” was moderated by PeaceTech Lab President and CEO, Sheldon Himelfarb, and included expert voices and thought leaders, who explored the practicalities and importance of creating an IPIE in our immediate future. Panelists included Katherine Maher, CEO of the Wikimedia Foundation, the nonprofit organization that operates Wikipedia; Vint Cerf, Internet Pioneer & Google’s Chief Internet Evangelist; Phil Howard, Director of the Oxford Internet Institute; Ian Goldin, Economist and Professor of Globalization and Development at Oxford; and Tawakkol Karman, Yemeni Nobel laureate and human rights activist.

The event shed light on the serious consequences of mis and disinformation, the mechanisms that propagate them, and the urgency for the formation of an IPIE. The panelists shared their experience analyzing and dealing with the local and international spread of fake news, each of them working within different industries, including academia, tech, activism, and human rights.

Katherine Maher emphasized the relevance of creating human-centered solutions that challenge misinformation, using as an example Wikipedia. “Our platform offers a citizen-powered, porous structure that makes it easy for an average person to engage with the content and its governance," Maher said.

Ian Goldin speculated on the potential consequences of not regulating the information environment, drawing on examples from our financial and ecological systems. “Like in the financial system, like in the climate system, the failure to act leads to destabilization,” said Goldin.

Speaking to the importance of the architecture, or potential “re-engineering,” of the Internet, Phil Howard shared, “Engineering isn’t just purely engineering anymore…It always has political consequences and if we want to have a sensible conversation about what an algorithmic audit would look like, an IPIE might be the place to start that conversation.”

The dynamic discussion was enriched by Vint Cerf, known as one of the founding fathers of the Internet, who noted the gap that often exists between technology and our understanding of technology’s impact. "One significant risk comes from the difficulty of predicting how our tools, such as ranking or suggestions in social media, might produce feedback loops that increase the visibility and propagation of misinformation and disinformation," explained Cerf.

Nobel laureate and the “mother of Yemen’s revolution,” Tawakkol Karman, reflected on her personal experience as the target of misinformation. “Freedoms provided by cyberspace in its various forms have been subjected to systematic violations by Authoritarian regimes that see in change and freedom a danger that should be contained by spreading misinformation and pumping lies and false news through their electronic armies. Individuals can protect themselves from false news and disinformation by being skeptical about news sources, and following a diversity of people and perspective, and it is the responsibility of social media platforms to fight fake accounts, which are often the source of misinformation,” said Karman.

Throughout the timely discussion, panelists endorsed the proposal for an Intergovernmental Panel on the Information Environment, noting how a body like the IPIE could be an important vehicle for understanding the complexity and severity of the disinformation problem, for creating interdisciplinary and international trust, and for providing leadership to shape internet-use norms.

Setting a precedent for bringing together Nobel laureates, technologists, business leaders, and other experts to analyze the complexities of our global information environment, “this important meeting marked the beginning of PeaceTech Lab’s efforts to formalize a call for the creation of an Intergovernmental Panel on the Information Environment, an urgent undertaking that will take shape with the continued support of the panelists and other critical thought-leaders and policymakers,” said Sheldon Himelfarb.

Watch the recording of "A Call for an Intergovernmental Panel on the Information Environment," here.

About PeaceTech Lab:
Established by the United States Institute of Peace, PeaceTech Lab is committed to using technology, media, and data to prevent violence and build prosperous and peaceful communities around the world. For more information: www.peacetechlab.org

Contact:

Mariaesmeralda Paguaga, PeaceTech Lab

mariaesmeralda@peacetechlab.org