Responsibly unlocking the value of data in Europe: Impact on emerging technology and the global majority

As a trailblazer of human rights and data protection, the European Union has marketed its approach to data governance far and wide. Nonetheless, key regulatory pieces are still emerging, and the EU and the European region as a whole faces difficulties implementing data governance frameworks. Now that there is more awareness about the societal harms and challenges of governing data in the region, the challenge now is to translate risks into opportunities by designing governance models that can effectively target these issues and responsibly unlock the value of data for all.

The Datasphere Initiative has produced a report mapping some key reflections on how the European Union and non-EU member states are approaching data governance. While non-exhaustive, the report attempts to analyze some key trends and offer insights on how approaches to data are having an extraterritorial impact.

The Centre for IT & IP Law (CiTiP) at KU Leuven University joined forces with the Datasphere Initiative to host a webinar on “Responsibly unlocking the value of data in Europe: Impact on emerging technology and the global majority”.

The webinar took place on Thursday, July 6, bringing together policymakers, private sector professionals, academics, and civil society to discuss the European data strategy, its norms, and implications for emerging technology such as Artificial Intelligence and data governance practices in the global majority. Panelists discussed the questions still left open, and upcoming challenges for Europe to responsibly unlock the value of data for all.