Issue 1: IDPO
This inaugural issue highlights what the International Digital Policy Observatory is, plus news about our forthcoming launch.
WHAT IS THE IDPO?
The International Digital Policy Observatory (IDPO) is an open-source and freely accessible database to track developments in digital/Internet regulation internationally. The aim is to place Australia at the forefront of regulatory best practice and policy innovation across the digital economy.
A team of researchers from three Sydney universities has developed an online database to track policies and regulations from 50 countries dealing with misinformation, AI regulation, online content regulation, cybersecurity and digital identity.
The IDPO has been designed to provide access for Australians to digital policies and industry insights from around the world to advance multi-stakeholder knowledge sharing and regulatory best practice.
With the Internet increasingly dominated by a small number of tech giants, governments and community organisations need information resources that provide some form of countervailing power. The IDPO is enabling infrastructure that policy makers and regulators can use to be aware of what is happening globally around key issues in the digital economy. (Project leader Professor Terry Flew, from The University of Sydney)
The International Digital Policy Observatory (IDPO) is the result of collaboration between academics and digital specialists from The University of Sydney (USYD), the University of New South Wales (UNSW) and University of Technology Sydney (UTS). The project is funded by the Australian Research Council through its Linkage Infrastructure Equipment and Facilities (ARC LIEF) program. Our key industry partner is the Australian Information Industry Association (AIIA).
FORTHCOMING LAUNCH
The IDPO will be launched at a breakfast event on Wednesday 24 April 2024. The event will be hosted by Gilbert + Tobin and the Honourable Justice Melissa Perry will deliver a keynote address.
There will be a live panel session with IDPO team members Dr Joanne Gray (The University of Sydney), Professor Lyria Bennett Moses (University of New South Wales) and Associate Professor Heather Ford (University of Technology Sydney). Professor Emma Johnston Deputy Vice Chancellor (Research) from The University of Sydney and Michelle Rowland MP (Minister for Communications) will share pre-recorded messages.