Prof G. ‘Hari’ Harindranath spent a fantastic week at the ITCILO‘s (the International Training Centre of the International Labour Organization) beautiful campus in Turin, Italy during June 2026 where he led sessions on ‘Digital Transformation for Inclusive Labour Migration Governance’, as part of the ITCILO’s Digital Governance Initiative. His sessions covered the following key themes in the digitalisation of labour migration:
Responsible digitalisation of labour migration processes
Policy coherence and the whole-of-government approach to labour migration digitalisation
Digital maturity and capability assessment frameworks for labour migration digitalisation
Data as an asset in the digitalisation of labour migration, building capacity for data management, data integration and interoperability, and stakeholder engagement
Responsible data practices including data ethics and data justice
The week brought together representatives from the entire spectrum of stakeholders in labour migration including government, public employment services, private recruitment, social protection, migrant support services, research and international development.
Labour migration management is increasingly digital but digitalisation is not inherently transformative. Without appropriate governance and institutional frameworks, multi-stakeholder engagement and a steadfast focus on accountability and inclusion, digitalisation is likely to leave the most vulnerable (migrant workers) behind.
The ICT4D Collective and its members are taking an active role in this year’s WSIS Forum as we have done ever since the first WSIS summits in Geneva in 2003 and Tunis in 2005. If you are in Geneva then, do please join the sessions in which we will be involved, visit our stand in the Exhibition, or meet us for a drink in one of our favourite hostelries!
Session: Digital Inclusion in an Unequal World, 6th July
Join the ICT4D Collective’s session on Monday 6th July from 16.00-16.45 in Room L1 Montbrillant for a lively discussion about what we all need to do if the poorest and most marginalised are indeed to benefit from, rather than being enslaved through, the use of digital tech. See the great speakers lined up below!
Session: The future of education and research in the AI era: equipping young people for tomorrow
Tim Unwin is a panellist in Session 541 being convened by the ITU from 10.00-10.45 on Tuesday 7th July in Room G3, ITU Varembé.
Session: AI Empowerment for Older People from a Gender Mainstreaming Perspective, 7th July
Tim Unwin is a panellist in Session 188 being convened by the Aging & Technology Policy Lab, KAIST Graduate School of Science and Technology Policy (South Korea), from 13.00-13.45 on Tuesday 7th July in Room A, ITU Tower Building.
Session: Connecting the Unconnected in the field of Education Excellence, Cyber Security & Rural Solutions and Women Empowerment in ICT, 7th July
Members of the Collective will be participating in this session being convened by Prof. N.K. Goyal from the CMAI Association of India, along with CSAI and TEMA in Room A on Tuesday 7th Juk from 15.00-15.45. As in previous years, Tim Unwin will have the enjoyable but challenging task of moderating a very full session of Indian speakers.
Session: Foresight for FAIR Cities – Exploring AI Risks and Mitigation Strategies, 9th July
This important session in Room B Palexpo from 16.00-16.45 on Thursday 9th July is being convened by UNU-EGOV to address some of the risks of AI and strategies that can be put in place to mitigate them in the context of their project on “FAIRCities: Foster AI for Inclusive and Responsible Cities“. Tim Unwin has been invited to be a speaker.
Celebrating the publication of Digital Inclusion in an Unequal World: An Emancipatory Manifesto
Following successful pre-launch and launch events for Tim Unwin’s latest book at the ITCILO in Turin (Italy), at UNU-GOV’s headquarters in Guimarães (Portugal), and during eLearning Africa in Accra (Ghana) several of the authors are going to be present during WSIS including Benita Rowe, G. ‘Hari’ Harindranath, Mei Lin Fung, Revi Sterling, and Yuliya Morenets and will be talking about during and after our session on 6th July. A small number of signed copies of the book will also be available at the >30% discounted price (of £25, CHF 28, €30, US$35) during the session and at our Exhibition stand. We may well also celebrate together at a local hostelry (probably Les Brasseurs) on the evening of 6th July.
The ITU’s Partner2Connect initiative is convening a session on Building the future we want: scaling inclusive AI solutions through collaboration on 9th July from 14.00-15.00 during the AI for Good Summit and Tim Unwin has been asked to moderate the session on “Children, Youth, and Online Protection”. This should be an exciting and highly interactive “engagement”.
The latest revision (Version 7) of our guidance note designed mainly for small civil society orgnisations on the safe, wise and secure (or private) use of digital tech is now available here. This is essential reading for all such organisations, and indeed anyone interested in how to mitigate the potential harms of hacks on their digital systems.
It is not a matter of “if”, but “when” your organisation will suffer from a cyber-attack of some kind.
This revised version makes minor revisions throughout, tidying up the text and simplifying it for non-technical users, and also includes the important recommendation of using passkeys rather than passwords that is now being widely advocated. On this issue, see for example the UK’s National Cyber Security Centre’s recent advice.
We are always looking to revise and improve this document, and we welcome any suggestions for future revisions. Please use our contact form to share your thoughts with us.
Translations of earlier drafts of the guidance notes are available in the following languages:
It’s an exciting day: Digital Inclusion in an Unequal World: An Emancipatory Manifesto is officially published today. Find out more at https://ict4d.org.uk/diuw (or http://digital-inclusion.org) – and for a short period get 20% off the recommended price!
Thanks to everyone who made this possible, especially:
The 31 authors of the vignettes – listen to them reading their descriptions on our podcast.
All those at Routledge who had faith in the book and who helped in its production, especially Helena Hurd, Katerina Lade, Susan Dunsmore (copy-editor), and Jen Hicks (production)
Those who read parts of it in draft and provided valuable comments and advice (see the Acknowledgements)
And above all those with whom I have worked over the last 50 years and inspired my to write the book!
Upcoming launch events
I’m delighted to share the news that we will be having a series of launch events and discussions around the themes of the book in different locations around the world, including
April 20th: at UNU-EGOV in Guimarães, Portugal
June (precise date to be confirmed, but between 1st and 6th): Accra, Ghana
July (c.6th-8th): coinciding with WSIS Annual Forum and AIforGood (or Bad)
December (7th or 8th): Kuala Lumpur
London – dates to be confirmed
Kathmandu, Nepal – date to be confirmed
At these events copies of the book will be available with a 30% discount.
Links
To find out more about the book, do explore the links below:
This is the twenty-fourth episode of our podcast based on the vignettes contributed by friends and colleagues to Tim Unwin’s new book Digital Technologies in an Unequal World: An Empancipatory Manfesto. In it, Tom Wambeke argues that we need to “move beyond inclusion as mere access toward inclusion as transformation — a redefinition that gestures toward a truly radical inclusion. This vision demands co-designing for the pluriverse — a world where multiple ways of being and knowing coexist”.
All audio files relating to the book are also available on our podcast with a new episode every week.
Tom is a UN Senior Executive and Chief of Learning Innovation at ITCILO. With global experience in learning innovation, digital transformation, and foresight, he leads impactful programmes on inclusive capacity development. A speaker, strategist, and facilitator, he collaborates worldwide to foster sustainable, tech-enabled solutions for digital inclusion.
Full details of the book are available through the following links:
Digital Inclusion in an Unequal World (Episode 24) – Tom Wambeke on “Beyond the Cable: ‘The embrace of co-designed, plural futures'” –
ICT4D Collective » ICT4D
Tom is a UN Senior Executive and Chief of Learning Innovation at ITCILO. With global experience in learning innovation, digital transformation, and foresight, he leads impactful programmes on inclusive capacity development. A speaker, strategist, and facilitator, he collaborates worldwide to foster sustainable, tech-enabled solutions for digital inclusion. Full details of the book are available through … Continue reading Digital Inclusion in an Unequal World (Episode 24) – Tom Wambeke on “Beyond the Cable: ‘The embrace of co-designed, plural futures'”
This is the twenty-third episode of our podcast based on the vignettes contributed by friends and colleagues to Tim Unwin’s new book Digital Technologies in an Unequal World: An Empancipatory Manfesto. In it, Ugo Vallauri shows how “it’s possible to give devices a second lease of life, to create abundance and digital access out of Big Tech’s deliberate attempts to make products obsolete, with extortionate pricing of spares, repair-averse design and increasingly using software as a weapon”. He shows how Restart Parties and Repair Cafés provide part of the answer to a more sustainable digitsal future, noting that “in Africa, Asia and South America repair remains vital: a necessity, not a privilege”.
All audio files relating to the book are also available on our podcast with a new episode every week.
Ugo is co-founder/co-director of The Restart Project, a charity which promotes repair to change our throwaway economy. He’s a co-founder of Right to Repair Europe, a coalition advocating for ambitious right to repair legislation. Ugo is a fellow of the Ashoka Foundation in Italy, with 20 years of experience in the not-for-profit sector
Full details of the book are available through the following links:
Digital Inclusion in an Unequal World (Episode 24) – Tom Wambeke on “Beyond the Cable: ‘The embrace of co-designed, plural futures'” –
ICT4D Collective » ICT4D
Tom is a UN Senior Executive and Chief of Learning Innovation at ITCILO. With global experience in learning innovation, digital transformation, and foresight, he leads impactful programmes on inclusive capacity development. A speaker, strategist, and facilitator, he collaborates worldwide to foster sustainable, tech-enabled solutions for digital inclusion. Full details of the book are available through … Continue reading Digital Inclusion in an Unequal World (Episode 24) – Tom Wambeke on “Beyond the Cable: ‘The embrace of co-designed, plural futures'”
This is the twenty-second episode of our podcast based on the vignettes contributed by friends and colleagues to Tim Unwin’s new book Digital Technologies in an Unequal World: An Empancipatory Manfesto. In it, Jamie Proctor argues that “to serve the needs of the world’s poorest and most marginalised it is essential to systematise … changes towards multidisciplinary teams, delivering iteratively, with a focus on citizens. Otherwise, the potential benefits of digital technology in the public sector will never be realised”.
All audio files relating to the book are also available on our podcast with a new episode every week.
Jamie’s background cuts across research, education and technology. He has worked in tech start-ups, across UK Government digital teams, and established a school construction NGO in Malawi. He wrote this contribution whilst seconded to EdTech Hub from FCDO, and maintains keen research interests in the development of climate resilient and sustainable school infrastructure.
Full details of the book are available through the following links:
Digital Inclusion in an Unequal World (Episode 24) – Tom Wambeke on “Beyond the Cable: ‘The embrace of co-designed, plural futures'” –
ICT4D Collective » ICT4D
Tom is a UN Senior Executive and Chief of Learning Innovation at ITCILO. With global experience in learning innovation, digital transformation, and foresight, he leads impactful programmes on inclusive capacity development. A speaker, strategist, and facilitator, he collaborates worldwide to foster sustainable, tech-enabled solutions for digital inclusion. Full details of the book are available through … Continue reading Digital Inclusion in an Unequal World (Episode 24) – Tom Wambeke on “Beyond the Cable: ‘The embrace of co-designed, plural futures'”
This is the twenty-first episode of our podcast based on the vignettes contributed by friends and colleagues to Tim Unwin’s new book Digital Technologies in an Unequal World: An Empancipatory Manfesto. In it, Ettie Unwin draws on her experience in using statistics and mathematical modelling of infectious diseases to argue powerfully that scientists (and by implication all of us) need to work with rather than on people living in economically poor parts of the world. As she says “Since the global burden of infectious disease is not equitable, it’s important to help train my future colleagues around the world in methods and tools so they can model transmission themselves”.
All audio files relating to the book are also available on our podcast with a new episode every week.
Ettie is a Senior Lecturer in Statistical Science at the University of Bristol where her research focuses on developing methodologies related to infectious disease transmission to improve global public health. She is passionate about co-creating research with partners in areas where the global burden of disease is highest, whilst sharing her technical knowledge when appropriate.
Full details of the book are available through the following links:
Digital Inclusion in an Unequal World (Episode 24) – Tom Wambeke on “Beyond the Cable: ‘The embrace of co-designed, plural futures'” –
ICT4D Collective » ICT4D
Tom is a UN Senior Executive and Chief of Learning Innovation at ITCILO. With global experience in learning innovation, digital transformation, and foresight, he leads impactful programmes on inclusive capacity development. A speaker, strategist, and facilitator, he collaborates worldwide to foster sustainable, tech-enabled solutions for digital inclusion. Full details of the book are available through … Continue reading Digital Inclusion in an Unequal World (Episode 24) – Tom Wambeke on “Beyond the Cable: ‘The embrace of co-designed, plural futures'”
Heloisa Melino has been working in recent years together with Hari Harindranath and Tim Unwin on the use of digital technologies by those living on the periferias (peripheries) in the favelas of Rio de Janeiro, especially in Maré. Much of this research-practice has focused on developing resources and providing training on the safe, wise and secure use of digital tech within the LBT communities there, with some of our co-designed resources being launched at the Casa Resistências in Maré in September 2024. More recent activities including a rare dance performance on the use of digital tech by Efeito Urbano in Morro da Providência took place in June/July 2025, funded through Royal Holloway’s Social Science Impact Accelerator (SSIA).
As an extension of this work, Heloisa was granted a Social Science Impact Residency to spend the month of March 2026 based at Royal Holloway, University of London, to explore further collaborations and synergies that will extend our research-practice together and explore new openings for future cooperation. As part of this, she presented a fascinating and thought provoking seminar on Latin American and Brazilian Perspectives on Decoloniality of Knowledge on 12th March, which gave rise to much subsequent discussion
Her slide deck is available below (click on the image), excluding the 4 minute music video (Residente – This is Not America) on Slide 4 which can be accessed from the original on YouTube.
We are most grateful to Heloisa for spending this month with us and look forward to continued research practice with her and those she works with in the favelas of Rio de Janeiro in the years ahead.
This is the twentieth episode of our podcast based on the vignettes contributed by friends and colleagues to Tim Unwin’s new book Digital Technologies in an Unequal World: An Empancipatory Manfesto. In it, Dato’ Mohamed Sharil Tarmizi draws on his experiences in Malaysia to reflect on what has changed over the last two decades in terms of how and why digital tech is being used, from the days of kedai.com which was seen as being a way to “bridge the digital divide” to the contemporary period when Malaysia is still providing free collective broadband to rural and underserved communities. He concludes that “the technology has evolved and yet inequalities still remain. In the end, it’s never about the technology but it’s about what technology can do for society. Let’s begin by agreeing on the societies we want, then apply the appropriate technologies to make them thrive”.
All audio files relating to the book are also available on our podcast with a new episode every week.
Sharil, from Malaysia, trained and practised as a lawyer, became a policy maker, went into corporate finance and then moved on to become a telco regulator and a trade negotiator. Thereafter, got involved in corporate restructuring, automotive, infrastructure and aviation, whilst dabbling in a spot of angel investing, startup mentoring, media and movie making. He is currently serving as the Chairman of the Civil Aviation Authority of Malaysia.
Full details of the book are available through the following links:
Digital Inclusion in an Unequal World (Episode 24) – Tom Wambeke on “Beyond the Cable: ‘The embrace of co-designed, plural futures'” –
ICT4D Collective » ICT4D
Tom is a UN Senior Executive and Chief of Learning Innovation at ITCILO. With global experience in learning innovation, digital transformation, and foresight, he leads impactful programmes on inclusive capacity development. A speaker, strategist, and facilitator, he collaborates worldwide to foster sustainable, tech-enabled solutions for digital inclusion. Full details of the book are available through … Continue reading Digital Inclusion in an Unequal World (Episode 24) – Tom Wambeke on “Beyond the Cable: ‘The embrace of co-designed, plural futures'”
This is the nineteenth episode of our podcast based on the vignettes contributed by friends and colleagues to Tim Unwin’s new book Digital Technologies in an Unequal World: An Empancipatory Manfesto. In it, Revi Sterling reflects on the challenges facing gender digital inclusion, and asks: “I wonder what we did wrong for the last twenty years. Were we ahead of ourselves? Were we just Cassandras warning people about restrictive social norms and technology determinism? It’s a petty bitterness I have. There’s a twinge of resentment when I look at the ‘new’ gender and digital inclusion research agendas – retreads if there ever were. No one has heard of the canon of digital divide research we built. If they have, they say ‘It’s so old!’ but if you don’t address a gaping wound, it doesn’t heal”. She concludes that “‘Development’ now is not about progress; it’s about keeping progress from slipping. Our goal is to hold the gendered rock. The goal of development work now may be maintaining a state – instead of expecting state change – until newer systems evolve to fill the vacuum. We need to be content, even dedicated, to holding the boulder on the steep hillside and not letting it slide”.
All audio files relating to the book are also available on our podcast with a new episode every week.
Revi started out elevating women’s voices through technology. This led to positions and programmes helping millions of women use technology to achieve their goals, as well as 20+ years of frustration with donors, governments, peer institutions and rural busses. I will never stop talking about social norms, opportunities, and inequities.
Full details of the book are available through the following links:
Digital Inclusion in an Unequal World (Episode 24) – Tom Wambeke on “Beyond the Cable: ‘The embrace of co-designed, plural futures'” –
ICT4D Collective » ICT4D
Tom is a UN Senior Executive and Chief of Learning Innovation at ITCILO. With global experience in learning innovation, digital transformation, and foresight, he leads impactful programmes on inclusive capacity development. A speaker, strategist, and facilitator, he collaborates worldwide to foster sustainable, tech-enabled solutions for digital inclusion. Full details of the book are available through … Continue reading Digital Inclusion in an Unequal World (Episode 24) – Tom Wambeke on “Beyond the Cable: ‘The embrace of co-designed, plural futures'”
This is the eighteenth episode of our podcast based on the vignettes contributed by friends and colleagues to Tim Unwin’s new book Digital Technologies in an Unequal World: An Empancipatory Manfesto. In it, Paul Spiesberger argues that those who can should switch to Linux OS, support initiatives such as Public Money Public Code, encrypt data, use decentralised Internet services, and dusrupt power structures by demanding policy changes.
All audio files relating to the book are also available on our podcast with a new episode every week.
Paul graduated as a computer scientist from TU Wien and is a passionate programmer. He is the operative head of ROTA at INSO, and works with SAI, TU Graz. Since 2014, he has served as the chair of ICT4D.at, and he is a member of the ICT4D Collective.
Full details of the book are available through the following links:
Digital Inclusion in an Unequal World (Episode 24) – Tom Wambeke on “Beyond the Cable: ‘The embrace of co-designed, plural futures'” –
ICT4D Collective » ICT4D
Tom is a UN Senior Executive and Chief of Learning Innovation at ITCILO. With global experience in learning innovation, digital transformation, and foresight, he leads impactful programmes on inclusive capacity development. A speaker, strategist, and facilitator, he collaborates worldwide to foster sustainable, tech-enabled solutions for digital inclusion. Full details of the book are available through … Continue reading Digital Inclusion in an Unequal World (Episode 24) – Tom Wambeke on “Beyond the Cable: ‘The embrace of co-designed, plural futures'”
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