2026 Global Gathering Programming

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Programming Proposals for the 2026 GG Are Open!!

Only individuals who have applied and been approved to join the GG can submit proposals. If you have not applied for the GG, you can do so here: https://gathering.digitalrights.community/

Approved applicants will be able to submit proposals on the dashboard of the GG ticketing platform.

What We Are Looking for...

The Global Gathering’s programming is unique, using specific formats and focusing on certain themes every year. We highly encourage you to read the page below, which will help you submit a stronger proposal. New to 2026: We will be featuring a limited number of skill-share workshops!

At the GG we look for programming that reflects real needs on the ground and helps:

• Advance shared goals
• Improves skills
• Creates collective knowledge
• Supports the mapping out and mobilization of networks around current and emerging challenges
• Projects and individuals share their work with others.

2026 Themes

In addition to the themes listed below, this year we will be creating special topical hubs via multi-day programming, or “Villages”, focused on organizational security,  spyware, circumvention technology,  and secure communications and documentation, as well as LGBTQAI+ and regional hubs.

Ecosystem Security, Sustainability, and Health

• Best practices for navigating new organizational realities
• Organizational security in low-resource environments
• Digital security training for at-risk groups and journalists
• Challenges and updates in security education and training
• Whistleblowing protection
• Identifying and onboarding new funders to the field

Surveillance and Censorship

• Current research and frontline insights
• Threat and/or trend discovery
• New and emerging spyware developments
• Combatting smart cities, data brokers, and other privacy intrusive tools
• Open source circumvention and encrypted communications tools, as well as protocols and effective approaches to tool use
• Emerging technological challenges and trends in digital surveillance and censorship
• Challenges and updates in security education and training

Alternative Infrastructure and Digital Sovereignty

• Building decentralized and community-owned technologies.
• Common challenges and practical approaches to self-hosting, adopting open source tools, and divesting from extractive technologies

Emerging and Urgent Tech Issues: Disinformation, AI, Platform Accountability, Internet Blackouts, Etc.

• Updates on current trends in disinformation, platform accountability, and other emerging tech-related issues impacting rights defenders and journalists, prioritizing frontline experiences
• Developments in platform accountability work, current needs, and brainstorming cross-regional actions
• Best practices to navigate internet shutdowns
• Best practices in information integrity, archiving, and combatting disinformation campaigns
• AI and automated decision-making as it relates to surveillance, censorship, equity, and access
• Embedding human rights principles into automated processes

Civil Society Reflections on Tech Regulation

• Updates to laws, governance frameworks, and regulatory approaches shaping digital rights, data protection and privacy, freedom of expression, Internet governance, etc.
• Use of legal and regulatory mechanisms to attack civil society, e.g. SLAPPs
• Regulatory, technical, and civic responses to emerging risks
• Global impact and implications of regional tech policy and regulation

Programming Formats

Booths: Flexible Spaces for Sharing, Creating and Connecting

Booths are hosted in the permanent kiosks found in the GG’s unique venue, reminiscent of a renaissance fair. They serve as the cornerstone of the event, offering flexible spaces for participants to share, create and connect, while dynamically engaging directly with participants to  forge trust-based relationships and discover powerful collaborations.

Booth shifts last two hours. We highly recommend you decorate your booth in a fun and creative way and bring your computer or devices if you want to showcase virtual materials. Electrical outlets are available in each booth. More information about booth sizing and amenities is available here. You can see a sample of booth pictures here:

There are many ways you can use Booths, including:

• Showcase your project or organization and connect with attendees through conversation, materials, and Q&A.
• Run a tool demo, allowing participants to try out your project firsthand.
• Host a game or activity, especially one with an educational or awareness-raising goal.
• Host a community space inside your booth, creating a hub for individuals from a particular network to collaborate, share, and network.
• Offer a service, such as digital security support or UX consultations.
• Curate an exhibit that creatively showcases your work at the intersection of digital and human rights.
• Share research or published work with participants and answer their questions.
• Host a mini-workshop that allows attendees to engage with your team and learn something new.

Circles: Collaborative Discussions Rooted in Action

Circles are 45-minute collaborative discussions facilitated by you. Rooted in action, they can take the form of strategic discussions, action-planning around common challenges, or knowledge exchange around a specific area.  They  should reflect collective interest, not just individual ideas.  

We prioritize Circles that address urgent needs, reflect GG themes, will be of interest to the largest percentage of participants, and have multiple collaborators and/or stakeholders involved.  

Note: Circles are not the right space for one-way presentations or demos; they should be collaborative discussions that engage participants. If you would like to demo or showcase a project, organization, or research, consider hosting a booth.

Pro-Tip: Prior to the event, we will provide a virtual community space on our Mattermost for networking. This is a great place to find co-faciliators for your proposal OR invite folks to your Circle, if it is accepted.  

Skill-Share Workshops: Strengthening Capacity

Skill-share Workshops improve capacity by leveling up participants’ skills or deepening their knowledge. Workshops can last from 45 minutes to 90 minutes and can be directed to novices or seasoned experts. Workshops should be focused on skill-building in a particular area and should not centered around one specific tool or project. This year we will be scheduling workshops both in the mornings, before the start of the event, and during the event itself.  

Note: The Global Gathering venue is low-tech and workshops must be delivered without the use of projectors or screens, however large notepads will be provided.

Meetups: Building Trust

Meetups bring together folks who have a shared interest, demographic, or work area to network and build trust in a more relaxed environment. While Circles are about discussing issues, Meetups are about connecting humans and learning about each other.

We are currently only accepting proposals for meetups that are focused on specific digital rights themes or profiles that will attract a large number of participants OR off-site meetups that are more complex to plan and require TCU support. You will have ample opportunity while physically in Portugal to propose smaller, off-site meetups. Directions will be provided in the month prior to the event. We have very limited space for meetups in the venue, and may recommend a nearby location.

Examples:

• Work-Themed Meetups: Spyware Researchers, System Administrators Getting Off Big Tech, Security Specialists in Journalism
• Large-Scale Events or Activities Open to All Participants: 5K walk or run on boardwalk, picnic at a nearby beach, after-hours fundraiser at a nearby restaurant, game night at a local cafe, surfing get together, regional dinner.