Notes by Karin Vosseberg on the lecture by Mareike Lisker and Oliver Vettermann.
The day began with a talk by Mareike Lisker and Oliver Vettermann on deconstructing the concepts of "digital sovereignty" and "digital empowerment". They discussed the concept of sovereignty as political rhetoric, as well as the question of who can become sovereign. They also questioned whether digital empowerment through individual control of data flow is even possible in the face of tracking technologies. Their thesis was that empowerment and sovereignty are concepts that create the illusion of control in data-driven capitalism. This controversial and thought-provoking contribution led directly to a long discussion about the possibilities and limits of sovereignty from a computer science perspective.
Ekaterina Seppelfricke then introduced the concept of digital identity based on the EUDI wallet. This use case already showed how different stakeholders from politics, business and administration, but also citizens, are struggling to find a solution that is acceptable to all parties involved.
The next sessions discussed the negotiation process of digital sovereignty in everyday life, education and higher education.