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COP 28: spies, lies & climate justice

As COP 28 kicks off this week in Dubai, civil society is on high alert. The UAE has a dismal human rights record, and Amnesty International and other rights groups are warning the government against targeting climate activists and human rights defenders with spyware. But that’s just one of the threats civil society faces as activists put their lives on the line for climate justice. In this special issue of the Express, we look at the intersection of digital rights and environmental activism, exploring Big Tech’s impact on climate, the rise of climate disinformation, and how to protect the activists fighting for a better world.

Your safety comes first

COP 28: Safety hub

If you’re part of a delegation or engaging in a protest in Dubai, it’s crucial to understand your unique security profile and have a plan to stay safe. For general safety and security, our Digital Security Helpline team recommends this guide, created for climate activists and tailored specifically to COP 28. And remember: if you’re a human rights defender or member of civil society who needs emergency assistance with digital safety, you can reach out to our helpline directly. Read more via Safety Hub

Defending the defenders

The Just Security podcast: “Protecting civic space at the UN climate talks”

Indigenous communities, social justice movements, and human rights defenders are at the forefront of the battle for climate justice — doing incredibly dangerous work that is only getting more dangerous. Yet even governments that portray themselves as champions of human rights are staying largely silent on the need to protect human rights defenders and keep civil society safe. Just Security talks to EarthRights International’s Kirk Herbertson about why this is happening and what policymakers should do to respond to the crackdown on civic space. Tune in via Just Security

LISTEN: “Climate justice at COP 28”

What will it take for the world to move beyond incremental progress in addressing the climate crisis? In this podcast episode, Access Now’s Brett Solomon explores the conditions necessary for achieving climate justice. “You don’t get to human rights-respecting AI or climate justice without having activists, without having [...] free speech, without having a free and independent media and the right to protest,” he says. Tune in via This Week in Cyberspace

Big Tech’s impact on climate

The environmental toll of AI

In the one year since Open AI’s ChatGPT burst into the mainstream, use of the tool has skyrocketed. But the rapid uptake of generative AI comes at a high environmental cost, even as its creators tout their tools as a silver bullet for tackling climate change. Academic research suggests that simply training GPT-3 – ChatGPT’s predecessor – generated at least 550 tons of carbon dioxide emissions. Meanwhile, analysts are warning that unless Big Tech redesigns AI systems to better account for their environmental impact, the energy required could add up to 3.5% of global electricity consumption by 2030. Read more via The Guardian

Thirsty data centers are making dry summers even scarier

Data-hungry technology causes real human harm. In Uruguay, local communities are facing water shortages, while Google plans a new data center that would use millions of liters per day. In Mexico, residents are protesting a new Tesla plant that would similarly impact their access to water. And in Chile, mining for lithium – a key component for rechargeable batteries – deprives Indigenous people of water, to the tune of 500,000 gallons per ton of lithium. Yet despite all of this, tech companies have been slow to release information to the public about their energy or water consumption, and in 2022, only 39% of data centers even tracked their own water use. Read more via Bloomberg

How to hold Big Tech accountable for climate impacts

What’s the most pressing tech issue in the climate crisis? How do we measure the full environmental impact of Big Tech? And what can the climate movement learn from the tech accountability movement to support environmental justice? Global Witness recaps the panel discussion we co-hosted earlier this year at RightsCon Costa Rica to explore these and other pressing questions critical for holding Big Tech accountable. Read more via Global Witness

Hot air: the rise of climate disinfo

Climate misinformation heats up on the eve of COP 28

“Deny, deceive, delay.” That’s the strategy fossil fuel companies are using to roadblock progress toward climate justice. Deutsche Welle looks at how climate misinformation is going mainstream online, sharing findings from a new report from Climate Action Against Disinformation (CAAD) that details the digital tools and tactics that oil and gas companies and state-related actors leverage to distract and hoodwink people — from ads on Facebook to Russian propaganda. Read more via DW

WATCH: “From grassroots to global — protecting the planet in the digital age”

According to the UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), the spread of false information and the “politicization of science" represent significant barriers to climate action. In this fireside chat from RightsCon Costa Rica, Irene Kahn, the UN Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of the right to freedom of opinion and expression, joins AI policy expert Vilas Dhar to talk about how misinformation is impacting the fight for climate justice and why it’s vitally important to shift power to local communities. Watch now via Access Now

Spyware’s threat to civic space expands

Breaking: spyware attack in Serbia

Even as the world watches COP 28 for confirmation that government, industry, and civil society can work together on problems that impact everyone, Access Now and our partners Share Foundation, the Citizen Lab, and Amnesty International have uncovered evidence of spyware attacks in Serbia — a dispiriting sign that governments fail to grasp the threat spyware poses, and remain unwilling to do what’s necessary to prevent ongoing human rights violations and abuse. We continue to call for an immediate moratorium on the export, sale, transfer, use and servicing of targeted digital surveillance technologies until rigorous human rights safeguards are put in place. Read more via Access Now

Opportunities and other highlights

APPLY: Berkman-Klein Center for Internet & Society fellowships

Harvard University’s Berkman Klein Center for Internet & Society has opened its annual call for fellowship applications. If you’re a scholar or practitioner whose work focuses on the internet and society in the public interest, learn more and apply by January 22, 2024. Learn more via Harvard University

READ: “How to champion digital rights and climate justice”

Charity Digital helpfully unpacks a key Engine Room report on climate justice to “explore the relationship between digital rights, climate justice, and charities, showing you how to address the root causes, promote climate literacy, and support local data stewardship.” Learn more via Charity Digital

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