Future of the Internet Initiative’ Opportunity Mapping
C.Tension Between Bottom-Up Growth and Top-Down Governance
Download 274.55 Kb.
|
- Navigate this page:
- III.Recommendations and Next Steps
- Table of Contents
C.Tension Between Bottom-Up Growth and Top-Down GovernanceSimilar to the challenge of identifying the optimal level of interop, we observe throughout the mapping a tension between the bottom-up, organic growth of the Internet and top-down interventions made to directly shape its future development. In its short history, and after an initial phase of top-down decisions, the development of the Internet has largely been bottom-up as it has expanded and new services and technologies were layered on top of its relatively simple set of protocols. This piecemeal development has enabled both incredibly generative technologies,4 but has also enabled privacy and security threats, among other challenges. Despite the significant bottom-up orientation of the Internet and its development, our mapping reveals in all four of the topical areas a focus on top-down policies generated through either the public or private sectors (e.g., national laws that limit data exports, multilateral digital strategies, major infrastructure development projects, and government approaches to cyber-crime). This is not a feature of the ecosystem as a whole; instead, the topics that the Forum selected for this mapping generally lean toward top-down governance. The role that these top-down approaches have and will continue to play in shaping the future of the Internet cannot be overstated, and exploring them in greater depth will help shape and improve the future development of Internet policies. At the same time, we must not lose sight of the fact that some of the greatest revolutions and developments have emerged from the edges of the network, in the spaces least touched by top-down regulation. III.Recommendations and Next StepsAt the 2015 Davos meeting on the Future of the Internet Initiative, there was consensus about the need for further work in three broad categories: (1) Knowledge, Communication, and Education; (2) Facilitation and Network Building; and (3) Norm Creation and Catalyzing Action. The FII’s current approach reflects that consensus and our mapping confirms the value of these categories of action. The mapping goes into greater detail with concrete suggestions for the opportunities that exist for the Forum to contribute within each category. The three cross-cutting themes, however, suggest opportunities to expand beyond the current approach in both substance and process. From a substance perspective, the FII is largely oriented toward the center of the network (i.e., the large public and private entities that own, control, or regulate large swaths of the Internet). It is this orientation that tends to shade the focus areas toward top-down governance approaches. However, the FII should also emphasize the complementary perspective. Specifically, it seems important to highlight that (1) innovation and bottom-up governance can occur end-to-end on the edges of the network; and (2) that negative externalities as the byproducts of higher levels of interop are often most felt by those at the edges of the network. In order to add such a perspective to the FII, we suggest a foundational paper that could serve as a basis for future discussion and highlight for the FII and its members some of the largely unseen activity at the edges of the network. From a process perspective, the cross-cutting themes suggest two useful changes to the FII’s current approach. We recommend (1) a greater emphasis on relationships between focus areas to better highlight, capture, and understand areas of convergence and interdependence. The divisions between focus areas are necessary to achieve deliverables. Policymakers and informed policymaking require understanding not only each focus area, but also how the topics (and the ones not yet covered in the FII) interrelate. Further, we recommend (2) additional opportunities to include perspectives from stakeholders not typically part of the Forum or the Steering Committees, possibly creating new modes and mechanisms for participation to solicit inputs from stakeholders across the Internet ecosystem, and to include viewpoints and potential solutions that otherwise may go unobserved or unnoticed. The diversity and dynamism of the Internet ecosystem create challenges for any mapping exercise, but also for the FII as a whole. While it is necessary to focus on discrete challenges within the ecosystem, the selection of topics and issues should not constrain the potential solution space and our understanding of the interdependencies between issues and actors. As the Forum and FII consider their role in the ecosystem going forward, there is an opportunity to think creatively about new partnerships and new opportunities that transcend the existing set of focus areas. Indeed, one could go further and see the role that the FII could play in informing all of the nine other Global Challenges – considering the Internet as an exceptional thing apart from issues such as the environment and the financial system risks ignoring how the Internet shapes and is shaped by developments in every other space. For questions or comments, please contact Ryan Budish (rbudish@cyber.law.harvard.edu) Table of ContentsI.Background and Purpose of the Mapping 1 II.Cross-Topical Themes and Observations 1 A.Convergence of Online and Offline 2 B.The Significance of Interoperability 2 C.Tension Between Bottom-Up Growth and Top-Down Governance 3 III.Recommendations and Next Steps 4 I.Introduction 6 A.Background and Purpose 6 B.Methodology 6 C.Scope 8 IV.Mapping Selected Areas 9 A.Key Characteristics of Data Localization 9 1.Introduction to Data Localization 9 2.Key Themes/Issues 10 3.Conclusion and Core Observations 17 B.Key Characteristics of National and Regional Digital Strategies 18 1.Introduction to National and Regional Digital Strategies 18 2.Key Themes/Issues 19 3.Conclusion and Core Observations 25 C.Key Characteristics of Improving Internet Deployment 26 1.Introduction to Internet Deployment 26 2.Key Themes/Issues 26 3. Conclusion and Core Observations 30 D.Key Characteristics of Cyber-crime 31 1.Introduction to Cyber-crime 31 2.Key Issues/Themes 32 3.Conclusions and Core Observations 42 V.Opportunities for Engagement 43 A.Data Localization 43 B.National and Regional Digital Strategies 44 C.Improving Internet Deployment 44 D.Cyber-crime 45
|