Applications open for the Gender and Technology Pop-up Institute

Focus: Tools and techniques for digital security training and privacy advocacy

APPLICATIONS ARE NOW OPEN! (Deadline: Monday, Oct 13, 2014)

Tactical Tech, in collaboration with the Association for Progressive Communications (APC), are organising a 7-day event for up to 50 women and trans people to learn tools and techniques for increasing their understanding and practice in digital security and privacy and to become digital security trainers and privacy advocates.

When?

December 1-8, 2014.

Where?

Berlin, Germany

Who is the event for?

This is for influential and vocal women and trans people, who are women’s rights activists and/or net activists, and who would like to be trained as digital security trainers and advocates of privacy in order to strengthen their work and the local networks/organisations they are related to.

If you are interested in joining this event, at least four of the following criteria should describe you:

• You take an active lead in your communities and networks, know your way around the internet, and also know that security and privacy problems can threaten your advocacy and activism and needs to be addressed.


• You are comfortable with public speaking or training groups, and would like to expand your knowledge and skills, to be able to advise your communities and networks on issues around privacy and data protection.


• You have strong online and offline networks and support other organisations and individuals who could benefit from digital security and privacy advice.


• You are the kind of person who understands the tech, or are a techie/hacker, but don’t necessarily know how to explain digital security and privacy issues so that others can understand and practice it.


• You understand and practise digital security and privacy but want to update and further strengthen your tech and training skills.


• You are a workshop facilitator or are training on closely related topics and consider yourself tech-savvy, and want to add digital security and privacy from a gender perspective to your skill-set.

What will happen there?

The main aim of the Pop-up Institute is to build a community of digital security trainers and privacy advocates, taking into account the gendered dimensions of privacy and security.

The Institute will provide you with tools, resources and techniques that you can use in your own workshops or trainings, and it will enable you to understand the issues and communicate more effectively.

The Institute will run for one week, with three days dedicated to digital security-technology training (catering to both new and more practised users of digital security), and three days dedicated to training of trainers (ToT) and advocacy tools and techniques.

In the latter half you will be able to develop your skills and knowledge so that you can conduct your own digital security training or convene formal and informal conversations about privacy, risks and vulnerabilities online and offline, and how to mitigate these. The group will split at times to accommodate different skill sets and learning outcomes.

Everyone will work together during this event to participate in co-designing curricula and resource materials with Tactical Tech and APC for use with other women and trans people, and movements around gender justice and freedom of information and expression.

What will happen after the event is over?

Participants attending the Institute are expected to take what they have learned and apply it to their work within their own communities or networks.

Depending on your focus during the event, this would include activities like ‘flash trainings’, advising on privacy issues, running your own digital security trainings, raising awareness through writing, online or offline campaigns and so on.

Participants are also expected to participate in the community of digital security trainers and privacy advocates that will emerge from this Institute by providing feedback and support to its members. This community will document its activities and share its processes to enable other women and trans people to engage with digital security and privacy issues and practices.

How will the participants for the Institute be selected?

All the applications will be reviewed by an advisory group comprised of APC, Tactical Tech and a few experts working in overlapping sectors of gender, technology and advocacy. They will select people based on the criteria listed above, their skill level and experience, the networks and communities they are professionally connected to, and will ensure group diversity.

How much will this cost me?

Tactical Tech and APC will support 45 people from emerging networks in Africa, post-Soviet states, the Arabic-speaking region, South & South-East Asia, Latin America and the Carribean to attend this event. We will cover travel and accommodation costs, and support you in obtaining a visa, if required. We are also inviting an additional 5-10 self- or organisation-funded individuals (from any region) to join us.

Will there be interpreters?

English will be the working language of the event and no interpreters/translators will be available. Therefore, before applying you should carefully consider whether you feel at ease listening to and speaking English in large group environments. The Gender and Technology Pop-up Institute will enable the development of new trainings on digital security and privacy in 2015 in specific regional locations depending on the demand. Watch this space! For updates, sign up to Tactical Tech’s monthly magazine, In the Loop (sent by email and also available online).

Where can I sign up?

If you are interested in attending this week-long institute, please fill in the APPLICATION FORM

Any further questions

If you have any further questions, please contact us at: gpscamp@tacticaltech.org

(Image taken from Tactical Tech’s Info-Activism camp in Italy in 2013)

Tactical Technology Collective