[Air-L] SWING – School on Internet Governance 20-24 April 2026 @ Bruges (Belgium)

[Mauro SANTANIELLO]

Dear colleagues,
apologies for the cross-posting—please circulate the following call through
your channels.
Thank you.
Best wishes,
Mauro


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*SWING – School on Internet Governance 2026* will take place in Bruges,
Belgium, from 20 to 24 April 2026. Hosted by the *United Nations
University* Institute
on Comparative Regional Integration Studies (UNU-CRIS), SWING is designed
for *graduate students, early-career researchers, ICT professionals,
policymakers*, and anyone interested in the field. The program aims to
strengthen participants’ understanding of the actors, processes, and policy
challenges, shaping the* governance of the internet and digital
technologies*. Through a combination of expert-led lectures, seminars and
interactive group work, participants collaboratively analyse key governance
issues and develop policy recommendations to be presented during the
program’s final sessions.

*SWING 2026 Theme: Digital Sovereignty*
The 2026 edition will focus on Digital Sovereignty — a timely and
fast-evolving concept at the crossroads of Internet governance,
geopolitics, economics, innovation, and fundamental rights.

*Key Dates*
13 February 2026 — Application deadline, including fee payment
20–24 April 2026 — SWING 2026 (Bruges, UNU-CRIS)

*Core Seminars and Lectures*

   - Introduction to Digital Sovereignty (seminar)
   with *Jamal Shahin* - VUB, UVA, UNU-CRIS; *Julia Pohle* - WZB
Berlin; *Sophie
   Hoogenboom* - UNU-CRIS, VUB.
   - From Governance to Sovereignty (seminar)
   with *Jamal Shahin* - VUB, UVA, UNU-CRIS; *Mauro Santaniello *-
   University of Salerno;  *Julia Pohle* - WZB Berlin.
   - EuroStack: European Digital Sovereignty (seminar)
   with *Paul Timmers* - University of Oxford, European University Cyprus,
   KU Leuven; *Niels ten Oever* - University of Amsterdam; more TBA
   - Digital Sovereignty and Competitiveness
   with *Orsolya Gulyas* - Brussels School of Governance
   - Digital Sovereignty and Fundamental Rights
   with *Marianne Franklin* - University of Groningen.
   - Indigenous Data Sovereignty
   with *Claudia Padovani* - University of Padova.
   - Digital Sovereignty and Undersea Cables
   with *Kavé Salamatian* - Polytech Annecy-Chambéry.
   - Digital Sovereignty and Semiconductors
   with *Linda Monsees* - Institute of International Relations Prague.
   - Digital Sovereignty and Artificial Intelligence
   with *Nicola Palladino* - University of Salerno.
   - Digital Sovereignty and LEOs (Low Earth Orbit satellites)
   with *Berna Akçalı Gür* - Queen Mary University of London, UNU-CRIS.
   - Internet Governance: Conflicts and Cooperation
   with *Jan Aart Scholte *- Leiden University.
   - The Geopolitics of Digital Sovereignty (seminar)
   with *Kseniia Ermoshina*  - CNRS, France; *Grace X. Yang* - Freie
   Universität Berlin; more TBA.

*Registration*
To register, applicants will be asked to submit:

   - Curriculum Vitae (CV)
   - Completed application form (template
   <https://cris.unu.edu/sites/cris.unu.edu/files/SWING_2026_Registration_Form%20%281%29.docx>
   )
   - Copy of a valid ID document (passport or national identity card)
   - Proof of payment of the participation fee (receipt/confirmation)

*Participation Fee and What It Covers*
The participation fee is 800,00 € and includes:

   - Registration costs
   - Meals provided during the School programme
   - Social event(s)

The participation fee does not include:

   - Accommodation
   Although students are required to provide for their own accommodation,
   SWING has an agreement with a local hotel that is willing to provide a
   reduced fare for the students of the school. Details will be provided after
   a successful registration.


   - Dinners



*Scientific CommitteeCo-directors: *Mauro Santaniello (University of
Salerno, UNU-CRIS) and Jamal Shahin (VUB, UVA, UNU-CRIS).
*Scientific Advisory Board: *Andrea Beccalli (ICANN), Dennis Broeders
(Leiden University), Edoardo Celeste (Dublin City University), Philippe De
Lombaerde (UNU-CRIS), Sophie Hoogenboom (UNU-CRIS, VUB), Robin Mansell
(London School of Economics), Francesca Musiani (CNRS), Nicola Palladino
(University of Salerno), Dennis Redeker (University of Bremen) and Riccardo
Nanni (CNRS).
*Organizing Committee: *Sophie Hoogenboom (UNU-CRIS, VUB), Carlos Andres
Fonseca Diaz (Ghent University, UNU-CRIS), Armando Antonio Ferrara
(University of Salerno), Chiara Spiniello (University of Salerno) and
Stephanie Teeuwen (VUB).

*More information on the programme, faculty and registration*:
https://cris.unu.edu/swing-school-on-internet-governance