On 18 February 2026, from 1:00 to 2:30 p.m., in Room IX at UNESCO Headquarters in Paris, the International Federation of Coalitions for Cultural Diversity (IFCCD), in partnership with the Coalition for the Diversity of Cultural Expressions of Canada, will host a side event inviting Parties and civil-society members entitled “The Interface between Culture and the Digital Sphere in Recent International Normative Instruments.”

Held alongside the 19th session of the Intergovernmental Committee for the Protection and Promotion of the Diversity of Cultural Expressions, the event will bring together experts in culture, law, and public policy to present—clearly and accessibly—the legal and normative issues surrounding a potential additional protocol to the 2005 Convention on the Protection and Promotion of the Diversity of Cultural Expressions (2005 UNESCO Convention), in light of UNESCO’s normative instruments and recent international developments in the digital environment.

Objectives and Key Discussion Themes of the Event

As a direct contribution to this process, the event aims to clarify the legal and normative issues raised by the evolving digital environment and to foster dialogue between Parties and civil society.

Discussions will focus in particular on:

• the complementarity between a potential additional protocol and existing UNESCO normative instruments, notably in the areas of artificial intelligence, multilingualism, and cyberspace;
• alignment with other relevant international frameworks, including work undertaken at the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), and the Council of Europe.

About the International Federation of Coalitions for Cultural Diversity (IFCCD)

The IFCCD represents a global network of professional cultural organizations and coordinates civil-society action in support of the implementation of 2005 UNESCO Convention. It plays a central role in analysis and advocacy on issues related to the digital environment.

Since the publication, in December 2024, of the Reflection Group Report on the Diversity of Cultural Expressions in the Digital Environment, the IFCCD has actively contributed to multistakeholder work led by the UNESCO Convention Secretariat. In the context of Resolution 10.CP 8.b (June 2025), it notably took part in the survey examining potential legal options—including that of an additional protocol—whose preliminary study will be reviewed at the 19th session of the Intergovernmental Committee.

Event Details

Date: 18 February 2026, 1:00–2:30 p.m. (CET)
Format: Hybrid

• In person: Room IX, UNESCO Headquarters, Paris, France
• Online: Zoom Register

Languages: French and English, with simultaneous interpretation
A lunch will be provided following the event at the Mall, Level -1.

Programme

The programme is currently being finalized. Additional speakers will be announced shortly.

1:00 p.m. – Opening remarks

• Marc Miller, Minister of Canadian Identity and Culture
• Mathieu Lacombe, Minister of Culture and Communications of Québec

1:10 p.m. – Interactive panel

• John Crowley,  Chairman & CEO, PHGD Group, and co-author, with the IFCCD, of Analytical Elements for a Survey on Legal Options under the 2005 Convention in its Application to the Digital Environment

John Crowley is Chairman & CEO of the PHGD Group, which brings together a cluster of companies addressing the various dimensions of ideas and consultancy on environmental and social transformations, as well as renewable energy solutions. He is a consultant for the Culture2030Goal Campaign and led its work on drafting a Culture Goal and designing its indicators. Before founding the PHGD Group, he spent 18 years at UNESCO, inter alia leading the Section for Research, Policy and Foresight from 2014 to 2021, having earlier worked as an economist in the oil industry and as a research fellow at the French National Political Science Foundation. From 2002 to 2015, he was editor of the International Social Science Journal. He is the author of several books and over 100 papers on political theory, comparative politics, and international relations.

• Marie‑Julie Desrochers, Secretary General of the IFCCD and Executive Director of the Coalition for the Diversity of Cultural Expressions of Canada

As Secretary General of the International Federation of Coalitions for Cultural Diversity, Marie-Julie Desrochers promotes the participation of coalitions from around the world in UNESCO’s work related to the 2005 Convention on the Protection and Promotion of the Diversity of Cultural Expressions, with the goal of enhancing its implementation. She is a member of the Steering Committee of the #Culture2030Goal campaign, which advocates for the adoption of a dedicated Sustainable Development Goal for culture. She also serves as Executive Director of the Coalition for the Diversity of Cultural Expressions, where she fosters coordination and mobilization within Canada’s cultural sector in support of the protection and promotion of the diversity of cultural expressions. Previously, she worked in the music sector. She holds a master’s degree in literary studies, a bachelor’s degree in French-language literatures, and a diploma in Arts and Media Technology. 

• Jennifer Davidson, Chair, International Affiliation of Writers’ Guilds (IAWG)

1:50 p.m. – Closing remarks

• Ernesto Ottone R., Assistant Director-General for Culture, UNESCO

2:00 p.m. – Networking lunch

• Mall, Level −1