Invitation to EPI-WIN webinar: 1 Dec, on UNiTE to end digital violence ...

... why digital safety is a gender and public health imperative in emergencies

UNiTE to end digital violence:
why digital safety is a gender and public
health imperative in emergencies

We are delighted to invite you to join our webinar on #UNiTE to end digital violence, on 1 December 2025, 13.00 CET (geneva time), with Ms Reem Alsalem, UN Special Rapporteur for violence against women, its causes and consequences, Dr Stella Chungong, Director and Chair of the WHO Health Emergencies Gender Working Group, and voices of community experiences.  

Please do join the discussion and share widely.

Title: UNiTE to end digital violence: why digital safety is a gender and public health imperative in emergencies

Time and Date: 13:00 – 14:30 CET (Geneva), Monday, 1 December 2025

Registration: https://bit.ly/4prKGeu

Webpage: WHO EPI-WIN webinar: UNiTE to end digital violence: why digital safety is a gender and public health imperative in emergencies

Digital violence, such as doxxing, deepfakes, and online harassment, poses significant public health risks. Millions of women, girls, and adolescents face harassment, stalking, and threats in digital spaces meant for connection.

In crisis settings, these digital threats create multiple challenges. Understand what they are and why it is important to integrate digital safety into humanitarian health responses.

Tentative Agenda and Speakers

Welcome/Opening remarks: Digital safety as a public health imperative in crises:  Dr Stella Chungong, Director, Department of Health Emergency Preparedness & Chair, WHE Gender Working Group

Preparedness begins with protection: why digital violence must be addressed in humanitarian health work: Dr Stella Chungong, Director, Department of Health Emergency Preparedness & Chair, WHE Gender Working Group

UNFPA perspective from Executive Director, UNFPA: delivered by Dr Eugene Kongyuy, Deputy Director of Humanitarian Response Division to represent the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA).

Keynote address: Ms Reem Alsalem, UN Special Rapporteur for Violence Against Women, its causes and consequences

Risk communication, community engagement and infodemic management: digital violence as a driver of misinformation: Dr Kai Von Harbou, Unit Head, Community Protection & Resilience, WHO 

Surviving Digital Violence: DR Millie Phiri, journalist, researcher and author on digital violence

Community Voice:  Ms Sohaila Shamseldeen, Youth and Development Coordinator, Etijah

The Role of Generative AI Use in 2024 Elections Worldwide

A high-level précis of the Technical Paper can be found in the Summary for Policymakers report, Generative AI in Electoral Campaigns: Mapping Global Patterns.

IPIE 

GenAI is being deployed in many ways during elections, ranging from the creation of deepfake video and audio messages, to sophisticated voter targeting. What are the implications of GenAI for election administration and voter participation around the world? This assessment delivers the first global, data-driven analysis of its kind, designed to inform policy recommendations that enhance election administration, foster trust in electoral processes, and boost voter turnout.

Based on an analysis of an original data set of 215 incidents, covering all 50 countries holding competitive national elections in 2024, we find that:

• Fully four-fifths (80%) of the countries holding elections in 2024 had GenAI incidents.  
• The vast majority (90%) of incidents involved content creation, such as audio messages, images, videos, and social media posts.
• Almost half of the incidents have no known source (46%), a quarter were produced by political candidates and parties (25%), a fifth were produced by foreign actors (20%), and the remainder came from other sources (9%).
• More than two-thirds (69%) of the incidents were described as having a harmful role in the election.

We encourage you to check out the full report, Summary for Policymakers, and press release announcement on our website.

My source: IPIE email.