Date: 30 September 2024
Venue: Indian Institute of Management Bangalore (IIM Bangalore), Bengaluru, India (Hybrid)
The Youth Internet Governance Forum (Youth IGF India) 2024, held on 30 September 2024 at the Indian Institute of Management Bangalore (IIM Bangalore) in a hybrid format, brought together students, young professionals, policymakers, technical experts, academia, and representatives from the global Internet community to foster meaningful youth participation in Internet governance. Recognised under the United Nations Internet Governance Forum (UN IGF) National and Regional Initiatives (NRI) framework, the event served as a platform to introduce emerging leaders to the multistakeholder model of Internet governance while addressing contemporary challenges surrounding digital technologies, cybersecurity, artificial intelligence, and connectivity.
Anupam Agrawal participated in the event as a speaker, delivering a session titled “Introduction to the Internet Governance Ecosystem: ICANN, IETF, IGF, ISOC, and Regional Internet Registries (RIRs).” Sharing the stage with Pablo Hinojosa, Senior Director at APNIC, the session provided participants with a comprehensive understanding of the organisations responsible for developing Internet standards, coordinating critical Internet resources, and enabling the global Internet to function as an open, secure, and interoperable network.
The programme commenced with inaugural addresses by Ihita Gangavarapu, Prof. Shankar Venkatagiri of IIM Bangalore, and Anja Gengo, Coordinator of the National and Regional Initiatives (NRI) at the United Nations Internet Governance Forum. Throughout the day, participants engaged in expert-led discussions covering key topics such as multistakeholder Internet governance, cybersecurity in an interconnected world, Artificial Intelligence governance, meaningful Internet access, digital inclusion, and the evolving responsibilities of governments, industry, academia, civil society, and the technical community.
The conference featured distinguished speakers and experts from globally recognised organisations, including ICANN, APNIC, IEEE, CloudSEK, C-DAC, the Department of Telecommunications (Government of India), Convergence Catalyst, and the Centre for Communication Governance and Internet Society. Interactive panel discussions, stakeholder roleplay exercises on AI governance, and collaborative workshops encouraged participants to explore practical approaches to addressing emerging policy and technology challenges through consensus-based decision-making.
As a speaker, Anupam Agrawal contributed to building awareness of the Internet governance ecosystem and inspired participants to engage with international technical and policy communities. His participation reinforced the importance of youth capacity building, multistakeholder collaboration, and technical literacy in shaping an open, inclusive, secure, and resilient Internet. The Youth IGF India 2024 concluded with a shared commitment to strengthening youth engagement in national, regional, and global Internet governance processes, ensuring that the next generation is well-equipped to contribute to the future of the digital ecosystem.