Understanding Our Rights and Protections Online: The Eu's Digital Services Act

The internet shapes how we access information, organise, and participate in public life — but who is actually responsible for what happens on digital platforms, and what rights do we have as users? The Eu's Digital Services Act (DSA) is one of the most significant pieces of online regulation in a generation, yet what do we really know about what it means in practice?

This Act on Democracy session brings together two experts to help us understand the Dsa: what it does, what it doesn't do, and what citizens, civil society and advocates can do to make it work better for democracy.

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ABOUT The Hosts
maria Koomen is a Democracy, governance & tech analyst and advocacy specialist. She is the former governance director at the Centre for Future Generations, working on the challenges at the intersection of emerging technologies, democracy, and governance. Her work focused on ensuring that governance systems evolve to keep pace with technological and societal change. Maria led the Open Governance Network for Europe, a joint initiative of Open Government Partnership and Democratic Society to drive connection, dialogue, and learning around public participation, transparency, and accountability with an eye to improving democracy and governance in and across the European Union. Prior to that Maria was senior programme manager on the Democracy Conflict & Governance program at the Carnegie Europe.

Cindy Zheng is a young professional engaged in digital policy. She previously worked in digital transformation in the area of eu projects, development cooperation, and global governance, with the aim to contribute to a more responsible and human-centred digital future.