Izaan Khan

The advent of the GDPR brings about a new period in data protection history; it strengthens and shores up the rights of data subjects, with the aim of enabling greater control over their own personal data. However, the regulation was conceived of in light of increasing power held by centralized data processing entities. The hype surrounding the decentralized nature of blockchain technology does not sit well with the GDPR, and many have discussed the various irreconcilable tensions between the inherent structure and ideology of the technology, and the provisions contained within the regulation. This article argues however, that such a pronouncement is premature, and that an in-depth analysis of the GDPR’s application to blockchain technology (and considering its surrounding governance mechanisms) could reveal a more optimistic story. Further, given the novelty and recency of the blockchain phenomenon, it provides data protection regulators with an opportunity to collaborate with players in the industry, and facilitate the realization of the potential of blockchain technology to fulfill the aims of the GDPR.

This draft paper (presented to the Internet Society's IGF Youth Ambassador Program selection committee) deals with the issue of Digital Sovereignty, i.e. the agency of nation-states to exercise jurisdiction and control over the Internet. In particular, the paper focuses on the origins and forms of Digital Sovereignty in the historical context of multi-stakeholder Internet Governance more broadly, and concludes with normative tests and proposals for how to incorporate it in the current Internet Governance ecosystem.