Here are a few of the best talks I had the chance to see, and those that were recommended to me - mostly along the lines of technology and its use among under-represented communities.

The architecture of a street level panopticon, by Dia Kayyali

Continuing the theme of, well, reality: I enjoyed this talk a lot for its focus on under-represented groups, and the more nuanced perspective towards privacy that Dia provided. Issues covered here are important, and scary, and - hopefully- going to be talked about more in the future

Intelexit, by Gloria Spindle / Peng Collective

Gloria is a fantastic presenter, and I’m a big fan of Peng’s work - great for inspiration around creative activism, and new ways of thinking about topics that we hear a lot about at Congress.

Mobile Censorship in Iran, by Mahsa

I feel like the title of this is a little limiting: in this talk, Mahsa talks about internet censorship on a broad scale in Iran, not just mobile. She’s super knowledgeable about the topic, explains things in an engaging way, and gives a great overview to a fascinating and changing landscape in Iran. Recommended.

The Price Of Dissent, by UK CAGE and Cerie Bullivent

Particularly chilling - this is on surveillance of Muslim communities in the UK, and mostly I heard about this during congress by people who told me they cried during it.

Internet Landscapes, by Evan Roth

Haven’t watched this yet, but it got rave reviews from lots of friends there.

Profiling (in)justice, by Jeff Deutch

I really enjoyed Jeff’s talk. It was very specific both in scope of the problem, and in potential solutions suggested, and had some great research backing up his points.

Keynote, by Fatuma Musa Afrah

Back in May, I had the pleasure of sitting on a panel with Fatuma, and speaking immediately after Fatuma was quite intimidating! Now, I’d guess more people understand why: she speaks from the heart, is incredibly honest, and brings a big dose of reality to the bubble we’re in. Inviting Fatuma to keynote at Congress was a bold and much appreciated move, and seems very appropriate for this year’s theme of “Gated Communities.”