(Re-)claiming digital sovereignty in discourse, policy and practice – ClaimSov

The concept of “digital sovereignty” (DS) is increasingly employed to describe various forms of independence, control, and autonomy – exerted by states, but also “quasi-state” entities such as indigenous first nations, autonomous regions or civil society collectives – over digital infrastructures, technologies, and data forming the Internet. The DS concept continues to gain in political importance with the broad deployment of invasive digital technologies (e.g. artificial intelligence, Internet of Things). Yet, we still lack systematic and multi-national assessments of DS claims and their political and technical consequences.

We consider that DS claims, policies and practices are key expressions of shifting power relations in a world marked by digital interconnectedness and (geo)political tensions. Thus, the overarching scientific objective of our project is to better understand these shifting relations by developing a nuanced and empirically grounded understanding of contemporary discourses and governance mechanisms (policies, regulations, practices, infrastructures) related to DS in various political contexts, and by proposing a categorisation and conceptualisation of such discourses and mechanisms.

This pluridisciplinary project builds on science and technology studies, communication studies, and digital governance studies. We seek to provide systematic theoretical and empirical research on DS-related discourses and governance mechanisms in national and supranational contexts pertaining to three key geopolitical blocks: 1) the European Union, both at the EU level and within France and Germany, 2) North America (with a focus on the United States and Canada), and 3) Russia and China as the two most prominent countries run by authoritarian regimes that present DS as a cornerstone of their foreign policy.

Overall, the project will be crucial for providing a baseline of empirical data to assess, contextualise, and categorise how DS is enforced and practised in different contexts and countries around the world. Our findings will contribute to empirically grounded policy discussions about possible risks and hopes attached to DS initiatives, as they relate to Internet governance, digital democracy, and the construction of a global digital public space – or its increased fragmentation. Therefore, we aim for the project’s findings to be of great practical relevance as they can contribute to a more robust knowledge base for policy debates and actions worldwide.