Across the Commonwealth, Legislatures are navigating the profound opportunities and challenges of the digital age. While digital transformation offers the potential to make institutions more efficient, transparent and accessible, the persistent 'digital divide' risks excluding citizens and deepening existing inequalities.
This workshop will explore this dual challenge, focusing on practical, innovative solutions that can enhance democratic processes for all.
This workshop on Leveraging Technology: Enhancing Democracy through Digital Transformations and Tackling the Digital Divide will feature showcases and case studies from the Federal Senate of Brazil, which has emerged as a global leader in applying Artificial Intelligence (AI) to the legislative process and the wider work of Parliament, as well as the POPVOX Foundation which works with Legislatures to leverage emerging technologies to modernise their work and build capacity.
Through practical demonstrations, delegates will see first-hand how AI is being used to increase workflow efficiency, make complex legislation more accessible to citizens and improve procedural transparency.
Framed by a discussion on the broader challenges of digital inclusion, particularly within the context of Commonwealth jurisdictions, the workshop aims to move beyond theory to action. It will provide a forum for Members of Parliament and parliamentary staff to learn from Brazil's pioneering experience and identify concrete, adaptable strategies for leveraging technology to strengthen their own democratic institutions.
Hon. Om Birla is currently the Speaker of the Lok Sabha, Parliament of India. He was elected as a Member of Parliament to the 16th (2014), the 17th (2019) and the 18th Lok Sabha from the Kota-Bundi, Rajasthan Constituency. He was previously elected as a Member of Legislative Assembly, Rajasthan Vidhan Sabha (Provincial Assembly) for three times from 2003 to 2014.
He is the President of India Union Branch of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association (CPA) and the Indian Parliamentary Group.
João Alberto de Oliveira Lima is a legislative IT analyst at the Federal Senate, where he has worked since 1995 leading the Lexml.gov.br and Normas.leg.br projects. He holds a PhD in Information Science and a PhD in Law, both from the University of Brasília. He has been studying and working with AI at the Senate since 2018.
Aubrey Wilson is Director of Global Initiatives at POPVOX Foundation where she leads AI education initiatives for parliamentarians, helping elected officials understand how to responsibly adopt and benefit from the use of emerging technologies. As former Deputy Staff Director for the U.S. House Committee on Administration, she directed institutional modernization efforts and built bipartisan coalitions to enhance the internal operations of the US Congress. Aubrey has a decade of focused experience in parliamentary reform and in recent years has worked to translate best practices and lessons learned into resources and programming for new parliamentarians and staff. As Manager of the Digital Parliaments Project, her work places her in daily conversation with legislators and parliamentary teams who are at the forefront of innovation and technology-supported governance. She thrives on digging into discussions on how parliaments worldwide can adapt and thrive in the digital age.
