Independent Technology Researchers’ Summit 2025
This September, 70 coalition members and allies gathered in Berlin to connect and learn from one another, and to strategize how we advance the field of independent technology research.
Our goal was to design a two-day experience that would empower researchers from across the globe to build collaborations, discuss obstacles and barriers they face in their work, and chart new pathways forward for the independent technology research community. Importantly, the Independent Technology Researchers’ Summit was co-designed by and for the independent research community. Sessions were curated and facilitated by participants themselves, reflecting pre-event input from across geographies and disciplines, which allowed the coalition to come together and problem-solve both collaboratively and effectively.
Participants left with concrete strategies for overcoming barriers they face in their work, and together we incubated new task forces and working groups on a variety of topics of interest to coalition members. We had resonant conversations on topics like non-colonial forms of knowledge production, navigating barriers to data access, and effective narrative building for our independent tech research movement. Coalition members also shared vital skills: from protecting against digital threats, to navigating legal frameworks across research jurisdictions, and more.
Perhaps the best part of the Summit was the spirit of camaraderie and solidarity that permeated across our two days together. As only a small fraction of our broader Coalition were able to be present in Berlin, over the next months we will be hosting conversations between members virtually that build upon what we started together in Berlin. These spaces will be designed for coalition members to continue exchanging perspectives, sharing vital resources, and discussing how we can strengthen each other’s work. Meanwhile, cross-continental working groups emerging from the summit will collaborate on policy solutions to data access challenges and mobilising to advance the field of independent tech research. But most importantly, coalition members will continue to design and defend the future of this community the same way: together.
Our coalition is committed to producing and supporting independent research that helps people understand the impacts of technology on their lives and in society on the whole. Our work, however geographically or thematically separate, is inextricably linked to this mission, and so is our way forward. Berlin has sewn the seeds for a stronger, more resilient, and better-connected ecosystem of independent technology researchers. Now, with gratitude and newfound inspiration, the coalition will continue to organize around shared challenges and build the collective power needed to meet this critical moment.