The Unconnected ITU Podcasts

The UN Secretary-General’s Roadmap for Digital Cooperation and ‘Our Common Agenda’ underscore the need for enhanced and improved digital cooperation. ITU and the Office of the UN Secretary-General’s Envoy on Technology have been working closely to promote digital cooperation, including through the Partner2Connect Digital Coalition.

In this episode, Doreen Bogdan-Martin speaks with Amandeep Singh Gill, UN Secretary-General’s Envoy on Technology. Listen to find out more about his vision, the concept of the ‘’digital commons’’, the proposed Global Digital Compact, and more!

Around half of the world’s primary schools still lack computers and internet access. ITU and UNICEF’s Giga school connectivity aims to turn this around by connecting all schools to the internet. What further opportunities do digital technologies offer to transform education?
H.E. David Moinina Sengeh, Sierra Leone’s Minister of Basic and Senior Secondary Education and Chief Innovation Officer, speaks with BDT Director Doreen Bogdan-Martin on his country’s approach towards using technology in education. He shares that more girls are now enrolled in school, than before the COVID-19 pandemic, in Sierra Leone. Listen to his views and advice to the global community ahead of the UN Transforming Education Summit.

The exponential rise of technology and its widespread adoption has led to a dual effect. On the one hand, there are a rising number of devices and electronics in the market, exacerbating an already growing waste and resource challenge. On the other hand, new technology has also led to an increase in digital solutions and innovation that is a catalyst to transforming electronic value chains towards a circular model.

Doreen Bogdan-Martin speaks with Dr. Naoko Ishii, Executive Vice President, Professor at Institute for Future Initiative, Director, Center for Global Commons, University of Tokyo, on the opportunities that digitalization and connectivity bring to the transition towards a circular economy for electronics, particularly in building sustainable e-waste management systems.

Interviewer: Doreen Bogdan-Martin, Director, Telecommunication Development Bureau, ITU

While STEM subjects are key drivers in an increasingly global and digital society, less than 30% of STEM professionals are women. Women and girls face additional barriers compared to their men counterparts when trying to access safe and equal STEM education, as well as pursue careers in STEM.
Ahead of this year's International Girls in ICT Day celebrations, Nisreen Deeb, Executive Director of the Lebanese League for Women in Business, and BDT Director Doreen Bogdan-Martin discuss the importance of encouraging more women and girls to follow STEM, and how to get around roadblocks that might be in their way.

Doreen Bogdan-Martin speaks with Robert Piper on digital technologies for development and the role of connectivity in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals.

Emergency telecommunications are critical for disaster risk reduction and management. Oftentimes, telecommunication networks themselves are among the first casualties of extreme weather events. There is a need to better protect vital infrastructure and make it more resilient. Ronald Jackson, head of the United Nations Development Programme’s (UNDP) Disaster Risk Reduction and Recovery team, discusses opportunities for technology and connectivity for better disaster preparedness and management, with BDT Director Doreen Bogdan-Martin.