UNIC 2026: Governing the Digital City in a Post-Industrial World

Panel I: Digital Technologies, Rights and Institutional Governance in EU Migration and Urban Contexts

The Faculty of Law and Administration of the University of Łódź was represented, among others, by Dr Joanna Kulesza of the Department of Public International Law and International Relations and Lodz Cyber Hub, who delivered a paper entitled "Rights-Based Digital Governance for Post-Industrial Cities: Ensuring Fairness in Global Transitions". The presentation demonstrated how international human rights standards can shape the design and oversight of digital governance systems in cities, with particular attention to algorithmic decision-making and the institutional capacities of post-industrial urban centres. The panel also introduced the UNIC VIP Digital Human Rights programme, a joint teaching initiative of the University of Lodz and the University of Zagreb, hosted at the Faculty of Law and Administration. The panel further included researchers working on European law, migration law, and technology and human rights from partner institutions within the UNIC alliance.

Panel II: Security of Public Places as a Pillar of Societal Safety

The second presentation, entitled "International Law and the Protection of Public Safety from Cyberthreats", addressed the emerging international legal framework governing State obligations to protect public spaces from cyberattacks, with particular emphasis on the challenges posed by the growing autonomy of artificial intelligence systems. The paper was prepared in cooperation with the Faculty of Biology and Environmental Protection of the University of Łódź and the Centre for the Prevention of Biological Threats, with whom the Łódź Cyber Hub has maintained a longstanding and productive research partnership in the field of international security. The presentation offered a compelling illustration of how interdisciplinary research conducted within a single institution can align with the full breadth of the UNIC thematic line "Justice, Security, and Institutions". The panel also brought together researchers specialising in environmental security, hybrid threats, and international relations.

The conference provided a valuable forum for interdisciplinary exchange and strengthened the position of the University of Łódź within the UNIC alliance. It resulted in new contacts with academic and institutional partners from Turkey and across Europe, including discussions with representatives of the host university and diplomatic circles engaged in digital governance, opening prospects for further research and teaching cooperation within the alliance.

Further information on the conference programme is available here.