An open door to possibility that breaks down barriers and brings us together.  

The Internet is fundamental for our progress.

Let’s keep it this way.

The World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) was a unique two-phase United Nations (UN) summit that began with the goal of achieving a shared commitment to building a people-centric, inclusive and development-oriented Information Society where everyone can create and share information.  

In December 2015, the United Nations General Assembly reviewed if the WSIS goals progressed over the past ten years and considered the future of the WSIS process beyond 2015.  This was often called the "WSIS+10 Review" and culminated in a High-Level Event on 15-16 December at the UN Headquarters in New York.

Coverage of the December WSIS+10 Review

Articles we or our partners pubished:

• Wrapping Up A Successful WSIS+10 Review, by Constance Bommelaer
• WSIS+10 Summary Report from the GIP Digital Watch team

• Internet Society CEO Speech at the UN General Assembly WSIS+10 Review
• The WSIS+10 Outcome Document, some initial thoughts
• WSIS+10 And The Challenge Of Securing The Internet
• Where is WSIS heading post-2015?
• ISOC At WSIS+10, Day 1: Women's Empowerment and Building on WSIS+10
• ISOC At WSIS+10 Day 2: Kathy Brown Speech, Access Side Event, Cybersecurity Sessions

• Video segments and interviews on the Internet Society's Livestream channel

External articles and video interviews:

• USA Today: Protect global Internet of opportunity, by Kathy Brown
• Bloomberg TV: Who Controls the Future of the Internet?, interview with Kathy Brown
• Avec le SMSI+10, l’ONU esquisse le futur d’une Société de l’Information durable, by Constance Bommelaer and Nicolas Chagny (ISOC France)
• From access to trusted access – human rights in the WSIS+10 Review, by Nicolas Seidler
• Forbes: The Future Of The Internet Will Be Discussed In New York, This Week. But Nobody Seems To Care, quoting Sally Wentworth

For the 15-16 December High-Level Event please read:

• Internet Society comments on the 4 November draft
• Matrix of government positions on WSIS+10 review
• Matrix of comments on the 4 November draft
• WSIS+10 And The Challenge of Securing the Internet

To understand the process we suggest you read:

Internet Society contributions to WSIS

Follow this link to see the documents associated with each meeting

History

The first phase of the WSIS took place in Geneva in 2003 and the second phase took place in Tunis in 2005. The WSIS is a critical event in the history of the Internet.  It recognized that it is not only governments who need a say in the development of the Internet, but everyone who can play a role in its future. It also defined a set of targets, recommendations, and commitments to build an inclusive, people-centric and development-oriented Information Society.

For more information about events leading up to the WSIS High-Level Event in December 2015, please see our Internet Governance Timeline.