VIENNA 2008 :: About the event
About the 2008 e-Inclusion Ministerial Conference
The 2008 e-Inclusion Ministerial Conference will be held from 30 November to 2 December in the Vienna Reed Messe Congress Centre. It is a jointly organised by the European Commission and the hosting Austrian Government, in cooperation with the French Presidency of the Council of the European Union.
30-40% of Europeans at risk of "e-Exclusion"
The information society is essential for education, work, social participation, gender equality, independent living in old age, leisure and creativity. Yet some 30-40 % of Europeans remain at risk of being excluded from the information society, mostly because of socio-economic exclusion factors such as low income, low levels of education, disability, cultural or geographic isolation, or old age. E-Inclusion, or digital inclusion, is about mobilising information and communication technologies (ICT) to combat such social or economic exclusion. It is also about the usability of ICT for all or e-accessibility.
Digital inclusion is part and parcel of the EU's major economic and social agendas (see Internal Market for the 21st Century and the Renewed Social Agenda).
We should accelerate progress towards an information society for all, based on the objectives of the Riga Ministerial Conference of June 2006 and reinforced at the e-Inclusion Ministerial Event in December 2007 under the Portuguese Presidency.
Supporting inclusion through concrete European actions
One of the conference's main highlights is the European e-Inclusion Initiative which aims to raise awareness about the opportunities and challenges of inclusion in the information society. Europe supports concrete actions for digital inclusion:
- Making information technology accessible for disabled persons: e.g. accessible 112 emergency services
- Providing guidance on digital literacy
- Supporting novel European research and innovation cooperation in ICT for the elderly: see the Ambient Assisted Living (AAL) Joint Programme, the seventh Research Framework programme (FP7), and the ICT Policy Support Programme
- Best practice exchange
- Benchmarking
Raising awareness and debating policy at the Vienna conference
The upcoming e-Inclusion Conference in Vienna will bring together information society and inclusion in the economy and society. The Conference will acknowledge the many events, projects, studies and awareness actions that are taking place all over Europe during 2008 and that contribute to the European e-Inclusion Initiative.
The Conference will also provide a forum to discuss policies to achieve an inclusive, barrier-free, information society and the social and economic benefits linked to it.
Finally, the Conference will feature an extensive exhibition of the best in e-Inclusion in Europe and worldwide, with an e-Inclusion Awards finalists village, a projects showcase, a digital story gallery, country pavilions, an experience space, commercial displays and an e-Inclusion theatre.
Participants will include European Ministers, high level representatives of industry and NGOs, and members of groups at risk of exclusion. 1200 participants are expected.