The Centre for Law, Technology and Society is delighted to announce the release of “The Impact of Blockchains for Human Rights, Democracy, and the Rule of Law”, a report of the Council of Europe co-authored by Faculty member Dr. Florian Martin-Bariteau.
Blockchain technology presents an opportunity for government, international organizations, non-governmental organizations, industry stakeholders, and, more generally, members of the public to engage in the recognition of and respect for human rights as well as to resolve current human rights issues.
This report explores the risks and potential benefits of blockchain technology for democracy, human rights and the rule of law. It aims to showcase use cases and flag potential issues, as well as to provide initial recommendations to the Council of Europe for additional research and prospective programming regarding blockchain technologies. The report highlights some of the promising features of blockchain technology and various types of implementations, from cryptocurrencies to smart contracts, to distributed autonomous organizations (DAOs) and non-fungible tokens (NFTs). It also presents some of the important limitations that may impede fundamental rights.
Download the report
The report is also available in French.
Dr. Florian Martin-Bariteau is the University Research Chair in Technology and Society and the Director (on leave) of the Centre for Law, Technology and Society at the University of Ottawa, where he is an Associate Professor in the Faculty of Law, Common Law Section as well as the Director of the AI + Society Initiative. He is also a Fellow of the Berkman-Klein Center for Internet and Society at Harvard University. He is an internationally recognized thought leader on technology policy engaged in shaping frameworks that safeguard rights and liberties in the digital context to build a more secure and inclusive society.