Digitalisation towards Sustainable Development

Wulf Reiners is a senior researcher and head of the Managing Global Governance (MGG) programme at the German Institute of Development and Sustainability (IDOS). From 2020 to 2025, he served as academic coordinator of the EU Horizon project PRODIGEES. He holds a PhD in political science. His research focuses on global governance, rising powers, the external action and institutions of the EU, and digitalisation.Simone Lucatello is a senior researcher and director of research at Instituto Mora in Mexico City. His research focuses on climate change, disaster risk management, environmental governance and international development. He has collaborated with various programmes of the UN and the EU, and is a leading author of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC, AR7). He holds a PhD in analysis and governance of sustainable development from the International University of Venice, Italy.

“Digitalisation provides once-in-a-generation opportunities but also poses risks to societies around the globe. This thoughtful collection of contributions is particularly helpful in understanding how to navigate the risks and leverage the opportunities responsibly.” — Prof. Willem Fourie, School for Data Science and Computational Thinking, Stellenbosch University, South Africa“By bringing together the phenomena of digitalisation and sustainable development to examine their dynamic interfaces, with governance positioned as a mediating variable, this volume initiates a much-needed conversation. Its unique distinction is the location of digitalisation – a phenomenon that is intuitively understood as a technical one – at the heart of the politics and economics of sustainable development and global governance. Its core premise that sustainable development requires a deep engagement with the phenomenon of digitalisation provides for a sound foundation. That the contributors to this volume represent multiple disciplines and speak from regionally diverse perspectives adds to the richness of the discussion. This is indeed a timely and valuable resource addition to the literature on digitalisation, sustainable development and global governance.”— Prof. Archna Negi, School of International Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, India“This volume makes an original contribution by placing governance at the centre of the digitalisation-sustainability debate. Bringing together scholars from Europe, Latin America, Africa, and Asia, it offers a rare multiplicity of disciplinary and regional perspectives. A landmark reference for anyone interested in understanding how digital transformation unfolds across diverse institutional and development contexts.” — Dr. Aakansha Natani, Human Sciences Research Centre, International Institute of Information Technology Hyderabad, India“Reiners and Lucatello have produced an important and timely contribution to the global debate on digitalisation and sustainability. This edited volume offers a rich comparative perspective, showing that digital transformation is not inherently sustainable, but must be shaped through thoughtful governance and international cooperation for the benefit of all.” — Blas L. Pérez Henríquez, Founding Director of The California–Global Energy, Water & Infrastructure Innovation Initiative Stanford University, USA

• 1. Digitalisation Towards Sustainable Development – An Introduction Part I – Framing the Digital Turn: Sovereignty, Ethics, and Inclusion 2. Sovereign or Sustainable? The European Union's Leitmotif of Digital Transformation 3. Artificial Intelligence and Social Sustainability: Ethical Principles for AI Technologies as Solutions for Reducing Poverty and Inequality? 4. Digital Divide as Governance Failure: Coordination Challenges Across Digital Infrastructure, Digital Utilisation, and Digital Innovation Part II – Governing Digitalisation: Institutions, Infrastructure, and Innovation 5. Regulatory Power in Digital Markets: The EU's Digital Markets Act (DMA) and Its Influence on Ex-Ante Competition Policy in the Global South. The Brussels Effect Reconsidered 6. Synergising Digital Public Infrastructure, Digital Public Goods and Digital Commons for Sustainable Development – Experiences from Brazil, the EU and India 7. Governing the Digital Turn in Brazil: How Civil Servants Understand the Link Between Digitalisation and Sustainability 8. The Digital Money Trilemma: Sovereignty, Stability, and Integration in Cross-Border CBDCs 9. Navigating the Path to Deeper Financial Inclusion: The Role of CBDCs Amid Structural Challenges and the Digital Divide in Indonesia Part III – Reshaping Sectoral Pathways: Climate, Space, and Natural Resources 10. Environmental Sustainability and Digitalisation: Negative Impacts and Risks in a Comparative International Perspective 11. Can Digitalisation and Citizen Science Improve Water Governance in Communities? A Case Study in Cape Town, South Africa 12. Promises and Challenges of Artificial Intelligence to Combat Climate Change 13. From Access to Agency: Digitalisation and Space Technology Partnerships Between Europe and Emerging Economies for Sustainable Development Part IV – Contesting Digital Orders: Democracy, Science, and Cultural Production 14. Populism, Information Pollution, and Democratic Backsliding: The Case of Brazil 15. Negotiating Power Asymmetries in Science: EU-Funded Global Research Collaboration 16. Remaining Hybrid: Cultural Production and Digitalisation. The Case of Independent Stage Artists in Mexico During and After the COVID-19 Pandemic 17. Governing Digitalisation for Sustainable Development: Lessons, Tensions, and a Future Agenda