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28 May 2024
Rapid advances in neurotechnology (NT) have highlighted the need for a robust regulatory framework that can simultaneously foster innovation and protect human rights. This is a main finding of our latest research brief 'Between Science-Fact and Science-Fiction: Innovation and Ethics in Neurotechnology', authored by Associate Researcher Timo Istace and Research Fellow Milena Costas Trascasas. 'One challenge in this regard is that promoting a clear narrative what neurotechnology can (and might in the future) deliver has been obfuscated by an increase media-driven hype', explains Timo Istace. 'Understanding the functioning, applications and realistic prospects of NTs, while distinguishing between scientific advancements and speculative narratives, is crucial for effective regulation', he added.
The paper discusses the current state of neurotechnology, and demonstrates how innovations in medical science are transforming the lives of individual suffering from neurological disease, paralysis and mental health disorders. Such advances have rapidly carried over to the commercial sector, with companies investing significant resources into the development of neurotechnology for gaming, lifestyle devices and marketing. Other trends that should be monitored include how neurotechnology might be used in the workplace and education sector, including to boost productivity, facilitate problem solving and promote staff/student wellbeing. On the flipside, such technology creates scope for increased surveillance, and/or to be used for punitive purposes or to discriminate. 'For these reasons, we must anticipate the possible disruptive effects before neurotechnology become pervasive across various sectors of society', noted Erica Harper, Head of Research and Policy at the Geneva Academy.
News
Geneva Academy
Sixteen diplomats from fifteen Small Island Developing States and Least Developed Countries participated in a two-day Practical Training on Human Rights Council Procedures.
News
Geneva Academy
Participants from six countries across the Middle East and North Africa region joined our customized training on the Geneva-based United Nations human rights mechanisms
Event
Adobe Stock
This side event will bring together stakeholders to discuss the growing concerning recurrence to short-term enforced disappearances worldwide, and the challenges they pose for victims and accountability.
Event
Wikimedia
This evening dialogue will present the publication: International Human Rights Law: A Treatise, Cambridge University Press (2025).
Training
Adobe
This training course, specifically designed for staff of city and regional governments, will explore the means and mechanisms through which local and regional governments can interact with and integrate the recommendations of international human rights bodies in their concrete work at the local level.
Training
UN Photo / Jean-Marc Ferré
This training course will explore the origin and evolution of the Universal Periodic Review (UPR) and its functioning in Geneva and will focus on the nature of implementation of the UPR recommendations at the national level.
Project
The Geneva Human Rights Platform contributes to this review process by providing expert input via different avenues, by facilitating dialogue on the review among various stakeholders, as well as by accompanying the development of a follow-up resolution to 68/268 in New York and in Geneva.
Project
CCPR Centre
The Geneva Human Rights Platform collaborates with a series of actors to reflect on the implementation of international human rights norms at the local level and propose solutions to improve uptake of recommendations and decisions taken by Geneva-based human rights bodies at the local level.
Publication
