ECC "Digital Humanism and Digital Ethics in Practice: Local Authorities and Public Services"

Regina Appel

Regina Appel combines extensive experience in the creative industries with applied educational work. Building on her many years of experience as a web designer and project manager in the arts and cultural sector, she now teaches at the BHS in Horn in the fields of media design, analogue and digital creativity, and cybersecurity. Alongside her teaching activities, she is deeply engaged with Digital Humanism. Her focus lies at the intersection of technological development, social responsibility, and modern education.

Johan Buchholz

Geraldine de Bastion

Geraldine de Bastion is the founder of Global Innovation Gathering (GIG) e.V., a global network for grassroots innovation and innovation hubs with over 250 members. Since the non-profit organization's founding in 2016, Geraldine has served on the board and led the network. She is currently also working on behalf of GIG as an expert on urban digital transformation from a development policy perspective for the One World Specialist Promoter Program in Berlin. Since 2008, Geraldine has been involved with re:publica, Germany's leading conference on digital societal issues. Her responsibilities have included curating the program, contributing to the program and partner teams, and moderating the main stage at re:publica. Currently, Geraldine supports re:publica by participating in track curation teams and moderating selected interview formats. In 2018, she organized re:publica in Accra, Ghana, with over 2,000 participants and more than 260 speakers from across Africa. Geraldine is a popular moderator and speaker at events focused on digitalization, innovation, and sustainability, and a member of various advisory boards. She was part of the BMBF Future Circle. Currently, Geraldine is a member of the City Lab Berlin Advisory Board, a member of the Committee for Development Service and Humanitarian Aid (AEDHH) for Bread for the World, and a deputy member of the Advisory Board of the Central and Branch Libraries of Berlin. In 2018, she wrote and moderated the Arte documentary "Digital Africa," which captures many of the activities of innovators in the GIG network. In 2026, the Arte documentary "Digital Aliens," which portrays her work in the context of digital justice, was released.

Mateo Hočuršćak

Mateo Hočuršćak is the head of the mobile youth center Ljuba in Drago at the public institute Mladi zmaji. He is a philosopher and anglophile (English studies graduate) and gained experience as a journalist at Radio Študent as well as in the NGO sector, particularly in the fields of employment and non-formal education. In his work with young people, he places special emphasis on community building and direct contact with users.

Stephan Leixnering

Stephan Leixnering, who holds a doctorate in ethics and a postdoctoral qualification (habilitation) in business administration, conducts research and teaches at the Research Institute for Urban Management and Governance at WU Vienna University of Economics and Business. Focusing on organizational and management challenges of cities, he examines current issues such as shaping the energy transition, the interplay between digitalization and sustainability, municipal responses to the global housing crisis, as well as the resilience and "spirit" of cities.

Juraj Podroužek

Juraj Podroužek leads the Ethics team at KInIT. With an academic background and more than ten years in the technology industry, he aims to bridge humanities and computer science. His research focuses on translating ethical principles into practice and building the moral sensitivity of AI practitioners. He also takes an active role in public debates around the responsible development and use of AI systems and chairs the Slovak national AI Awards on Trustworthy AI.

Martin Pospischill

Erich Prem

Wolfgang Renner

Wolfgang Renner is Director of the Social City Academy Vienna. His work explores the intersections of science communication, media literacy, digital humanism, and the relationship between science, society, and culture. Previously, he served at Austrian Research Centers, directed the Wiener Zeitung Academy, established dialogue platforms with the European Forum Alpbach and co-founded the Austria Science Talks in North America. He lectures at the University of Applied Arts Vienna and serves on various scientific advisory boards. He studied communication science, journalism, and philosophy, additional executive studies in marketing management.

Doris Vickers

Doris Vickers heads the Digitalization Department at Wiener Volkshochschulen GmbH (Vienna Adult Education Centers). As a specialist for computers, the internet, and multimedia, she is committed to communicating the principles of digital humanism in an understandable and accessible way. Her central goal is to facilitate access to the digital world for everyone, to remove barriers, and to actively and sustainably promote digital participation and education in society.

Alexander Wrabetz

Dr. Alexander Wrabetz is Commissioner of the City of Vienna for the media location in the context of Artificial Intelligence and heads the Artificial Intelligence Media Competence Center (AIMK) of Wien Holding.

In this role, he acts as the central operational hub for the strategic further development of Vienna’s media location. His responsibilities include creating framework conditions for AI use in media in line with Digital Humanism, protecting copyrights, and developing solutions against deepfakes, as well as promoting innovation, mobilizing funding, and initiating training programs to strengthen Vienna’s competitiveness.

Jeannette Gorzala

Jeannette Gorzala works at the intersection of business, law, and technology. Through ACT AI NOW, she supports public institutions in developing AI governance frameworks that go beyond a simple compliance check. Her focus includes Public AI and the use of AI in cities and municipalities, where she translates regulation into practical, actionable guidelines. She is Vice Chair of the Austrian Federal Government’s AI Advisory Board and an AI expert on the City of Vienna’s AI expert panel.

Monika Unterholzner

Monika Unterholzner has been a member of the Executive Board of Wiener Stadtwerke since January 1, 2024. She is responsible for the areas of mobility, funeral services, cemeteries, IT, security, and innovation. She studied business administration at the Vienna University of Economics and Business and began her career at the European Commission. After further positions at the Austrian Society for Environment and Technology, the Vienna Business Agency, and Hafen Wien, she joined the Wiener Stadtwerke Group in 2013. At Wiener Stadtwerke, she initially headed WIPARK Garagen GmbH and, from 2017 to 2023, Wiener Lokalbahnen GmbH.

Karel Kolar

Karel is an Innovation Manager at OICT, the municipal innovation and technology company of the City of Prague, where he focuses on the discovery phase of urban innovation processes. His work centers on identifying and framing complex city challenges, mapping trends and needs, and translating them into actionable innovation concepts through participatory and human-centered approaches. He has experience in participatory planning and has provided expert advisory to coordinators of participation within local governments, as well as contributing to educational programs focused on participatory processes.

František Kaláb

František is a Tech Lead at Operator ICT, a Prague municipal entity responsible for managing and implementing Smart City initiatives within the city. In his role, Frantisek leads the Data Analytics team, focusing on building data platforms and analytics solutions that contribute to the city’s digital transformation. Before joining Operator ICT, Frantisek gained his data science and analytics skills during his tenure at international companies, including his work at Jodel in Berlin, Germany.