Be at the Centre of the Conversation on Copyright, the Right to Research
and Just AI in 2026!
30 September – 2 October 2026
Three days on the lake in Geneva — three streams shaping 2026.
From the right to research to Just AI — the three big questions running through every session.
The Right to Research
How do we secure the right to research — especially for academic institutions across the world, their faculty and students? How is cutting-edge work in the sciences and humanities affected by differences in copyright law around the globe?
Exceptions and Limitations to Copyright
Now that this work is moving again at the World Intellectual Property Organisation, how do we ensure the best outcome for libraries, archives, research, education and people with disabilities?
Just AI?
Is it a useful model for a new type of Artificial Intelligence that combines Public AI (public accountability and broad access) with the rights of creators and custodians of traditional knowledge, as well as the developmental priorities of the Global South?
Join one or more of our six themes across all the conference sessions.
Villa Barton, on the Lake in Geneva
The meeting takes place at Villa Barton, part of the Domaine Barton — the Geneva Graduate Institute’s lakeside campus in Parc Mon Repos, five minutes from the Maison de la Paix. The Jacques-Freymond Auditorium and its glass-walled pavilions open directly onto Lake Léman and the surrounding park.
Domaine Barton, 132 rue de Lausanne, 1202 Genève, Switzerland. Images courtesy of the Geneva Graduate Institute.
About the Meeting
Each year, the Global Network on Copyright User Rights — a community of over 100 scholars and practitioners across 30 countries — gathers to advance a shared agenda for copyright limitations, exceptions, and user rights worldwide. In 2026, the meeting turns to one of the most urgent questions in knowledge governance: how copyright, the right to research, and the growing use of artificial intelligence intersect — and how we build a “Just AI” that serves the public interest.
The meeting is hosted by the Geneva Centre on Knowledge Governance, a joint initiative of American University’s Program on Information Justice and Intellectual Property (PIJIP) and the Geneva Graduate Institute.
Three Days on the Lake
- Wed 30 Sept, evening — Public Keynote Panel & Reception, Jacques-Freymond Auditorium
- Thu 1 Oct — Public Conference Day: “Copyright, the Right to Research and Just AI,” six panel sessions, Reception on the Lake
Evening: Networking reception with delegates and policy makers - Fri 2 Oct — User Rights Committee Meetings & Works in Progress (members and invited participants)
- Sat 3 Oct (optional) — Social excursion to the Salève
Three Ways to Take Part
Conference Accommodation
The conference hotel is Drake Longchamp Hotel in Geneva — close to the conference venue at Villa Barton and to the shores of Lake Geneva. Participants can book a special rate for the duration of the conference.
Drake Longchamp Hotel, Geneva
Address
Rue Butini 7
1202 Geneva, Switzerland
Phone
+41 22 716 48 48
Website
hdlge.ch
If you need us to include you in our group hotel booking, please indicate on your form.
Our Partners
User Rights 2026 is convened with the support of leading institutions in knowledge governance and information justice.
