Hack the Hate,
Renew Democracy

With the New Democratic Pact for Europe

Democracy Hackathon
& No Hate Speech Week

1719

Jun 2026

Strasbourg
& Online

View teaser Join live sessions online

Two events. One goal.

The Council of Europe has initiated a political and strategic consultation for a New Democratic Pact for Europe aiming at addressing the current democratic backsliding. The 17-19 June 2026 Democracy Hackathon and The No Hate Speech Week 2026 are held together to
“Hack the Hate, Renew Democracy,”

The participants of the No Hate Speech Week will contribute policy expertise, while the Hackathon teams will help transform these discussions into practical and scalable solutions.
The New Democratic Pact for Europe consultations so far highlight the importance of democratic security. Safe democratic participation for all, including women and under-represented groups is at the core of democratic security and hate speech puts these values at risk. The Hackathon and the No Hate Speech Week aim to address that.

Democracy Hackathon

The Hackathon brings the technological and innovation dimension. While the No Hate Speech Week focuses on the substance of the response, the Hackathon focuses on concrete tools and technical solutions capable of responding to current digital realities. By connecting policy experts, civil society actors, technology specialists and young innovators, the two events create a shared ecosystem where standards, practices and democratic principles can directly inspire innovative digital responses.

More information

No Hate Speech Week

The No Hate Speech Week brings together the policy, legal and societal dimension of the response: Council of Europe standards, implementation practices, public policies, education, awareness-raising and multistakeholder co-operation. It creates a space for reflection, exchange of practices and discussion on how democratic institutions, civil society, media and public authorities can better prevent and combat hate speech in line with human rights standards.

CATEGORIES:

Plenary Sessions (Livestreamed)

No Hate Speech Workshops

Member States Workstreams

Hackathon Sessions

Hackathon sessions are collaborative, hands-on working sessions where teams develop and refine their solutions to the proposed challenges throughout the event.

08:15 - 09:00

Reception

Registration at the Palais de l’Europe

09:00 - 09:30

Hemicycle

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Welcome session for No Hate Speech Week and Democracy Hackathon

Logistics information and technical announcements

Select Session

09:30 - 11:00

Rooms 1-11

Thematic sessions in parallel – Block A (90 minutes)

CSOs and CoE led workshops NHSW

View and select your workshops

Meeting of the EU-CoE Workstream on Prevention of Hate Speech and Crime

Room 6 (invitation only)

Hackathon working/hacking sessions + mentor support

Rooms 7, 10, 11

11:00 - 11:30

Break (coffee & tea)

11:30 - 12:30

Rooms 1-11

Thematic sessions in parallel – Block B (60 minutes)

CSOs and CoE led workshops NHSW

View and select your workshops

Meeting of the EU-CoE Workstream on Prevention of Hate Speech and Crime

Room 6 (invitation only)

Hackathon working/hacking sessions + mentor support

Rooms 7, 10, 11

12:30 - 14:00

Foyer of the Hemicycle

Reception for Hackathon and No Hate Speech Week with Member States representatives

14:00 - 15:45

Hemicycle

Opening of the Hackathon & No Hate Speech Week

VIEW LIVESTREAM

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Keynote speech
• Alain Berset, Secretary General of the Council of Europe

14:20 Panel Discussion & Q&A – The Ethical Dilemma of Tech Innovation

Moderator: Liz Alderman, journalist and former New York Times correspondent and Sally
Bailey-Ravet, Council of Europe
• Inbal Becker-Reshef Microsoft AI for Good
• Maya Lahav, Cyber criminologist at Oxford University
• Victoria Grech, Founder & CEO, Truzentia
• Siobhán O’Sullivan, Senior Policy Analyst, The National Economic and Social
Council of Ireland

15:00 Author Giuliano da Empoli in conversation with Liz Alderman

15:30 Presentation of Hackathon challenges and teams by Hugo Espinosa, Kreativdistrikt-hackathon and Sally Bailey-Ravet, Council of Europe

Select Session

15:45 - 16:15

Break (coffee & tea)

16:15 - 17:45

Rooms 1-11

Thematic sessions in parallel – Block C (90 minutes)

CSOs and CoE led workshops NHSW

View and select your workshops

Hackathon working/hacking sessions + mentor support

Rooms 7, 10, 11

16.15-17.45

Youth Contest

Room 8

17:45 - 19:00

Foyer of the Hemicycle

Networking Fair for No Hate Speech Week

Details to be confirmed

Hackathon working/hacking sessions + mentor support

until 19.45
Rooms 7, 10, 11

CATEGORIES:

Plenary Sessions (Livestreamed)

No Hate Speech Workshops

Member States Workstreams

Hackathon Sessions

Hackathon sessions are collaborative, hands-on working sessions where teams develop and refine their solutions to the proposed challenges throughout the event.

08:30 - 09:00

Registration & info desk opens

09:00 - 10:30

Rooms 1-16

Thematic sessions in parallel – Block D (90 minutes)

CSOs and CoE led workshops NHSW

View and select your workshops

Hackathon working/hacking sessions + mentor support

Rooms 7, 10, 11

10:30 - 11:00

Break (coffee & tea)

11:00 - 13:00

Hemicycle

Plenary for the International Day for Countering Hate Speech

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11:00 Statement for the International Day for Countering Hate Speech

• Alain Berset, Secretary General of the Council of Europe

11:10 Debate: Online hate speech is Europe’s biggest threat to youth’s involvement in democracy

House for the motion:
• Ana Kuprava, Georgia
• Arman Martirosyan, Armenia
• Rok Saric, Slovenia
House against the motion:
• Serena Gandogonon, France
• Vetle Skrede, Norway
• Mazin Abdalla, Sudan
Feedback from the audience

12:00 Reflections by:

• Alain Berset, Secretary General of the Council of Europe
• Gilles Marchand, Director Initiative Media Philanthropy (IMP), University of
Geneva

Alain Berset, Secretary General of the Council of Europe

Gilles Marchand, Director Initiative Media Philanthropy (IMP), University of Geneva

12:30 Award Ceremony: Journalism Excellence Awards “Ethical reporting on Roma and Travellers and combating antigypsyism through the media”

Introduction by:

• Alain Berset, Council of Europe’s Secretary General
• Frédéric FAUTRIER, Directeur Général du Département de l’Intérieur, Committee
of Ministers Presidency of Monaco

Moderators:
Nidhya Paliakara, journalist TV5MONDE
Alex Taylor, European journalist

Select Session

13:00 - 14:00

Foyer of the Hemicycle

Lunch reception

14:00 - 15:30

Rooms 1-13

Thematic sessions in parallel – Block E (90 minutes)

CSOs and CoE led workshops NHSW

View and select your workshops

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Meeting of the Mission-Driven Initiative “Enhancing multi-stakeholder responses to hate speech and hate crime”, funded by the EEA and Norway Grants

Room 6 (invitation only)

Select Session

Hackathon working/hacking sessions + mentor support

Rooms 7, 10, 11

Youth Contest

Room 12/13

15:30 - 16:00

Break (coffee & tea)

16:00 - 17:30

Rooms 1-17

Thematic sessions in parallel – Block F (90 minutes)

CSOs and CoE led workshops NHSW

View and select your workshops

Google Calendar iCalendar Outlook 365 Outlook Live

Meeting of the Mission-Driven Initiative “Enhancing multi-stakeholder responses to hate speech and hate crime”, funded by the EEA and Norway Grants

Room 6 (invitation only)

Select Session

Hackathon working/hacking sessions + mentor support

Rooms 7, 10, 11

Youth Contest

Room 12/13

18:00 - 20:30

Foyer of Committee of Ministers

NHSW Track: Reception on invitation of the Monaco Presidency of the Committee of Ministers

18:30 - 20.30 HACKATHON Track Event

CATEGORIES:

Plenary Sessions (Livestreamed)

No Hate Speech Workshops

Member States Workstreams

Hackathon Sessions

Hackathon sessions are collaborative, hands-on working sessions where teams develop and refine their solutions to the proposed challenges throughout the event.

08:30 - 09:00

Registration & info desk opens

Hackathon working/hacking sessions + mentor support

Room 7, 10, 11

09:00 - 10:30

Rooms 1-17

Thematic sessions in parallel – Block G (90 minutes)

CSOs and CoE led workshops NHSW

View and select your workshops

HACKATHON Track: Selection of four finalist teams per challenge

Rooms 7, 10, 11

10:30 - 13:00

Room 1

Democracy Hackathon and No Hate Speech Week closing session

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10:30 Democracy Hackathon Dragon’s Den presentations by four finalists
Moderators: Hugo Espinosa, Kreativdistrikt- hackathon and Sally Bailey-Ravet, Council of Europe

Hackathon – Grand Finale Dragon’s Den -Presentation four projects

11:30 Break (coffee & tea) while the Judges deliberate

12:00 Awards ceremony

Moderators: Liz Alderman and Sally Bailey-Ravet

12:00 Conclusions from the No Hate Speech Week
Marja Ruotanen, Director General of Democracy and Human Dignity, Council of Europe

12:15 Remark by Judges
PACE, Special Commission on the New Democratic Pact for Europe
Ayisha Piotti, ETH Zurich and RegHorizon

12:40 Closing remarks and announcement on the Hackathon winner
• Alain Berset, Secretary General of the Council of Europe

Select Session

13:00 -

Canteen of the Palais

Lunch reception for No Hate Speech Week & Democracy Hackathon participants

Speakers

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Alain Berset

Secretary General of the Council of Europe

Mazin Abdalla

Civil Engineering graduate from the National University of Sudan, studying French at the University of Strasbourg

Giuliano da Empoli

Writer, essayist, professor at Sciences Po Paris, editor in chief of the journal “Le Grand Continent”

Serena Gandogonon

Master’s student in International Development and Cooperation at Sciences Po Strasbourg

Victoria Grech

Founder & CEO of Truzentia

Ana Kuprava

International legal studies student at the University of Trento, EU-Georgia dialogue coordinator for the Young European Ambassadors Network

Maya Lahav

Cyber-criminologist at Oxford University

Elias Lundgren

Political Science student at Stockholm University

Gilles Marchand

Director of the “Media Philanthropy Initiative” at the University of Geneva

Arman Martirosyan

PHD candidate in Political and Social History at the University of Strasbourg and Sorbonne University

View all

Hate speech and youth involvement in democracy

Online hate speech affects trust, participation, and the resilience of democratic institutions, particularly among young people. This Oxford style debate explores how Europe should respond to protect and strengthen democratic systems.

The motion at hand: “Online hate speech is Europe’s biggest threat to youth involvement in democracy”

Ana Kuprava

International legal studies student at the University of Trento, EU-Georgia dialogue coordinator for the Young European Ambassadors Network

Arman Martirosyan

PHD candidate in Political and Social History at the University of Strasbourg and Sorbonne University

Rok Šarić

Law student at the University of Ljubljana

Serena Gandogonon

Master’s student in International Development and Cooperation at Sciences Po Strasbourg

Vetle Skrede

Student at the University of Bergen and President of UN Students Bergen

Mazin Abdalla

Civil Engineering graduate from the National University of Sudan, studying French at the University of Strasbourg

Elias Lundgren

Political Science student at Stockholm University

Amelia Pinto

Master's in Law, co-director of the youth-led organisation POLITICS4HER

Recommendation on Combating Hate Speech

The CM/Rec (2022) 16 on Combating Hate Speech was adopted by the Committee of Ministers on 20 May 2022. The Committee of Experts ADI/MSI-DIS prepared the Recommendation, which outlines a comprehensive approach to addressing hate speech within a Human Rights Framework.

This recommendation and its explanatory memorandum provide guidance for member states to implement a comprehensive and calibrated set of legal and non-legal measures.

Read the document