There is so much buzz around the new EU’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR)

At Webit we are firmly committed to privacy and data protection and we are happy to confirm that we, too, have taken all necessary steps to ensure [full] compliance with the GDPR. All necessary controls and features are in place so you can continue to use our service with confidence.

Feel free to check out our updated Privacy Statement to understand more about the types of information we may collect, how we use it, and why we request it.

Webit is all about community and empowering your success through connecting you with potential partners, investors and clients from all around the world.

SPECIAL 50% DISCOUNT

We also want to take this opportunity to let you know that Webit is welcoming this new era of data privacy by providing all our subscribers a special "DATA present” 50% off from all tickets for Webit.Fetsival Europe 2018 starting this Friday, 25 May till 29 May.

We release a total of 250 tickets for this special "DATA Present".

Register here

and join Webit.Festival Europe with a special discount of 50% on all tickets with code: GDPR

 

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We collect personal data when you register with us via our website or when participating in our events, exchange personal contacts, etc. We will use your personal information to provide and further improve our services, to ensure the security of our website and information systems, as well as for fraud prevention. We do not share it with other companies or organizations. We send to our customers, partners, participants in our events, subscribers and community our information bulletin about the upcoming events, promotions and free tickets, latest developments, new technologies, meetups, parties, products and services, etc.

   

With only one month till the 10th edition of Webit.Festival Europe 2018 (25-27 June '18) we are excited to share that we have added a new special lounge for your successful business networking at the Festival! As you know, we had to move to a new venue because Webit.Festival 2018 doubled in size.

With all the space we need now - we decided that it is time go wild!

All the 6000 attendees from global enterprises, through SMEs to scaleups/startups, academia leaders and policy makers come to Webit for 4 main reasons:- to see the future (check the speakers and Europe's top 200 startups) - to establish their place in the future (policy makers and business leaders discuss digital policy initiatives) - to connect with the right people (see who attends) - and to make successful business with them and expand their networks So we take business networking at Webit very seriously!

Thus today we present to you the new Webit Fountain Networking Lounge!

Yesterday we have commissioned a company to build a brand new Dancing Webit Fountain and a water mirror around which you shall have one more unique lounge for your successful networking. The magic is that after Webit this fountain shall be no more! A fountain built for only 3 days and only for your eyes! >GET YOUR WEBIT TICKET TODAY (prices go up this week)< The New Fountain Lounge adds to the number of other special lounges you may join and have your 1:1 or group business meetings while at Webit, including: - the AI Lounge - the Cybertech Lounge - the Cities 4.0 Lounge - the Blockchain Lounge - Innovate! Lounge - the Ladies Lounge - the Platinum Lounge Looking forward to welcome you @ Europe's tech, innovation and digital policy event for 2018!

Girls' Power! + 1000 free tickets for women

A few months ago when the European Commissioner for Digital Agenda and Society, Mrs. Mariya Gabriel accepted to Chair the Plenary Session of Webit.Festival Europe, she shared that it is a mission for her to empower women in business and politics. My wife and executive director of Webit Global Series - Aniela Russeva is an inspiration for how the combination of education, will, passion, direction and tender power can make miracles. I am also fortunate to work and partner with so many female leaders from all around the world! So when Commissioner Gabriel spoke so passionate about empowering women it was imminent her mission to become Webit.Foundation mission too! Today I am glad to announce 1000 free* tickets for Webit.Festival Europe for women: - 250 free tickets for women-coders - 250 free tickets for women-in-tech (general business, innovation) - 250 tickets for women in academia and research - 250 tickets for women in politics. * 10 EUR handling and transaction fee applies per ticket

> APPLY OR NOMINATE A FEMALE FRIEND FOR A FREE TICKET <

The applications shall be accepted on first come - first served bases and based on the info provided. All approved applicants shall be empowered by some of the most inspirational and impactful women in tech, business, politics, academia and civil society. On a personal level as investor - I am looking to support more and more female founders and to help them to proof success is not a matter of gender, but equal opportunities, education and hard work.

Webit.Festival Europe is also building a special Women's Lounge, which is powered by FiBank.

I am proud to share that Bulgaria is a great example and a global role model of gender equality in business and especially tech. According to the official statistics by Eurostat, Bulgaria is the leader in Europe with with 31.02% women in ICT.  The average for EU is almost 2 times less - 16.7%! I am so grateful all these global leaders - amazing ladies accepted our invite to join Webit! See you on 25-27 June in Sofia @ Webit.Festival Europe where the girl's power shall help to re:Invent Europe's Future! Warm regards, Plamen Russev Executive Chairman, Webit.Foundation

Most of the hotels in Sofia are already booked for the upcoming Webit.Festival Europe 2018!

As of today (40 days before Webit) Sofia is booked at almost 87% for the days of both - the Festival and the Digital Assembly, the two major events, part of the EU Digital and Innovation Week in Sofia. If you plan to join Europe's tech, digital and media festival and the unparalleled EU digital policy gathering for 2018, you'd better hurry up! There are only 6 available hotels for which you may use the special Webit discounted prices in Sofia - the Digital Capital during the festival - 25 - 27 June, 2018. One ticket for all events! Prices Go Up This Week

Exhibitions opportunities

As Webit doubled in size and we have moved to a much bigger venue, there are new available exhibiting slots. Join the 200+ exhibitors of Webit.Festival Europe 2018. Webit.Festival was among the first events in the world to introduce the multi content tracks (parallel independent summits) as part of the conference agenda 10 years ago.

4000 already booked their tickets to Webit

So far over 4000 influencers have registered for Webit.Festival Europe. They come from all over Europe and rest of the world (a total of 103 visiting countries so far). See who from your network is already booked for Webit.

Some statistics:

Over 68% of all attendees are senior-level decision makers. Over 70% are from Europe (38% from CE Europe, 32% W Europe). Next largest attendees groups come respectively from North America, followed by Asia and Africa

It is not about the size (although Webit is BIG), It is about the experience and your KPIs!

In order for our sponsors, exhibitors and attendees to better focus on their business goals and to experience unparalleled top level networking we have expanded the floorplan and built special networking and 1:1 meeting zones around each of the parallel summits.

10 separate events under one roof

Webit hosts 6000+ attendees but each parallel summit and expo welcomes between 300 and 800 of the leaders in the particular domain. Thus you join an intimate, highest level possible business networking while enjoying the benefits of a global large scale event.

Catch the opportunity to host or attend one of the over 50 Meetups of the Night Urban Summit of Webit.Festival Europe 2018!

The Night Urban Summit (25-27 June) is powered by the City of Sofia and is under the patronage of the Mayor of Sofia! Webit.Meetups are a great way to host, invite or join the people you want to mingle with at Webit out of over 7000 attendees. Also you can attract like-minded attendees and guests of the city with common interest and to expand your network. > Apply to host / join a meetup <

WEBIT UNPARALLELED NETWORKING! It starts when the lights go up!

Webit is introducing a brand new way of meeting like-minded people while bar crawling along the best bars and restaurants in Sofia (some of the best in Europe). Enjoy a unique way of meeting amazing people and making friends from over 100 countries with shared interests and common goals  while having a drink. And surprise, surprise - all bars and restaurants included in the Night Urban Summit provide a free welcome drink to all Webit attendees. The Vitoshka Street becomes a gigantic stage for the best artists and talents from Bulgaria - life concerts, art installations and amazing experience. YOU DON'T WANT TO MISS THIS! Joining a meetups (as part of the Night Urban Summit) does not provide you with access to Webit.Festival Europe. In order to join Webit you would need your ticket. See you on 25-27 June in Sofia @ Webit.Festival Europe!

The General Secretary of the International Trade Union Confederation joins Webit to discuss how to re:Invent Europe’s Future!

Burrow underlines the necessity of female participation in organized labour

Sharan is well known for her international advocacy on labour standards, corporate responsibility, climate change, investment in infrastructure and the green economy, investment in the care economy, women, equality and diversity, global migration and employment. She has represented workers and civil society groups in global policy discussions in United Nations bodies, including ECOSOC (United Nations Economic and Social Council), on the Governing Body of the International Labour Organization as well as at the G20, World Bank and International Monetary Fund.

The world of work has to refocus on the fundamentals

On the matter of the priorities for governments and social partners to build the future of work Sharan Burrow thinks that we must repair the foundations and social partners have to say what will work for business and for people. We can reshape the world of the economy and the world of the future of our children and our grandchildren. Burrow is one of the B Team leaders, a commissioner on the Global Commission on Business and Sustainable Development and the New Climate Economy Global Commission on the Economy and Climate. She was a Co-Chair of the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting in Davos for 2015, 2016 and also joined this year’s all-women co-chair team. The ITUC is a supporter of the UN Principles for Responsible Investment (UN PRI). Under Sharan's leadership the ITUC's Workers’ Capital Committee has been strengthened. More than US$ 13 trillion of retirement funds are under joint trustee management and the ITUC and its affiliates are active in both trustee education, corporate governance and shareholder activism.

"We have a vital role to play to protect jobs in existing workplaces and industries by demanding and bargaining for industrial transformation, to organize new quality jobs in the emerging green economy and to fight for the ’Just Transition’ measures that ensure we leave no one behind. This means work for our pension funds too. It means investing for the long term."

Here you can see a full list of the confirmed speakers at Webit.Festival Europe 2018, while here you can get all the information you need about the tickets for the event.

Here you can see a full list of the confirmed speakers at Webit.Festival Europe 2018, while here you can get all the information you need about the tickets for the event. Removing the fiction from science-fiction, the UK-based inventor has thrown away the rule book with his suit powered by six small jet engines. Founder of human propulsion technology start-up, www.Gravity.co, Richard (The real-life Iron Man) has pioneered his innovative idea into a reality, taking flight in Spring 2017.

“The dream was to re-imagine an entirely new authentic form of human flight leaning on an elegant collaboration of mind and body augmented by leading edge technology. Gravity has to date been experienced by over a billion people globally with video views alone running at more than 60M within 7 days of launch.”

Richard's vision is to build Gravity into a world class aeronautical engineering business, challenge perceived boundaries in human aviation, and inspire a generation to dare ask ‘what if…’. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JinhIHIF8Eo

“The way you have to balance is pretty much the same stance Tony Stark has in the film,” Browning says.

Richard also broke the record for fastest speed in body-controlled jet suit – he reached 32.02 mph and made his mark in the pages of Guinness World Records. He hopes that in the future he will smash it again.

“As the engine starts pulling up, it starts to build you can sense the energy and the moment the ground leaves your feet and you’re actually in the air it’s a pleasure and joy.”

Browning says that this is just the beginning of this technology journey. The next big thing his company is planning is adding wings to the suit, that will allow the person wearing it, to fly further, faster and higher and also use a lot less fuel than now.  

Jelena Djokovic is the National Director of the Novak Djokovic Foundation - school building and learning organization whose mission is to change the world and status quo by investing in children, educators, parents, and youth through education. Here you can see a full list of the confirmed speakers at Webit.Festival, while here you can get all the information you need about the tickets for the event. This will be Jelena's fist time at Webit. She shared with us her expectations on the festival:

"I am looking forward to meet and learn from wonderful people who will be at the conference. So much to learn! I always come as a student and I am very excited to learn from all the wonderful people I’ll meet. "

Webit stands behind the ''No woman, no panel!'' initiative and relates to women leading a successful organization. "No Woman, No Panel" is a campaign with a goal to raise awareness on having gender balance in panels and public events. Among the confirmed ladies for June 2018 are the Nobel Peace prize winner Tawakkol Karman, the General secretary of ITUC Sharan Burrow and now Jelena Djokovich The topic of Empowerment women in business and politics is one of the priorities of the Plenary Session, chaired by EU Commissioner Mariya Gabriel.

 I feel genuine gratitude for many strong women out there who fought for our rights fearlessly. The inequality that I am experiencing or have experienced is nothing compared to what my mother had to deal with, or her mother.

I am quite lucky because I was raised by my parents to be strong, confident and bold at times to stand up and believe in myself despite obstacles. To stay true to myself despite the pressure of people’s perceptions of who I’m supposed to be, what I’m supposed to do, say, think.

We can see people who are still trapped in dogmas and outdated beliefs everywhere. That’s why I am so focused on children and young people in all the work I do.

We are seeing the women movement, including the Golden Globes awards, a few weeks back, inspirational words, particularly by Oprah Winfrey. In her inspiring acceptance speech for the Cecil B. Demille Award at the 2018 Golden Globes, she condemned a "culture broken by brutally powerful men" and predicted the dawning of a new era spurred on by the #MeToo movement.

I’ve been following this women movement as you say for months now. It is quite a revolution out there. I have known a lot of women to be very harsh to each other and I am loving how these tough moments that they are sharing is making them closer to each other and supportive of each other. Very touching indeed and very sad that these dark moments have to appear for us to realize that we are not one vs the other. We are together, #metoo so to speak.

I love how lately we have been trying to change the meaning of word ambitious in context of women. Some surveys have shown that if a women is described as ambitious, it is a genuine turn off for men. I really believe that we should be proud to call ourselves ambitious and motivated to excel in different areas of life, not just at home. We are the natural co - creators. God has given us a gift of being able to give birth to a child.

We are the nature’s most natural multi-taskers which is known to be something that you have to master in order to achieve greatness. It is logical that we also give birth to wonderful ideas and solutions to improve the life of many, and luckily many women have dared to step out of the borders that were imposed on them because of gender. I respect every choice one makes as long as they are true to themselves.

Jelena is also the founder of the Original Magazine - an ambitious start-up owned by the Foundation whose goal is to empower youth to live their own success story. The magazine was presented to the general audience with huge success and it is recognized as a startup where positivity, compassion, creativity and curiosity are nurtured. It is putting light on people who chose to be their best version and not compromise it for the accolades. The magazine shares their life stories, sacrifices, lessons.

If you ask me if I believe in change in society to happen tomorrow, I don’t think I would give you a satisfying or positive answer. I do believe in change, but that change has to be really slow, continuous, from the root of problem. We can make the biggest impact today, and that impact can be seen only after 20-30 years. That impact can happen if we invest in the children and raise them with right values and love. Nobody teaches us to be parents.

We take courses and attend schools to acquire all these different skills that we will show in our CV and hopefully apply to work. But the most important skill we are yet to master is being a good parent, a good role model - and for that there is no course or school.

Lots of values today are distorted or traded off for fame, money, success. Many are losing and compromising their identities for their jobs or some status and perks. They believe they don’t have a choice but actually they always do. There is always a very expensive trade off when we chose to join the rat race.

We basically chose to share something that is not common for a magazine, blogs or newspapers today we don’t want gossips. We want passion, love, gratitude, joy, curiosity, boldness… That’s what we do, we encourage our readers to be true to themselves. To be Originals and not a copy of the current situation in the society. 

Jelena is a strong believer in the lifelong learning concept and the strength that lies in empowering children, youth, and adults to be proactive, agile and positive about themselves. This belief fuels her passion and motivates her to always strive to do more. Early childhood education and development are her way of life now and Jelena is embracing this not only through her role of a mother but also through her work as the Foundation director.

If we want the lasting change to happen, it requires patience, perseverance. We are changing things from the root.

That means we need to help parents be better parents, we need to help teachers be better teachers and we need to give every child opportunity to excel and develop skills at the early age. Once we set up the good foundation, the sky is the limit!

 

Here you can see a full list of the confirmed speakers at Webit.Festival, while here you can get all the information you need about the tickets for the event.

As today’s world keeps changing at an accelerating pace, one can only expect to see significant breakthroughs in the fields of digital and innovations that will hopefully change our live for the better.

Tawakkol Karman is a human rights activist, journalist and 2011 Nobel Peace Prize laureate. She was crowned the Mother of the Yemeni Revolution in recognition of her prominent role in advocating and leading the 2011 revolution. She was also named the Lady of the Arab Spring because of her attitudes against the authoritarian regimes and counter-revolutions in the Middle East. In 2005, Karman founded Women Journalists Without Chains (WJWC) to defend press freedom and to combat human rights violations. She holds many positions and titles, most notably as follows: 1. Member of FAO-Nobel Laureates Alliance for Food Security and Peace 2. Member of the UN post-2015 High-Level Panel 3. Member of Transparency International’s Advisory Council 4. Member of Executive Board of Nobel Women's Initiative 5. Member of the Advisory Board of the World Education Organization This will be her first time visiting Sofia and she shared her expectations of the city and Webit:

"I am so thrilled to have a chance to visit Sofia that combines beauty and deep-rootedness. For the festival, I expect it will be successful. The world everyday witnesses new ideas and innovations, and the digital world does not seem to stop at a certain point. As today’s world keeps changing at an accelerating pace, one can only expect to see significant breakthroughs in the fields of digital and innovations that will hopefully change our live for the better and show how to make the most of technology. Despite all the drawbacks, technology has made our lives easier and allowed us to accomplish our projects as fast as possible and at the lowest possible cost."

Tawakkol Karman was one of the first voices calling for the departure of Saleh's dictatorial regime, and she had always been firmly convinced of the need to achieve this goal as clearly expressed in her different articles during the pre-2011 period such as the one published by Al-Thawri newspaper, the mouthpiece of the Yemeni Socialist Party, on September 27, 2007. Therein, she called for a popular peaceful uprising throughout Yemen to overthrow the then existing regime to be replaced by a full democratic system.

"In normal circumstances, it may be hard to find an activist who does not engage in or interact with politics. But in difficult circumstances of some countries, such as Yemen, which witnessed a popular youth revolution in 2011, followed by a political movement followed by a counter revolution and several internal and external wars, it is very difficult for an activist to remain away from politics.

Many activists have been involved in politics in the hope of bringing about a change in existing policies, but I do not know if they have succeeded in doing so. The problem lies in regimes, which deal with different issues in their own way.

On the personal level, I have not yet decided to engage directly in politics. All I do is criticize and oppose the wrong policies from my own perspective as a human rights activist and defender."

Bold and outspoken, Karman has been imprisoned on numerous occasions for her pro-democracy and pro-human rights protests. Among Yemen’s youth movement, she is known as “mother of the revolution”, “the iron woman”, and “the lady of the Arab spring”. She has organized and participated in countless activities and written articles, calling for abandonment of despotism, extremism, violence and terrorism, for dialogues between religions and sects and for co-existence between peoples, cultures and civilizations.

"Tawakkol Karman is a young Yemeni woman who is a very strong defender of human rights inside and outside her own country. She always tells the truth despotic regimes do not like to hear. I practiced journalism, and I realized early on the importance of press freedom to make journalism play its role in disseminating information to the public and monitoring the performance of the authority. I founded NGO “Women Journalists Without Chains” that dedicated to defending media outlets and journalists and demanding the repeal of anti-freedom laws, training and qualifying journalists and human rights activists to do their jobs properly. In everything I do, I always make sure that I am the voice of freedom and the voice of the people, and therefore I oppose any governmental or non-governmental policy that does not care about interests and dignity of people. I have a dream of ending injustice everywhere, I feel sympathy for all the oppressed on this planet."

Since as early as 2007, the longtime activist for human rights and freedom of expression had been able to organize hundreds of protests, sit-ins and solidarity events, as well as campaigned for women’s rights and ending harassment of journalists. All of this became a source of inspiration for citizens to reject injustice and show solidarity without fear of influential and the security services.

"Journalists in the Arab region go through the most difficult times, as repressive regimes carry out arrests among them and enact laws and legislation to restrict their freedoms and independence. I believe it is not possible for a free press to be there in dictatorial countries. In case we are to overcome the obstacles journalists face, we must first overthrow tyranny and its laws. I would like to point to the double suffering of Arab journalist as both authoritarian governments and terrorist groups do not accept the role of the press."

On the question what motivates her to keep going with her endeavor, Karman answered:

"I am motivated by believing that I have to play a role, which is to combat tyranny and to establish tolerant societies that enjoy freedom and justice.

Our people do not deserve to live under this injustice. We have to believe in ourselves and in our ability to overcome this difficult stage."

Given her prominent role in leading and calling for Yemen’s revolution, she was dubbed the mother of the revolution but also the lady of the Arab Spring especially after she was rewarded the Nobel Prize in 2011. Karman has been seen as an Arab icon for her defense of the values highly admired by the Arab Spring and for her contribution to combating autocracy. On the other hand, she was met with the hostility by the regime that resorted to conducting a series of smear campaigns against her. Moreover, she has become a target of the counterrevolutions and the military coups that have taken place in the countries of the Arab spring.

"At every stage, I had different challenges, and I often overcame them. But some challenges last for a long time, and each of us should care about. The persistence of political tyranny, religious extremism and the West’s double standards towards Arab and Islamic issues are among the most difficult challenges, as they perpetuate injustice and violence and contribute to spreading hatred among peoples.

Personally, I face challenges every day, but I do my utmost to overcome them. I do not believe there is anything impossible."

Despite the fact that the society in Yemen is conservative, she was able to convey a message that a woman could be a leader and decision maker through her insistence on continuing and leading peaceful protest movements. After years of daily and weekly sit-ins and protests led by Karman, WJWC’s activists and other activists of civil issues and human rights, millions of women took to the street to demand human rights and anti-corruption and call for the regime’s fall.

"I want people to remember me as one of them, my case is their cause, I have never surrendered, nor have I compromised principles. I always demand freedom and dignity for all.

My cause is to fight for everyone’s freedom in this world, especially the Arab region, which is experiencing a great struggle between the revolution and the counter-revolution. We can maintain our cause by insisting on achieving our goals no matter what the odds, as well as by working to entice the world to our just causes. In this context, I hope that the threat posed by tyranny to international peace and security through war, terrorism, armed groups, corruption and organized crime is clear to the world."

Join the mayors and top city administrators from Sofia, Rome, Paris,  Amsterdam, Barcelona and over 50 more cities (as of today) from Europe at the 10th edition of Webit.Cities Summit (one of the 12 parallel events of Webit.Festival Europe). Some of the participants of Webit include: - Mariya Gabriel, Commissioner for Digital Economy and Society, European Commission - Carlos Moedas, Commissioner for Research, Science and Innovation, European Commission - Yordanka Fandakova, Mayor of Sofia - Virginia Elena Raggi, Mayor of Rome - Francesca Bria, Chief Technology and Digital Innovation Officer, City of Barcelona - Ger Baron, Chief Technology Officer, City of Amsterdam - Carl Bildt,  Chair, Global Commission on Internet Governance - Bogomil Balkansky, Vice President, Google - Yonov Frederick Agah, Deputy Director-General, World Trade Organization -  Mari Kiviniemi,  Deputy Director-General, OECD - Catherine Carlton, Mayor elect (2014 and 2015) Menlo Park City and current city council members,  Silicon Valley - Juraj Vaculik, CEO, Aeromobil If you'd like to see them all in person, listen to their experience and talk to them, please, book your ticket here, still at an early bird price. Put your brand in front of the EU mayors, top city administrators and the people responsible for implementing smart city solutions within their respected municipalities and meet your next client or business partner among 7000 + attendees, 1500 of which top European policy makers from 110 countries. Request the Webit.Cities sponsorship brochure or join over 200 exhibitors [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z8D7ZENtxCE]