Human Dignity in Digital Futures: Takeaways from a Panel Debate

This paper reports on a panel debate at the 32nd European Conference on Information Systems (ECIS) held in Paphos in Cyprus in 2024. As reflected in the conference theme: “People First: Constructing Digital Futures Together”, the debate centered on how to integrate human dignity as a guiding principle for research, education, and community practices in the Information Systems (IS) field. In particular, the panelists discussed the complex interplay between technological advances and human dignity manifested across various contexts from the urgency for IS scholars to investigate the often-unintended consequences of digital technology to the impact of algorithms in digital learning environments for students and the maintenance of respectful digital spaces for IS scholars. With a recognition of everyone’s inherent worth and contribution to society – the core of human dignity – this panel report is both timely and important for scholars in the IS field in their pursuit of constructing digital futures that put people first.