Network for Digital Commons
digi-cnxdigi-cnx is a local Chiang Mai network committed to dialogue and research on how digital technologies are impacting both people and our planet.
What Unites Us
Our Mission
Our mission is to share knowledge and encourage collaborative learning by connecting people of different backgrounds and fields, all driven by a desire to understand and impact how digital technologies are changing our world.
We believe in actively and intentionally shaping digital spaces that prioritize openness, social benefit, ecological balance, and human agency.
Latest
The future includes both opportunity and risk
Building digital commons intentionally
Activities
We organize gatherings in Chiang Mai that focuses on a specific technology-related topic, bringing together experts in the field and creating a community space for dialogue and collaborative learning.
Some of our past events have focussed on themes such as mis/disinformation in digital spaces; Blockchain for identity, and commons; and Generative AI and satellite imagery.
Community
Based in Chiang Mai, a recognised hub for digital nomads, education, and civil society, our network draws on both local and global communities that have a presence in the region.
Our community includes academics, digital rights activists, researchers, digital nomads, journalists, Web3 builders, educators, entrepreneurs, artists, policy makers, among others. We interact on a Signal group. Join one of our events to get access to this invite-only group.
Events
Fragmented Aid & Resistance along the India-Myanmar Border (Media & Summary)
We were pleased to host the Chiang Mai launch of Exile Hub’s latest research publication, Fragmented Aid & Resistance along the India–Myanmar Border, on 16 September 2025 at Brick X @ NSP, Chiang Mai University’s Science and Technology Park. Open to access the report and watch the recordings from the event.
Digital Humanities Uncollege
digi-cnx hosted a ‘pop-up’ open platform IRL liberal arts learning on tech & society uncollege during the Gathering of Village season October-November 2024.
Information from Past Events
A Digital Ecology With Indigenous Communities
Dis/Missinformation and Digital Spaces
The impact of Mis/Disinformation in digital spaces on our societies is a major policy concern around the region, even more so with the emergence of generative AI. We hosted a dinner and discussion with Masato Kajimoto, Associate Professor of journalism at the University of Hong Kong, in conversation with Surachanee “Hammerli” Sriyai, lecturer at the School of Public Policy Chiang Mai University, to better understand its impact on people and media freedom.
Interrogating the Blockchain: Commons, Identity, and Financial Access in Southeast Asia
Can blockchain offer an alternate infrastructure to solve real-world problems?
In September, a diverse team of technology enthusiasts from four different countries came together. Our goal: to showcase blockchain’s impact in Southeast Asia and create a space for brainstorming more innovative solutions.
AI, Satellite Imagery, and Climate
Digi CNX hosted an AI community meetup, led by independent geospatial data expert and energy policy adviser Guillaume. The presentation focused on the recent boom in the space and earth observation industry, with thousands of new satellites launched to monitor the surface of our planet and improve communication. Attendees learned about the practical use cases of combining ChatGPT with Google Earth Engine to create maps of deforestation or floods, for example.
Community Resources
This is a living collection of resources, research, and media, etc., shared by guest speakers and community members during meetups and in the Signal group. This resource is created in the interest of collective sharing. Opinions, positions, projects listed here are not formally endorsed or supported in any way by digicnx.
Get Involved
If you share our passion for building a better world and are keen to join a community that thrives on collaboration and diverse perspectives, we invite you to join us on our journey. We invite you to join an event. For those who have joined an event, we have a Signal group where we share information and discuss related topics.
If you have any questions:
Hosted By
Core Stewards
Dev Lewis
Dev Lewis is a researcher, podcaster, and convener at the intersections of digital technology (Web2 & 3), law and policy, geopolitics, and authentic living. His podcast Light Forest explores the roots of global crises through Asian philosophical lenses. As a Fellow with Digital Asia Hub he organizes convening and has published writing on AI governance, Social Credit System and Data governance in China, and China-India relations. He is a member of the Pagoda Network and a Kernel Fellow.
Martina Skrubbeltrang Mahnke
Associate Professor at Roskilde University, Denmark, & Visiting Scholar at Chiang Mai University, Thailand, focusing on digital communication, sustainability, and intelligent technologies.
My research explores how developers and users co-create technologies, with recent work on generative AI in Southeast Asia. I hold a doctoral degree from the University of Erfurt and have extensive teaching experience. I also chair the Board for the Association for Media and Communication Researchers in Denmark (SMiD) and manage the journal MedieKultur.
Lorilee Lippincott
Holding an MSc in Blockchain and Digital Currency, I am dedicated to leveraging technology to drive real-world solutions, with a focus on inclusivity and pluralism. As a marketing and communications professional with 14 years of experience and over 12 years spent in East and Southeast Asia, I strive to make a meaningful impact through innovative approaches.
Bradley
Gar Gar
Network Stewards
Sam Chua
Digital Humanities Un-College
Cultural entrepreneur and indie consultant interested in human systems and growing the world’s working imagination. Stewarding the Digital Humanities Un-College and Seapunk Playshop. More at samuelchua.com.
Vivian Chen
Cosmo-Local
Vivian Chen is a human rights activist who focuses on women’s, children’s, digital, and democratic rights. She was Taiwan’s youth representative to the United Nations Commission on Status of Women and the official delegate to APEC. Since 2015, Vivian has worked with shelters for refugees, child laborers, orphans, and marginalized communities.
Vivian is the founding organizer of da0, a civic tech community in Taiwan, and the founding Catalyst of Pagoda, a network for Asian changemakers, contributing actively to the open source and decentralized movement in Taiwan and across Asia.
Michel Bauwens
Tech Renaissance
Michel Bauwens is the founder and director of the P2P Foundation, focusing on peer production and commons-centric economics. He has advised governments, like Ecuador and the city of Ghent, on commons transition strategies and published works on collaborative economies, including P2P: A Commons Manifesto. His research includes studying global risks, commons-based institutions, and translocal economic networks. Bauwens has also worked on welfare reforms for autonomous workers and explored accounting systems for sustainable production through blockchain. Currently, he researches civilizational transitions and coordinates the Global Chinese Commons.