Social Acceptance as a Catalyst for Sustainable 6G: Bridging Technology, Society, and Policy
Wednesday, 4 June 2025, 16:00 – 17:30, room 1.F
Session Chair:
- Margot Bezzi (CyberSocial Lab., )
- Monique Calisti (Martel Innovate, )
The transition to 6G represents a paradigm shift in telecommunications, promising unprecedented connectivity, embedded intelligence, and sustainability. However, whenever innovations neglect to properly consider and address social, political and environmental dimensions linked to technology design, uptake and deployment, barriers at the social level may arise, such as those that appeared during the rollout of 5G. In addition, in lack of social acceptance the intended impacts and benefits become harder to achieve and the risk of unintended negative consequences increases.
To avoid unmet expectations, breach of trust, and to increase the potential for beneficial impact, it is crucial to explore attitudes, behaviours, and perceptions of diverse stakeholders – including policymakers, industry leaders, local communities, and end-users – towards technologies and the types of future they shape. This helps not only to anticipate potential conflicts but also to better understand the underlying concerns that fuel them.
Approaches to studying social acceptance are varied. They draw from multiple disciplines and fields, focus on different stages of the innovation process, and examine various aspects of the complex relationship between users and technology, as well as technology and society.
The 6G4Society project is exploring how acceptance is elaborated and addressed within the SNS JU community. Starting from this collaborative research conducted with projects, a selected group of SNS JU projects will showcase and collectively reflect on how the topic of acceptance has been approached within the community. This session will therefore provide a platform for discussing and building a consensus on how social acceptance matters to 6G and how it could possibly be better taken into account at the level of design and implementation of technology.
This session will focus on the critical role social acceptance may play in shaping the vision and priorities, as well as the choice of use cases and requirements, for 6G. It will examine how understanding and engaging with societal values can influence technological development and ensure alignment with public expectations. A key focus will be on the importance of trust and communication as foundational elements in fostering social acceptance of 6G technologies. Additionally, the session will address how governance structures—through institutional relationships, procedural fairness, and transparent decision-making—can support public trust and acceptance during the development and deployment of 6G systems.
This session aims to explore the various dimensions of social acceptance as understood through the experiences of different SNS projects. Starting from this, it will gather insights and share knowledge on the factors that influence public acceptance of 6G technologies, and on how acceptance can be meaningfully addressed and integrated in the processes of technology development and evaluation. A key objective will relate to reflect on, and highlight, how the exploration of different aspects of acceptance is tied to the development of a value-based and sustainable 6G. This relates to reflect on how or to which extent embedding sustainability-related values can strengthen efforts toward achieving social acceptance. Also, this relates to acknowledging the variety of priorities and values across different stakeholders, to guide innovation and technological advancement in ways that generate wider societal benefits and promote shared societal values.
Programme
16:00 – 16:08: Welcome and introduction to the session scope, objectives and participants – Massimo Neri , Martel Innovate
The concept of social acceptance will be introduced and contextualised in the specific socio-technical context of 6G, highlighting how it can support the discussion on the societal dimensions of next-generation networks.
16:08 – 16:15: Talk by Maurizio Cecchi & Ishita Mishra, Institute PIIU (Hexa-X-II Project)
Title of the talk:
Anchoring 6G in Society: Approaches and intervention points to promote social acceptance
Building social acceptance in 6G requires a proactive effort to ensure that emerging technologies align with societal needs and values. Within Hexa-X-II, this is pursued through engagement with diverse stakeholders, including civil society organisations, municipalities, and members of the general public. These exchanges through surveys, dialogues, and public-facing initiatives serve as key channels for capturing expectations, concerns, and aspirations regarding future connectivity.
Stakeholder insights reveal recurring themes such as affordability, environmental sustainability, digital inclusion, and data privacy. These inputs highlight the importance of embedding societal expectations early in the research and innovation lifecycle to enable timely interventions that can guide technology design and policy direction.
The feedback also informs the development of Key Value Indicators (KVIs), ensuring that social acceptance is not only acknowledged but also translated into performance-driven metrics.
Hexa-X-II shows that addressing acceptance requires more than communication, as it calls for reflection, adaptation, and co-creation. The project outlines practical strategies for integrating public insight into innovation processes, helping align technical ambition with societal trust.
Still, an imbalance remains in how values, KVIs, and use cases are shaped, with conversations often led by experts and limited opportunities for direct input from the public.
As the ultimate users of 6G-enabled services, societal perspectives must be better integrated to ensure these technologies reflect real-world needs. By grounding 6G evolution in dialogue with society, Hexa-X-II promotes a development model where public engagement is not an afterthought, but a foundation for innovation and societal relevance.
16:15 – 16:22: Talk by Bahare Masood Khorsandi, Nokia, Germany (SUSTAIN-6G project)
Title of the talk:
Societal aspects of Sustainability in 6G: A framework for balanced technological development
Sustainability is the central focus of the SUSTAIN-6G project, the EU Lighthouse research initiative dedicated to supporting the responsible development and deployment of 6G technologies. Through a dedicated methodology the project aims to provide stakeholders with a means to assess how their technological choices impact sustainability across multiple dimensions. These include the three traditional pillars—economic, environmental, and social—as well as two technology-specific axes: Sustainable 6G technology and 6G for Sustainable Applications. By addressing these six dimensions and conducting proof-of-concept across three selected verticals, SUSTAIN-6G seeks to evaluate the effects of 6G-related decisions on key sustainability parameters. The resulting insights will contribute to guiding informed, balanced technological development and the sustainable evolution of future connectivity. This presentation will explore how sustainability values are addressed within the project’s framework, highlighting the relationship and interplay between these values and the related technological concepts, and thereby putting a spotlight on the complexity of social acceptance. It will examine how acceptance can vary across vertical sectors and stakeholder contexts, and how such variability may influence the interpretation and implementation of sustainability goals. Special attention will be given to the challenges of navigating conflicting priorities and defining trade-offs, as sustainability is translated from principle into practice.
16:22 – 16:30: Talk by Hassan Osman, Real-Wireless, UK (Trialsnet Project)
Title of the talk:
Assessing Social Acceptance of B5G/6G from a TrialsNet Perspective
The presentation will explore the future of B5G/6G technology and its potential to promote social sustainability within the framework of the TrialsNet project. The discussion will emphasize the interplay between technological innovation, social well-being, and human psychology, focusing on how society perceives and accepts emerging technologies. Central to this exploration is the concept of Key Value Indicators (KVIs), which provide a structured framework for assessing the societal acceptance and positive impact of new technologies. The presentation will offer practical examples of KVI assessment, demonstrating how these indicators can be applied to measure real-world outcomes and guide the development of socially responsible B5G/6G solutions.
16:30 – 16:37: Talk by Laurie Ibbs & David Lund, Public Safety Communication Europe, UK (FIDAL Project)
Title of the talk:
More Than Just Tech: FIDAL’s Approach to Designing for Real-World Impact
FIDAL approaches its work by integrating an understanding of the features that support acceptance with the technical elements of design. This dual focus looks inward at the design process and outward at broader interactions with people, environments, and societal goals. This presentation will outline how we developed this approach and how acceptance factors—such as trust and perceived beneficial impacts—became central to the project’s value-driven work and share examples of what this has meant in practice. Throughout the project, we aimed to continuously balanced two perspectives: the expectations of stakeholders and policymakers, and the goals of technological innovation and design. In practice, this has meant linking qualitative social data from users (both actual and potential) with quantitative technological metrics to demonstrate how the work could be accepted as achieving a value in or for society. The presentation will highlight preliminary findings, key lessons learned, and next steps for incorporating these insights into strategies for fostering acceptance during the design phase and in planning for large-scale trials.
16:37 – 16:44: Talk by Flavia Maragno, Digital 4 Planet, Switzerland (6G4Society Project)
Title of the talk:
People-Powered 6G: Insights from Public Engagement
As Europe moves toward defining the landscape of 6G, understanding what citizens expect, value, and fear is more critical than ever. This presentation shares key insights from the 6G4Society project’s public engagement activities—namely the citizen survey and a series of interactive workshops—capturing diverse public attitudes toward emerging network technologies. We explore not just what people think about 6G, but how they think it. From excitement about inclusive connectivity to concerns about data governance, environmental impacts, and equity, our findings reveal a public that is thoughtful, curious, and eager to be heard—if only we are ready to listen.
Beyond data, this presentation will also reflect on the methodology and ethics of engagement. It advocates for a deeper, judgment-free listening practice that values public input not as a checkbox in innovation, but as a compass. We’ll highlight how emotional and cultural responses to technology can illuminate blind spots in technical design and help build technologies rooted in trust, transparency, and societal relevance. By grounding our discussion in real citizen narratives and cross-national trends, we aim to emphasize the strategic importance of embedding public values into 6G design. In doing so, we not only foster acceptance—we shape a future network that truly serves the people it connects.
16:44 – 16:51: Talk by Margot Bezzi, CyberSocial Lab., Italy (6G4Society Project)
Title of the talk:
Beyond Adoption: Rethinking Technology Acceptance through a Social Acceptance Framework for 6G
Technologies like 6G are not merely adopted; they are negotiated, contested, and legitimized through complex social processes. However, dominant models in ICT research—such as TAM, UTAUT, and public acceptance surveys—tend to frame acceptance primarily in terms of individual attitudes or behavioral intentions. To address this limitation, the concept of Social Acceptance of Technology (SAT) is introduced, drawing from research in the energy transition sector and grounded in social studies, innovation studies, and the ethics of innovation. SAT moves beyond narrow behavioral models and aggregate public opinion metrics by conceptualizing acceptance as a multi-level phenomenon shaped by institutions, value systems, and governance arrangements. It treats acceptance not as a fixed outcome or final target, but as a set of interrelated processes involving diverse actors, evolving institutional dynamics, and contested values. Recognizing acceptance as dynamic and multi-layered is essential for a more reflective, responsive, and responsible steering of technology development.
Rather than dismissing traditional approaches, SAT integrates them within a broader analytical framework—demonstrating how acceptance can be understood at multiple levels: from institutional structures that shape innovation, to societal debates during deployment, to individual experiential responses. This interpretation reveals how user attitudes, public sentiment, and social legitimacy are interrelated and shaped by wider institutional and normative contexts. Such an approach may extend beyond 6G, offering insights for future innovations that similarly challenge how societies define progress, manage risk, and negotiate change.
16:51 – 17:10: Discussion
Reflecting on challenges and on a unified approach to social acceptance across the SNS JU community, establishing a path forward for sustainable and inclusive technology development, capable to address societal needs.
17:10 – 17:20: Q&A session – Massimo Neri
17:20 – 17:30: Wrap-up, future direction and closure – Margot Bezzi
