Addressing the Opportunities and Threats Posed by Technology
The digital technologies now at the center of civic life are more than just a set of tools: They are increasingly the primary stage on which the global struggle for democracy is playing out. Advances in connectivity, innovative digital platforms, and creative uses of AI, amongst emerging technologies, create unprecedented opportunities for democratic actors to collaborate and work in common cause, within as well as across borders. Democrats around the world are harnessing technology with drive and ingenuity to deepen civic participation and hold governments accountable. At the same time, autocrats are taking full advantage of the latest digital innovations to surveil their populations, censor information, and target their critics. In this context, choices around the design, use, and governance of digital technologies by governments, civil society, and tech companies are shaping outcomes and interactions, from the smallest communities up to the global level. To strengthen democratic resilience, intentional thinking about ways to ensure that these technologies serve democratic values is crucial.
NED strategically engages with technology’s complex impacts on democracy by working with a diverse array of partners, from local grassroots groups to global organizations, in a range of political environments. We focus on targeted grantmaking, empowering our partners to develop initiatives that counter digital repression and enhance their ability to leverage technology for democracy. Additionally, we foster connections between technologists and partners, facilitating collaborations that bring technical expertise to the forefront of democratic innovation. Our comprehensive research efforts provide critical insights that guide our strategies and help the wider democratic community adapt to evolving digital trends and threats. Through our collaborative efforts and research, we strive to ensure that civil society is well equipped to navigate the challenges of our evolving digital landscape.
Grantee Spotlight
(Photo courtesy of Data Privacy Brazil)
The use of personal data by both governments and companies is at the heart of the relationship between technology and democracy. The process of digitalization, quantification, and data aggregation of all aspects of human life, known as “datafication,” has accelerated in recent years. With emerging technology and artificial intelligence becoming more widespread, datafication’s impact is expected to deepen and become more prominent in the future.
Ensuring that this process is conducted with human rights and democratic principles in mind is critical. This is especially important in Global South countries, which are on the frontlines of datafication processes and yet have fewer democratic and accountability measures to counterbalance the interests to expand data-driven policymaking and authoritarian approaches by governments. At the same time, the voices of civil society from these countries are often marginalized in international fora where digital policy and internet governance are discussed. Since 2022, Data Privacy Brasil has partnered with a dozen of the most important digital rights organizations across different regions to form a Global South alliance that allows them to collaborate and coordinate advocacy efforts across various policy spaces. The power of this type of collective action ensures that their voices are more likely to be heard and their concerns and positions more likely to meaningfully inform policy discussions and debates.
There are already signs of the alliance’s impact despite its recent establishment. Alliance members have contributed their insights in multiple norms and standards setting processes, including the UN Global Digital Consultation. The alliance’s expertise has been recognized in this space and resulted in an invitation to co-lead the Inclusive Digital Transformation Task Force of one of the engagement groups of the G20, through which alliance representatives made proposals to redouble global efforts to focus on data governance and the protection of rights.
International Forum Report: Leveraging AI for Democracy
(Photo by olemedia/Getty Images)This essayseries from the International Forum for Democratic Studies outlines possible paths toward a prodemocratic vision for artificial intelligence, offering insights on the critical questions that confront organizations seeking to deploy AI tools, how AI creates opportunities for citizens, and how AI could enable new forms of civic deliberation.
International Forum Report: Setting Democratic Ground Rules for AI
(Photo by LuckyStep/Shutterstock)
A report by the International Forum for Democratic Studies’ Beth Kerley analyzes priorities, challenges, and promising civil society strategies for advancing democratic approaches to governing artificial intelligence (AI). The report is based on conversations from a private Forum workshop in Buenos Aires, Argentina that brought together Latin American and global researchers and civil society practitioners.
