Digital Civil Society: Challenges & Opportunties, with Lucy Bernholz

<p>In this episode we talk to Lucy Bernholz, Director of the Digital Civil Society Lab at Stanford University’s Center on Philanthropy & Civil Society (Stanford PACS) about how technology is reshaping civil society and the challenges and opportunities this will bring. Including:</p> <p> </p> <p><em>Digital civil society</em></p> <ul> <li>Is there any meaningful distinction between “civil society” and “digital civil society” now?</li> <li>Has the current period of enforced digitisation as a consequence of the COVID pandemic led to more CSOs engaging with tech and tech issues?</li> <li>What dangers are there for CSOs in assuming that platforms are objective or neutral public spaces? Are these problems likely to be exacerbated by the enforced pivot to digital for so many orgs as a result of COVID?</li> <li>Are funders (e.g. foundations) getting to grips with the challenges and opportunities of the fourth industrial revolution?</li> </ul> <p><em>Influencing the wider development & implementation of tech</em></p> <ul> <li>Can nonprofits play a meaningful role in ensuring that tech is designed and implemented ethically?</li> <li>Does the focus on “ethical” approaches to tech risk diverting attention from the need for more traditional mechanisms of legislation and regulation?</li> <li>Are the inherent power imbalances between CSOs and tech companies too great for the latter to influence the former, or can asymmetric methods be used to overcome them?</li> <li>What role can foundations and funders play in helping nonprofits engage with technological change?</li> </ul> <p><em>Trust & Accountability</em></p> <ul> <li>DO CSOs face new challenges to their authenticity in a digital world (deepfakes, astroturfing etc)?</li> <li>Will perverse incentives within the online attention economy present a particular challenge for CSOs when it comes to maintaining trust?</li> <li>Do we need to make philanthropy more democratic, or accountable to the people and communities it is supposed to serve? If so, how?</li> </ul> <p><em>Social mov