{"version":1,"type":"rich","provider_name":"Libsyn","provider_url":"https:\/\/www.libsyn.com","height":90,"width":600,"title":"Technology, Philanthropy & Civil Society, with Nanjira Sambuli","description":"In this episode we talk to Nanjira Sambuli about technology, philanthropy and civil society. Nanjira is a researcher, policy analyst and advocacy strategist based in Nairobi, Kenya and in a fascinating and wide-ranging discussion we touched on: Digital civil society Is there any meaningful distinction between \u201ccivil society\u201d and \u201cdigital civil society\u201d now? I.e. is technology no longer something that should be seen as a cause area or a tool, but a cross-cutting factor that affects all CSOs? What dangers are there for CSOs in assuming that platforms are objective or neutral public spaces? Are these problems likely to be made worse by the enforced pivot to digital for so many orgs as a result of COVID? How do we link existing work by digital activists etc. to more traditional actors within civil society (e.g. foundations) that might be interested in engaging on technology issues?   Influencing the wider development & implementation of tech Can CSOs play a meaningful role in ensuring that tech is designed and implemented ethically? Is this even the right framing? Does the focus on \u201cethical\u201d tech development beg the question of whether we should even do some of these things at all (and not just \u201cdo them ethically\u201d)? Does it divert attention from the need for more traditional mechanisms of legislation and regulation? Do CSOs from the \u2018global south\u2019 face particular challenges when it comes to influencing the development of tech? What role can foundations and funders can play in helping nonprofits engage with technological change?   Power Dynamics What challenges do the inherent power imbalances between CSOs and tech companies create? Do power imbalances within civil society also pose challenges? (E.g. between funders and recipients, or between CSOs in the global north and those in the global south?) Do we need to make philanthropy more democratic, or accountable to the people and communities it is supposed to serve? If so, how?   Automation and the Fourth Industrial Revolution Should we take an optimistic or pessimistic view of the impact of technology on civil society? Should we be worried that CSOs and funders are not getting to grips with either the challenges or opportunities of the fourth industrial revolution? What role is there for CSOs in addressing the impact of algorithmic bias? Is such bias likely to affect CSOs themselves? If so, how?   The Future Role of Philanthropy in Society What should we make of criticisms that since philanthropy is to some extent a product of existing structural inequality, it can never truly be part of the solution? Are the donors and funders who recognise these challenges and are genuinely pursuing structural change? Does the fact that a growing proportion of philanthropic wealth comes from donors who have made their money in tech present challenges when it comes to getting philanthropy to focus on the societal impacts of technology? E.g. Are these tech donors particularly prone to \u201ctech solutionism\u201d or more likely to assume the inevitability of technological development?   Predictions and Foresight in civil society: The pandemic has highlighted the importance of looking ahead to the future. How can we get more foresight and futures thinking embedded in civil society? What role could foundations and funders play? What role should civil society and philanthropic funders be playing in developing imagined futures that are informed by the voices of people and communities on the ground around the world?     Related links Nanjira on Twitter Nanjira\u2019s recent article for WINGS, \u201cOn the Patient Capital Needed from Philanthropy in Tech\u201d. Video of the WINGS Forum 2021 event on \u201cPhilanthropy and the Digital Revolution\u201d that Nanjira and I were both involved in. \u201cWhat is Digital Equality?\u201d Interview with Nanjira Sambuli\u201d in European Sting Rhod\u2019s WEF articles, \u201cPhilanthropy is at a Turning Point: Here are 6 Ways it could go\u201d and \u201cWhere are Charities in the Great AI Debate?\u201d Our CAF Giving Thought podcasts with Lucy Bernholz and Cassie Robinson. Rhod\u2019s 2018 Alliance article \u201cRiding the Tiger of Technological Change\u201d ","author_name":"Giving Thought","author_url":"https:\/\/www.cafonline.org\/about-us\/","html":"