What are the possibilities of a good digital society?
- Project status
- Ongoing
- Programmes
- Digital Society
- Departments
- Policy
The discussion papers that form this series are part of the British Academy’s Digital Society policy programme, which draws upon the Social Sciences, Humanities and the Arts for People and the Economy (the ‘SHAPE’ disciplines) to explore the ways in which digital technologies, tools, and practices shape and are shaped by our society, and to address the questions of what makes for a good digital society and how policymakers can navigate the digital society in the coming decade.
At the end of 2023, the British Academy began a four-stage, multi-year programme around ‘What makes a good digital society?’ This programme set out the four consecutive stages of work:
- Possibilities; what are the possibilities of a good digital society?
- Principles; what are the principles that underpin a good digital society?
- Processes; what are the processes and mechanisms available to implement the principles of a good digital society?
- Practices; what does a good digital society look like in practice?
The papers in this volume were commissioned as part of the first stage of this programme. We invited contributions from across the SHAPE disciplines that explored the question, ‘What are the possibilities of a good digital society?’
What are the possibilities of a good digital society? Introduction
Introduction to discussion paper series
This introduction summarises messages that emerged from a workshop held with paper authors and stakeholders in policy, research, and civil society.
Discussion papers
The Impacts of Digitalised Daily Life on Climate Change
Felippa Amanta, Poornima Kumar, Marcel Seger, Emilie Vrain, Environmental Change Institute, University of Oxford
The Possibilities of Data Resistance in a Digital Society
Kyle Beadle, University College London
People Not Code: The Case for a Digital Civil Society Observatory
Rachel Coldicutt, Careful Trouble
Building a Good Digital Society from the Grassroots
Paolo Gerli, Edinburgh Napier University
Harnessing the tradition of community-led initiatives in the governance of digital services and infrastructures.
Data-Driven Parenting
Ekaterina Hertog, Netta Weinstein, Jun Zhao, University of Oxford and University of Reading
Robust research and policy needed to ensure that parental digital monitoring promotes a good digital society.
Digital Inclusion for a Good Digital Society: Leveraging the Benefits and Mitigating the Dark Side
Marina Kacar and Luigi M. De Luca, Cardiff Business School
The Possibilities of 'Good' Generative AI in the Cultural and Creative Industries
Kate Miltner and Tim Highfield, University of Sheffield
Exploring Artificial Intelligence Technologies and Quality of Life for Older People Ageing in Place in Super-Aged Societies
Elizabeth Morrow, Fiona Ross, Edward Naessens, Carmel Kelly, Mary Lynch, Royal College of Surgeons of Ireland, Kingston University and Queen’s University Belfast
The Futures Past of the UK’s Digital Communications Infrastructure
Jacob Ward, Maastricht University
