[Governance] Call for Participation (in person/virtual) in October Symposium on the Agenda-Setting Role Funders Play in Advancing Digital/Data Rights, Justice, Equity, and Inclusion

[Becky Lentz via Governance]

Dear governance colleagues,

Greetings from Austin, TX and I hope all are well.

The imperative for individuals to participate fully in our increasingly digitized society cannot be overstated. However, as digital governance experts know, access to essential resources alone is not enough. Ensuring personal safety, availability, affordability, accessibility, and digital skills demand significant attention from scholars, policymakers, civil society advocates, social movement leaders, journalists, and many more, including funders. 

Yet the challenges related to funding for any of these and other critical activities is often the "elephant in the room”. An obvious problem that everyone knows about, but, for a number of reasons, few, if any, want to talk about it. 

Example: A September 2022 report <https://docs.google.com/document/d/193OHpDA-rKXTcIpF9ClqncgTrJVartFh4uAtJ_tFyzw/edit> examining U.S. philanthropic giving toward digital equity found that in spite of the pandemic highlighting the urgency of addressing digital inequity, philanthropic funding in this space has largely remained stagnant. According to the report, “Funding for digital equity makes up less than 1% of overall giving by large foundations”.  

We have a hunch that a ‘commoning <https://www.onthecommons.org/work/handy-tools-achieving-commons-based-solutions/index.html>’ rather than competition approach to talking about funding in the interrelated fields of digital/data rights, justice, equity, and inclusion is worth taking up. Doing so with rigor and respect from an abundance, not a scarcity, mindset while centering the voices of those living and working closest to the challenges of advancing digital/data rights, justice, equity, and inclusion is our primary goal. 

Some questions to explore:
How does funding help members of civil society work across siloes of expertise and experience to address the complex challenges of achieving digital/data rights, justice, equity, and inclusion, not just in the U.S. but also globally?
What are ways to overcome barriers to funding due to asymmetries of power?
What roles can, should, or must philanthropic actors play in addressing the increasing challenges of digital society?
What roles do funders play in fostering sustainable collaborations across public, private, and social sectors?

Please consider joining this conversation by adding your insights, questions, and participation preferences here:

https://rgkcenter.org/call-participation



Thank you,
Becky Lentz

———
Becky Lentz <https://lbj.utexas.edu/becky-lentz>, PhD | Faculty Associate | LBJ School of Public Affairs at UT Austin
--Director of the Tech & Society Initiative at the RGK Center for Philanthropy and Community Service <https://rgkcenter.org/about>
--Public Voices Fellow <https://www.theopedproject.org/fellowships> with The OpEd Project <https://www.theopedproject.org/mission>

 


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