How can a value-based approach to technological change promote economic, social, and ecological progress? How can the public and the private sector harness new technologies to boost innovation and provide social benefits to society at large? At the #Tech4Society Policy Paper Launch on 16 December 2020, we discussed these and other questions with Julia Borggräfe, Joanna Bryson, Thomas Ramge and Rasmus Rothe.

In this workshop, we sought to explore ways of how new technologies can address some of the key societal challenges in health and the world of work and discussed with participants solutions for providing the political framework for scaling up technologies that work for the benefit of society.

In our workshop on data rights policymakers, activists, and citizen engagement groups came together to discuss their personal thoughts and feelings on data rights and data ownership. Understanding and dealing with the challenges around data rights calls for a comprehensive social perspective on data. One of the main findings was that new regulatory frameworks need to be evolved in order to implement the requests for more agency over how data about us is used and more insight into how automated decisions are made about us.

Please join us for a workshop on the topic of data rights. The Open Data Institute and the Royal Society for the encouragement of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce will first present their research project on data rights in the UK, followed by a response from Adriana Groh, Director Prototype Fund at the Open Knowledge Foundation. Together we shall then look to understand the wider public debate on data rights in Germany and locate any research or engagement gaps, to then assess potential areas of collaboration.

The challenge of putting climate action and sustainability at the centre of politics is huge. Even though the need for a comprehensive transformation is unquestionable and public support enormous, there is no consensus on how to get there. Crucial for progressive climate politics is the reform of economic and social institutions as well as the collaboration of social movements with different backgrounds and objectives.