Cool.org’s Post

2024 is a unique year. Globally, voters in at least 64 countries —representing a combined population of about 49% of the people in the world—are holding national elections. And democracy is under threat from disinformation and backsliding on the values that make democracy work. Elections are a critical part of all free societies. I’m proud of Chemonics International's work around the world to support open and fair elections, peaceful transitions, and inclusive societies. Lately we’ve turned to leveraging AI’s potential to strengthen democracy. In #Ukraine, we see AI being used to support democratic resilience amidst an illegal and immoral Russian invasion. Reliable information ecosystems and data are critical to our ability to use #AIForGood. On #InternationalDayOfDemocracy, read on to learn more about the practical strategies used by my teammates in #Niger, #Syria, and #Ukraine to support organizations and governments in better tackling mis-, dis-, and mal-information to safeguard democratic processes: https://lnkd.in/gbRjQHgX Now more than ever we need to take action and ensure that technology is developed and used for the greater good and ensure that democracy thrives around the world. What are your thoughts about how we make this happen?

𝐇𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐘𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐒𝐚𝐲: 𝐏𝐫𝐨𝐯𝐢𝐝𝐞 𝐈𝐧𝐩𝐮𝐭 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐒𝐮𝐠𝐠𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐍𝐀𝐑𝐀’𝐬 𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟓-𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟕 𝐎𝐩𝐞𝐧 𝐆𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐧𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐏𝐥𝐚𝐧 We are developing the agency’s sixth Open Government Plan and we would like your input and suggestions for 2025-2027. Open government is built on transparency, participation, and collaboration: the three principles that form the cornerstone of an open government. Take a look at our previous plans and tell us what you would like to see included. How do you think we should further transparency, participation, and collaboration at the National Archives? We’re looking for your feedback on a variety of topics, including but not limited to: • Innovation, crowdsourcing, and public engagement • Digitization and online public access • Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) • Declassification • Records Management Please email your suggestions to opengov@nara.gov by July 31, 2024, so they can be considered for the plan.

💻 In preparing for the upcoming #SummitforDemocracy, we're reflecting on how digital tools can shape a better democracy. Read about key takeaways from #OGPEstonia on #DigitalDemocracy and its role in creating accountable, transparent governments:

With the Labour Government promising more on devolution, local areas are set to benefit from increased powers to deliver more services. But, local government can be a complex world - how is it best navigated? Director Kate Fairhurst wrote recently for techUK about her top three tips for getting your foot in the door: 👉 Properly understanding your audience and where you'd add real value. 👉 Getting the tone and delivery right, tailoring your language and keeping it local. 👉 Communicating impact and value for money. At Henham Strategy, we believe passionately in the ability of local government to transform communities. We enjoy helping our clients engage with local authorities to solve their trickiest issues. We are pleased that the Labour Government committed to the power of local government so early on. We're excited by the possibilities ahead! See the full article here: https://lnkd.in/eE5zhDgS #localgovernment #localgrowth #techuk #devolution #policy

No Tech For Apartheid@ No Tech For Genocide@ No Tech For Mass Murder Regimes@ No Tech For Crimes Against Humanity@ Tech For Humanity@ Tech For The Poor@ Tech For The Vulnerable@ Tech For The Less Fortunate@ Tech For Human Dignity@ Tech For Empathy@ Tech For Compassion@ All Major Big Tech Companies Complicit In The Worst Genocide Mankind Has Witnessed@ Including:- Genocide Microsoft@ Genocide Google@ Genocide IBM@ Genocide Amazon@ Genocide Apple@ Genocide HPE@ Genocide Oracle@ Genocide SAP@ Genocide Salesforce@ Genocide Facebook@ Genocide X@ This Global Movement Will Only Grow Stronger Against@ I Will Ensure This Goal Is Exceeded@  All Of These Big Tech Companies Are Complicit In Their Unwavering Financial Support Of Israel And The IDF. Big Tech Entities are complicit in Israel’s genocide war against 2.3 million Palestinians in Gaza Plus Palestine People For More Than 75 Years@ This level Of consistent Support & Funding By Big Tech Companies In Israel For Solely Economic Reasons, Has Resulted In Ongoing Death, Destruction, Decimation, Annihilation Of A People (Palestine) And Their Rich Culture@ This Has Been Perpetrated By The Zionist, Apartheid, Satanic Death Cult And Belligerent War Mongering Regime Of Israel@ Through Deliberate And Unprovoked Crimes Against Humanity - Genocide, Mass Murder, Ethnic Cleansing, Rapid Expansion Of Illegal Settlement Activity In The Occupied Territories@ Stolen Land@ & The Recent Use Of New Weapons Of War (Food, Water, Medicines, Electricity, Internet Communications, Deliberately Targeting, Killing And Suppressing Members Of The Press, And UN Employees As Well)@ Over 35,000 Palestinians Murdered Thus Far - the Majority Of Which Are Babies, Women And Children@ More Than 100,000 Injured Without Access To Hospitals And Medical Facilities To Provide The Care They So Urgently Need@ All Of These Events Are Taking Place in 2024 Before Our Very Own Eyes@ Global Humanity And Dignity Has Vanished@ Never At The Scale We Have Ever Seen Before@ Yet@ The Entire World Turns A Blind Eye And The Other Way@ All Western “So Called Democracies” Are 1000% Supportive Of This Genocide Against Palestinian Refugees@ Big Tech Is Certainly No Exception@ All Of These Big Tech Companies Continue To Ignore International Law:- 1) UN - Israel Illegally Occupies Palestinian Land, 2) ICJ Just Confirmed Israel Is Indeed Committing Genocide, 3) Jewish Settlements In The Occupied Territories Are Illegal And Are Expanding Rapidly@ How Can Big Tech STILL Operate In International Markets When They Have Absolutely No Regard Or Respect For International Law@ What Example Are Big Tech Establishing For Your Employees To Follow@ Shame On The Senior Leadership Team Of All Big Tech Companies@ All Of You Are Complicit In These Crimes Against Humanity@ You Will All Experience DUE Retribution@ Ameen@

Dr. Ron Jabal, DBA, APR, Chairman of PAGEONE Group, emphasized the importance of open access in data transmission in his recent BusinessWorld Publishing Corporation column. He pointed out that this openness is crucial for promoting fairness, encouraging innovation, and driving economic growth. He also stressed that allowing unrestricted access to data is vital for providing equal opportunities in the digital economy for both individuals and businesses. “There are several arguments to be made in favor of open access in data transmission — and most are rooted in the principles of fairness, innovation, and economic development. At the crux of it all is the ability to access and transmit data freely that is vital in ensuring that all individuals and businesses have an equal opportunity to participate in the digital economy.” The Chairman stated. Read the full story here: https://lnkd.in/gvziAUMy

What is the impact of #InternetShutdowns in #Iraq? What are the economic implications? How are #women affected by these shutdowns? How can we mitigate their adverse effects? Read the blog written by GIF’s partner Technology Organization for Peace for more information. #GreaterInternetFreedom #DigitalRights

At the third Summit for Democracy, Secretary Blinken noted the crucial role Open Technology Fund's Surge and Sustain Fund plays in supporting internet freedom globally. He emphasized that our fund is allowing "30 million users of circumvention tools, like VPNs, to get around government internet blackouts each month." Today, that number is over 40 million monthly active users in some of the world's most repressive countries: China, Iran, Russia, and Myanmar. https://lnkd.in/gFUUMn_e The Surge and Sustain Fund was established to provide large-scale circumvention tools with the resources they need to sustain their current users and respond to ever growing demand for their tools. Fundamentally, the Surge and Sustain Fund is a market solution to a human rights challenge: it is cost-prohibitive for people in many authoritarian countries to access secure, trustworthy, and effective circumvention tools. Through this mechanism, OTF supports only the user-carrying costs -- pennies per user -- for non-monetizable users of secure, open source circumvention tools to ensure that people living in repressive environments have access to these critical anti-censorship technologies. We are appreciative to our partners at Psiphon Inc., nthLink, and Lantern who have developed the technologies that allow millions of people to access the uncensored internet. Learn more: https://lnkd.in/exyPsdGP #censorship #circumvention #VPN #digitalauthoritarianism #internetfreedom

The Local Government Association has published a Local Government Digitalisation Framework. It's not breaking any new ground - its missions, enablers and principles and good practice are all pretty familiar - but the LGA has influence in local government and the document could help to bring some focus to digital initiatives at local authorities that have been slow to make progress. https://lnkd.in/enUG3yNd #localgovernment #govtech #digitaltransformation