Digital Democracy

In 2008, we formed Digital Democracy based on a simple but powerful idea: Technology should be used to empower even the most marginalized groups to engage in democratic action, whether locally, on a national or international scale. The idea for Digital Democracy was inspired by the courage of Burmese monks, human rights workers and advocates [...]

Tuesday marked the 100th anniversary of International Women’s Day, and Digital Democracy was celebrating from Port-au-Prince, where our Haiti Program Manager Emilie Reiser joined one of our local partners, KOFAVIV, for a day-long celebration. The situation for women in Haiti remains challenging, particularly in the displaced person camps where attacks of rape and sexual violence [...]

In September Digital Democracy made a commitment to the Clinton Global Initiative to use technology to empower women and girls fighting gender-based violence in Haiti. This is part of our larger commitment to engage with our local partners using technology to solve urgent problems in their communities. This year our dedicated team harnessed digital maps, mobile phones, [...]

What is the future of libraries? The debate is raging on what information management will look like in the 21st century and how relevant and useful public buildings such as libraries really are. I was excited to travel to Kiev to discuss the issue with some libraries from Ukraine and Romania. As a trainer, my [...]

Join us this Monday night at New Work City’s SoHo space for Digital Democracy’s 2nd birthday bash! There will be stickers, games, music and free drinks until 9 (discounted bar afterward), so get #stuckonDd, and show your support. All proceeds go towards Digital Democracy and our work empowering at-risk communities with innovative technologies. BUY YOUR [...]

Today, we’re celebrating our second anniversary! It’s hard to believe just how much we have worked on and accomplished over the past two years. And we’re grateful for our community of supporters who have made all of this possible. In reflecting over the past year, we’ve compiled some of the numbers from outputs from our [...]

A student of mine named Genghis Kahn raises his hand and declares that he wants to do a media project on why adults need to learn technology. He explained that in the 21st century, these tools are really important and if the people in the city of Atyrau want to move forward, they’re going to [...]

In November 2008, I traveled to Harare, Zimbabwe with Emily to investigate how technology is being used to overcome the obstacles that are inherent in a closed society. We researched methods of survival despite hyperinflation and looked at how communications strategies help citizens to address their needs. It was fascinating to be there at a [...]

Still reeling from the earthquake nine months ago and with elections later this month, what do Haitians living in the camps think about voting and the opportunities for changing their country? Last week, Dd’s Emily Jacobi, Emilie Reiser, and I traveled there to find out.

What are the similarities between open source software and a Hawaiian shirt? I recently traveled to Erbil, Iraq with Digital Democracy Advisor, and Director of Tech Innovation for the NY State Senate, Noel Hidalgo for the Emerging Technologies/Emerging Democracies IREX and Institute for War and Peace Reporting hosted Iraq E-Media conference. To break through the [...]