TECHNOLOGY AND DEMOCRACY PROGRAM We are pleased to welcome Julie Ricard back to the team as Director of the “Technology and Democracy” Program! Below, Julie shares her vision for the Program and why it is needed in today’s world. Why Technology and Democracy? Over the past 2 decades, “tech” has become one of, if not the most, powerful and influential … Read More
LWL #41 Populism vs. Progress: The Fight for the Future of Brazil
LINKS WE LIKE #41 “You’ll never change anything in this country through voting. Nothing. Absolutely nothing.” – Jair Bolsonaro On October 2nd, 2022, Brazilians headed to the polls to vote for a host of candidates running for multiple roles at both the national and regional levels. The most closely watched race was that for Brazil’s next president, pitting former president … Read More
Why Gender-Responsive Due Diligence in Agribusiness Value Chains Matters
DISCUSSION PIECE ShutterStock Although relatively new, the discourse around Business and Human Rights (BHR) has become increasingly relevant in recent years. This is especially true due to the increasing amount of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) into African countries, as well as the continued march of globalization. According to the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development’s (UNTAD) World Investment Report … Read More
Resumen “Taller Big Data y análisis de pobreza para el Desarrollo Sostenible”
Presentación Data-Pop Alliance (DPA), con el apoyo y patrocinio de la Agencia Española de Cooperación Internacional para el Desarrollo (AECID ) a través del Centro de Formación de la Cooperación Española en Santa Cruz, Bolivia, (CFSCZ), desarrollo el taller en línea “Introducción Big Data y análisis de pobreza para el Desarrollo Sostenible” . Esta iniciativa se baso en los resultados de … Read More
Experiencia de Edgar Pacheco en el Taller Big Data y análisis de pobreza para el desarrollo sostenible
DATA LITERACY SERIES (Text in Spanish / English) Entrevistador: Mario Cajiao Project Officer DPA Entrevistado: Edgar Pacheco Manager de Networking y Recaudación de Fondos Sustainable Development Solutions Network (SDSN Bolivia) En esta nueva “Serie de Alfabetismo de Datos” entrevistamos a participantes que han tomado nuestros cursos en línea. La serie continuara con la entrevista al participante del taller 2 Big Data … Read More
LWL #40 Engineering the Future? AI Laboratories Around the World
LINKS WE LIKE #40 It seems that we are witnessing significant progress in the development of AI systems and technologies almost daily. Behind the scenes, there are many dedicated organizations, laboratories, and research centers that are working arduously towards finding solutions to pressing issues. There are the well-known big tech giants, whose labs include Microsoft AI Lab, Google AI, OpenAI, … Read More
Data-Driven Hope: The August 4th Tragedy in Beirut
DISCUSSION PIECE Pexels It was a calm Tuesday afternoon, my fiance and I had just come back from work and put on our favorite TV show. We were sitting at our dining table, and I noticed it shook. “Please stop shaking your leg!” I said to my fiance, and he replied, “It’s not me, I think it’s an earthqu—” and … Read More
Habeas Data and Personal Data Protection in Latin America
DISCUSSION PIECE ShutterStock “According to recent estimates, in 2022, 2.5 quintillion data are generated daily, and at least 1200 petabytes are saved and exchanged through digital media.” Wilse, 2022 Our daily lives are increasingly influenced by digital data. Its value and potential are widely acknowledged in a variety of industries, due to the enormous benefits they generate every day. Against … Read More
LWL #39 The Data Police: How AI and Big Data are Reshaping Crime Prevention
LINKS WE LIKE #39 Imagine being able to detect crime hotspots in your city, use facial recognition software to match camera footage from a robbery with a database of images, or even predict the likelihood of a crime (including time and location) before it occurs. While this might sound like science fiction (Minority Report, which came out 20 years ago, … Read More
LWL #38 Algorithmic Justice: The Next Civil Rights Frontier?
LINKS WE LIKE #38 “The first duty of society is justice” – Wendell Phillips When you think of “civil rights”, many things probably come to mind. Generations-long struggles for racial or gender equality and equal protection for other disenfranchised communities are most commonly associated with the phrase. What you do not think of, most likely, are algorithms. In fact, unless … Read More
Experiencia de Diego Suarez en el Taller Big Data y Desarrollo Sostenible
DATA LITERACY SERIES (Text in Spanish / English) Entrevistador: Mario Cajiao Project Officer DPA Entrevistado: Diego Suarez Jefe de experimentación UNDP Accelerator Labs Bolivia En esta nueva “Serie de Alfabetismo de Datos” entrevistamos a participantes que han tomado nuestros cursos en línea. La serie empezará con el participantes del taller 1 Big Data y Desarrollo Sostenible: Diego Suarez. Lee sobre la … Read More
Resumen taller “Introducción al Big Data y Desarrollo Sostenible”
Presentación Data-Pop Alliance (DPA), con el apoyo y patrocinio de la Agencia Española de Cooperación Internacional para el Desarrollo (AECID ) a través del Centro de Formación de la Cooperación Española en Santa Cruz, Bolivia, (CFSCZ), desarrollo el taller en línea “Introducción a Big Data para el Desarrollo Sostenible 2022” . Esta iniciativa se baso en los resultados de un … Read More
Job Automation: Deliverance or Dystopia?
This discussion piece explores the possibilities that await humankind as AI and automation advance.
LWL #37 The Future of Health? How Big Data and AI are Reshaping Modern Medicine
LINKS WE LIKE #37 Health care is one sector for which the massive amount of data produced daily holds great promise. Data from electronic health records, medical devices and health-related apps (and other sources) has grown so large that they exceed human capabilities for analysis. This is where Artificial Intelligence (AI) comes into play. Through various modeling techniques, AI can … Read More
DPA Alumni Series Interview: Bertille Kerouault
In the “Alumni Series”, we catch up with former Data-Pop Alliance interns to hear about their experiences working with DPA, what they learned, and how it helped them on their career paths. The second edition features Communications Officer Anthony Deen (AD) interviewing former Intern Bertille Kerouault (BK), who worked with DPA in 2021 for six months. She’s originally from France, … Read More
LWL #36 Crisis Data: New Technology and Humanitarian Emergencies
LINKS WE LIKE #36 Accurate data is pivotal to identifying and responding to the needs of those impacted by a variety of shocks, including violent conflicts, environmental disasters, epidemics, and other life-threatening emergencies. By gathering and processing personal, public, and geographic data, aid organizations, humanitarian workers and other relevant actors are able to not only deploy more targeted responses to … Read More
The High Cost of Internet Shutdowns
DISCUSSION PIECE ShutterStock At the beginning of 2022, the Kazakh government removed the price cap on fuel, leading to protest movements in the Central Asian republic. The population has long been dissatisfied with the regime, but the increase in natural gas prices, which the Kazakhs rely heavily upon, was the straw that broke the camel’s back. On the one side … Read More
DPA Alumni Series Interview: Shivika Singh
In the “Alumni Series”, we catch up with former Data-Pop Alliance interns to hear about their experiences working with DPA, what they learned, and how it helped them on their career paths. The first edition features Managing Director Natalie Grover (NG) interviewing former Intern Shivika Singh (SS), who worked with DPA in 2018. NG: Can you just give us a quick … Read More
Gender Data Series: Mobility, Accessibility and the Gender Data Gap in Urban Transportation Planning
GENDER DATA SERIES This is the fourth edition of Data-Pop Alliance’s “Gender Data Series”, which comprises interviews, videos, and opinion articles with gender data experts from around the globe to bring light to issues at the intersection of gender and data, such as health, migration, livelihoods and, of course, gender-based violence (GBV). Illustration: GoodStudio (Shutterstock) Transportation policies and infrastructure tend … Read More
LWL#35 The Future of Financial Inclusion: How New Technologies are Reshaping FinTech
LINKS WE LIKE #35 Financial inclusion, or access to formal financial services, (such as bank accounts, credit, and loans) is one of the most valuable tools for breaking cycles of poverty. Unfortunately, an estimated 1.7 billion people worldwide remain “unbanked”, or lacking access to these services; half of which live in just 7 middle-income countries: Bangladesh, China, India, Indonesia, Mexico, … Read More
Opinion Polls and Democracy: A Case Study of France
The rise of advanced public opinion technology was supposed to take the uncertainty out of elections, but what is its effect on democracies?
LWL #34 The Creative Arts and AI: The Ultimate Collaboration (or Competition?)
LINKS WE LIKE #34 Repetitive, structured, and monotonous are adjectives often associated with Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML). Normally these tools are not linked with being creative, let alone with the creation of art. However, in recent years this perception has changed and, increasingly, artists are breaking barriers and using AI and teaching ML models to create art … Read More
Embracing the Principles for Digital Development: Leveraging Big Data Sources for Policy Evaluation in Crisis Settings
“Leveraging Big Data Sources for Policy Evaluation and Analysis in Crisis Settings”, is a web platform for policymakers to draw insights to assist with crisis responses (including COVID-19).
The Women Leading the Fight Against Land Expropriation in Latin America
An exploration of how Indigenous women are leading efforts to curtail land expropriation in Latin America. An exploration of how Indigenous women are leading efforts to curtail land expropriation in Latin America, including how Earth Observation technology can aid these efforts.
The High Cost of “Free” Data: Zero-Rating and its Impacts on Disinformation in Brazil
This discussion piece explores the ways in which “zero-rating” programs facilitate the spread of misinformation and also help to maintain unequal power dynamics between the Global South and the Global North.
Digital Transformation in the Global South: Enhancing Citizens’ Trust
If governments in the Global South integrate digital transformation into their public services’ agenda, will they be able to enhance citizens’ trust?
LWL #33 Agriculture and AI: From the Root of Civilization to its Promising Future
We now find ourselves on the verge of the next “agricultural revolution”, with Artificial Intelligence (AI) and agriculture coming together. In this edition of Links We Like, we explore the effects that this linkage will create.
The Gender Data 201 Course: Paving the Way for Gender Data Literacy
Gender Data 201 is a free online course we developed with support from Facebook and TechChange (the hosting platform.) The objective of the course is to develop a hands-on online learning experience to equip participants with the basic data skills needed to lead gender-responsive advocacy work, decision-making processes, and/or policy design and implementation.
Gender Data Series: How Can Data be Leveraged to Combat Sexual Harassment and Abuse in the Workplace?
GENDER DATA SERIES The “Gender Data Series” includes interviews, videos, and opinion articles with experts from around the globe. The goal of this project is to shed light on issues at the intersection of gender and data; such as health, migration, livelihoods, and gender-based violence (GBV). In the third edition of the series, we feature an interview with Brazilian Gender … Read More
LWL #32 Facebook, the Promise and the Peril
LINKS WE LIKE #32 When speaking about the purpose of his company, Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg has been quoted as saying, “By giving people the power to share, we’re making the world more transparent.” This leads to a very important question, is Facebook itself living up to this standard? According to a recent whistleblower, the answer is no. Considering Facebook’s … Read More
Africa’s Poverty Tsunami: Do Cash Transfers Work Best?
DISCUSSION PIECE Africa’s GDP is poised to grow exponentially in the next decade. According to the African Development Bank, GDP growth is expected to rise by 3.4% in 2021, an increase from 2.1% in 2020. Despite this anticipated gain, the continent still faces numerous challenges. Although hunger, malnutrition, extreme weather events, water scarcity, food insecurity, injustices, inflation, and conflicts remain … Read More
LWL #31 Online Harassment and AI Content Moderation: Countering Threats to Freedom of Expression
LINKS WE LIKE #31 The emergence and popularity of new social networks has opened space for a multitude of virtual interactions between people from diverse backgrounds. Consequently, the internet allows anyone to become a “communicator”, with access to a wide audience to share their views. With the virtual environment becoming one of the most important centers of public debate, innovative … Read More
Gender Data Series: How Technology is Being Used to Tackle the ‘Shadow Pandemic’
GENDER DATA SERIES This is the second edition of Data-Pop Alliance’s “Gender Data Series”, which comprises interviews, videos, and opinion articles with gender data experts from around the globe to bring light to issues at the intersection of gender and data, such as health, migration, livelihoods and, of course, gender-based violence (GBV). The authors of this piece work at the … Read More
LWL #30 AI and ML for People with Disabilities: Innovations and Challenges
LINKS WE LIKE #30 One of the biggest opportunities that Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning technologies have opened up is the chance to design solutions that can positively impact the lives of people with disabilities. According to the World Health Organization, about 15% of the global population (1.2 Billion people) has some type of disability. In the fight towards inclusivity, … Read More
The CODE for Building Participatory and Ethical Data Projects
DISCUSSION PIECE This piece was published with the support and as part of the Data Values Project (#DataValues) launched by the Global Partnership for Sustainable Development Data, of which Data-Pop Alliance is a founding member. Photo: Rawpixel (Shutterstock) What’s the best strategy for ensuring development projects adhere to ethical guidelines? It’s a complex question as answers may vary by sector … Read More
LWL #29 Blockchain and its Application to Collective Challenges
LINKS WE LIKE #29 Although it has most commonly been associated with cryptocurrency, since its release in 2008 with the white paper “Bitcoin: A Peer-to-Peer Electronic Cash System”, the blockchain system has been always praised for its potential to transform various sectors. Namely, blockchain can be used to address environmental challenges, enable e-voting, expand digital mobile ticketing, facilitate health care … Read More
Un nuevo contrato social para la era del Big Data
DISCUSSION PIECE (SPANISH) En la era del Internet y de los datos, las sociedades han modificado a tal grado sus formas de interacción, intercambio de información, generación de valor, entre otros tantos aspectos, que se requiere un nuevo “contrato social” para asegurar la prevalencia de la democracia y sus instituciones. Este artículo discute cómo hemos llegado colectivamente a este punto, … Read More
LWL #28 Can Data and AI be Used as a Weapon to Fight Corruption?
LINKS WE LIKE #28 Corruption is a major challenge for governments, companies, and societies all around the world. It is an expensive criminal and cultural practice. According to the UN, an estimated one trillion dollars are paid in bribes annually, while another 2.6 trillion are lost in corrupt activities globally. However, the cost of corruption is not merely economic; it damages … Read More
Gender Data Series: An Interview with Our Own Data Scientists
GENDER DATA SERIES This piece introduces our new monthly “Gender Data Series”, which will comprise interviews, videos, and opinion articles with experts from around the globe to bring to light issues at the intersection of gender and data, such as health, migration, livelihoods and, of course, gender-based violence (GBV). Since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, the vulnerability of women … Read More
Addressing the Unrealized Potential of MD4D
DISCUSSION PIECE Piece originally published on DIAL’s website. Last week, the Digital Impact Alliance (DIAL) and Data Pop Alliance made public a free online handbook on Mobile Data for Development (MD4D), available here on the DIAL Online Catalog, as a result of a 10-month collaboration between both organizations. (Note: You can navigate the handbook through your web browser, as well … Read More
LWL #27 The Role of Big Data and AI in Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E)
LINKS WE LIKE #27 One of the biggest promises of the “data age” is the creation of tools that will allow us to keep track and evaluate the performance of different projects and policies more efficiently. The main appeal of using Big data and AI for monitoring and evaluation (M&E) lies within the opportunity of having access to high-quality, timely, and accessible … Read More
LWL #26 Open Source Licenses and Accessibility for AI Models
LINKS WE LIKE #26 The rapid expansion of Artificial Intelligence (AI) models has been accompanied by growing efforts to make these technologies accessible and available to non-experts through what is referred to as open-source licenses. As a result of this “democratization of AI” more models and training data are becoming public, a process that has given rise to its new possibilities … Read More
Working at DPA – Interns Testimonies
TEXT NOT FINAL At Data-Pop Alliance, we’re are committed to give opportunities to young people that can excel in the areas of data related research. That is why we have opened several vacancies for interns in Latinoamérica and the Middle East and North Africa region to be part of our intercultural team. Below you will read about the experiences of working with … Read More
8M: Reporte y registro de violencia doméstica en Bogotá, Ciudad de México y São Paulo
DISCUSSION PIECE Sobre el Día Internacional de la Mujer (8M) Alrededor del mundo el Día Internacional de la Mujer se conmemora cada 8 de Marzo (también referido como 8M) con el objetivo de crear conciencia y alentar la reflexión crítica en torno a las diversas desigualdades entre hombres y mujeres que persisten a nivel global, así como para impulsar y … Read More
LWL #25 Discrimination in Data and Artificial Intelligence
LINKS WE LIKE #25 In commemoration of the international Zero Discrimination Day, and following the call to action from the president of the United Nations General Assembly Volkan Bozkir to “call out discrimination when we see it and advocate for a more just world”, this edition of LWL looks at issues of discrimination in artificial intelligence (AI) and data. As … Read More
LWL #24 Fighting Misinformation with Big Data and Artificial Intelligence
LINKS WE LIKE #24 We are currently living in the age of information and data. Whether it be through news outlets or social media, everyday we are bombarded with hundreds of images and headlines that come in the shape of articles, personal stories, memes or videos. In this busy landscape, “fake news” and misinformation have become an increasing tendency, almost … Read More
LWL #23 Harnessing Big Data for Mobility and Migration
LINKS WE LIKE #23 In 2019, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) estimated that the number of migrants worldwide had reached 272 million, a figure that has tripled since 1970. Though most of these migrants fled their countries searching for better job opportunities, about 26 million people have been driven away from their homes by armed conflict, violence and climate … Read More
Violence Against Women in Latin America: The Multiple Facets of a Pervasive Issue
DISCUSSION PIECE Photo: Analise Benevides. Edition: Paola Caile. November 25 marks the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women, a date that serves as a global reminder of what it is now refered to as the “shadow pandemic” (UN Women, 2020). But how to tackle a problem which is widely veiled, avoided by the spotlights, and even normalized … Read More
LWL #22 Gender, Violence and Data
LINKS WE LIKE #22 In Latin America and the Caribbean, women have been commemorating the Elimination of Violence against Women Day ever since 1981, after the assassination of the three Dominican sisters Patricia, Minerva, Maria Teresa Mirabal. Yet, it only became officially recognized and adopted by all UN countries in 1999. Today, on the 21st anniversary of its commemoration –which … Read More
Fortaleciendo la cultura de datos y las capacidades para alcanzar los ODS en Colombia
DISCUSSION PIECE Durante la última década, el número de organizaciones que se han interesado por explorar el uso potencial de fuentes de Big Data para medir indicadores demográficos, económicos, sociales o ambientales ha crecido exponencialmente. En 2014, las Naciones Unidas reconocieron el potencial que ofrece el Big Data para mejorar las estadísticas y la información en los países en desarrollo, … Read More