- Women and the Global Economy (2005-6)
- Climate Change: Energy, Economics and Corporate Policy (2004-5)
- The Total Value Proposition (2003-4)
- Sustainable Economic Development (2002-3)
- The Double Bottom Line: Promoting Profits and Public Service (2001-2)
- Bridging the Digital Divide (2000-1)
- Investing in Social Change (1999-0)
- Public-Private Partnerships (1998-9)
- Technology and Social Change (1997-8)
- Social Entrepreneurship (1996-7)
- Social Entrepreneurship Conference (March 1997)
Public Management Initiative (PMI)
Technology and Social Change (1997-8)
Introduction
Technology has always created revolutions in society. The printing press, steam engine, and electricity all sparked tremendous changes in the ways people work, play, and interact. These changes, and their side effects, sometimes lead to greater good and sometimes undermine progress. The same will be true for the latest technological innovations from all fields of science. From personal computers to genetics to new materials to cognitive research, all have the potential to transform the way we live, both positively and negatively, in both anticipated and surprising ways. The 1997-98 Public Management Initiative explored the ways in which technology can be a catalyst and enabler of social change.
Framework
A four-part framework guided PMP students' examination of the issues related to technology as a societal influence.
Individuals & Institutions |
Using Technology |
Enables |
Social Change |
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The Agent
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The Means
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The Process
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The Ends
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Including:
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Definitions of "technology," Including:
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Including:
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Scope
These new technologies raise important questions in a broad range of social issue areas, all of which may be addressed in the course of the PMI. For example:
Health Care
- How do new treatments conflict with societal values regarding life and death?
- How can information technology change the health care delivery system, in the U.S and abroad?
- What benefits and dangers have been introduced by health care organizations and interests?
Education
- How effectively is information technology used to support learning in ways consistent with the latest cognitive science research?
- What role do teachers' unions play in the pace of adoption of technology?
Community and International Development
- Can less-developed countries leapfrog social problems by leveraging technology?
- How can institutions like the United Nations capitalize on the technology?
- What are the downsides, and who might play a role in resolving them?
Political Action and Government
- Can information technology provide more power in grassroots organizing?
- How is technology being used to make government more efficient, or even to change its role?
Issue Areas
In addition to issue-specific questions, the topic highlights some common themes across issue areas:
At what pace is technology being adopted to achieve social ends?
- What are the barriers to and drivers of faster adoption?
- What is the process by which diffusion of ideas occurs?
- How equitably is technology used? Is it improving the relative status of the poor, or is it widening the gap?
- What changes in social interaction result from increased exposure to "virtual communities"?
The potential "downside" of these technologies needs to be considered carefully.
Activities
The PMI served as both an informational vehicle and forum for action. Speakers, a panel and newspaper articles provided a framework for understanding technology's role in social change. Partnerships with organizations (both within and outside the GSB) provided opportunities for students to support current work related to the topic.
Some of the issues pertinent to the PMI that students considered were:
Focus Area & Specific Issues |
Potential Speakers |
Potential Partners for Action |
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Urban & Rural Poverty |
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Not-for-Profit Organizations |
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The Future |
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Education |
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Virtual Communities |
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Pubic Policy and Politics |
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