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The Research Center for Internet Psychology (CIP)
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The Internet as a Positive Power
E-democracy

E-democracy

We will inspire real e-democracy, where people from all social segments will be encouraged to get involved in political debates on a website that will be supervised and monitored against radicalization and extremism. This will reduce feelings of frustration among minority group members and enhance their civil empowerment.

- Key Words: e-democracy, reduce hate
  
  Explanation:
  
  The influence of the internet on exacerbating democratic instability.
  
  Abstract:
  The digital landscape is quickly changing and particularly in the case of politics. Media increasingly has the power to alter political structure, giving a more distributed broadcasting of content and news on different outlets. Though the internet does allow people to connect from afar, learn about social issues, and create change, its downsides involve political extremism and exclusion, with labels such as “ingroup” vs “outgroup” that are internalized, affect cognition, and one’s defense mechanisms. There is hope, though, that there is more opportunity for people in marginalized populations to be able to find the space and safety to be expressive.
  
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- Key Words: e-democracy, reducing extremism
  
  Explanation:
  
  Web 2.0 (i.e., blogs, Wikipedia, Youtube) applications are useful as a means to encourage online dialogue and collaborative thinking.
  
  Abstract:
  This study assessed Web 2.0 applications and their specific contribution to political dialogues. It was observed that applications – Wikipedia, blogs, online videos, etc. – encourage users from different political parties to engage, thereby increasing higher participation. Even still, a lot of users continue to refrain from engaging in politics online and reveal very minimal information even regarding whether or not they voted.
  
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- Explanation:
  The power of search engines in garnering readership online. Search engines have the power to dominate news outlets when the most popular stories are read and mass-broadcasted by selective outlets.
  
  Abstract:
  Even though people tend to believe that search engines are a democratic space, they are actually not. Top searches and links do not visually provide all viewpoints, information, etc., though they do promote biases, The same, select news outlets who each have an orientation they abide by (i.e., democratic vs republican - leaning) promote the same popular stories and distort information to fit the outlets’ narrative/stance for readership. The researchers argue that greater attention needs to be given to top search results since it contributes to a less democratic internet space.
  
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- Explanation:
  The author for this article explores how to make the internet a more civil space.
  
  Abstract:
  Civic culture and a political system are in many ways co-dependent. Civil culture also has a profound way of shaping individuals, but also enables them to shape it too. Through the government, education, and social media, individuals can be empowered to promote a more democratic space online.
  
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- Key Words: online projects, increase group harmony
  
  Explanation: Teaching kids in educational spaces how they can use technology to promote digital wellness.
  
  Abstract:
  Social-emotional learning is the main terminology endorsed – how kids and adults can learn and develop skills and attitudes to develop healthy relationships, manage their emotions, achieve goals, feel and show empathy, create and preserve healthy relationships, and make responsible decisions. Many schools are promoting technology as a means to teach kids how to emotionally regulate and label their feelings. Specifically, teachers use a digital citizenship application for older children in middle school and up to teach students how to use their SEL skills in digital environments – showing empathy, perspective, and self-awareness where it is appropriate. There are suggestions to use videogames to develop communication skills, to learn social awareness skills as a means to counter cyberbullying, and ways to create a positive online presence. Applications suggested for at-home use include: SEL with Families and Caregivers, Inner Explorer @ Home, Harmony @ Home, and The Play at Home Guide.
  
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- Aim:
  
  • Shape the internet’s future and increase youths’ voices
  
  • Exposing youth to policy challenges and increasing their knowledge of internet governance
  
  • Building up and shaping the internet community
  
  Length of Project:
  
  • 10-months long
  
  Who is Behind it:
  
  • There is an internationally-led Board of Trustees – “Trustees serve in the interest of the Internet Society as a whole, but are appointed or elected by the following groups: chapters, organization members, and the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF).”
  
  • CEO and President, Andrew Sullivan
  
  Stages and Evaluative Measurements
  
  First stage:
  
  • Extending encryption
  
  • “How we will extend encryption in 2023:
  
  • Introduce a ‘government use of encryption’ course and end-to-end encryption training for journalists
  
  • Mobilize and rally the community to act on Global Encryption Day
  
  • Engage in at least 900 advocacy activities
  
  • Urge government officials to make pro-encryption statements at least 10 times
  
  • Encourage governments or press to reference Internet Society encryption-focused documents or statements at least 30 times
  
  Securing global routing
  
  • “How we will secure global routing in 2023:
  
  • Increase conformance of MANRS participants by 10%
  
  • Encourage 5 MANRS participants to join the Internet Society as organization members
  
  • Grow the MANRS community with the addition of 10 organization members and 10 IXPs”
  
  Sharing cutting edge knowledge at the NDSS symposium
  
  • “How we will support the sharing of cutting edge knowledge at the NDSS Symposium in 2023:
  
  • Expand funding through sponsorship and grants with a target of $75,000 USD
  
  • Facilitate at least 2 collaborations between the NDSS research community and the open standards community
  
  • Secure 10 sponsors
  
  • Maintain the NDSS Symposium as a top-5 premier academic research symposium for computer and network security in the world”
  
  Protecting the internet from fragmentation
  
  • “How we will protect the Internet from fragmentation in 2023:
  
  • Create an Internet fragmentation threat matrix
  
  • Urge governments or press to reference Internet Society documents or statements at least 8 times
  
  • Encourage government officials to make IWN statements at least 2 times
  
  • Author 6 new Internet impact briefs in collaboration with community partners
  
  • Engage in at least 100 advocacy activities to protect the Internet from fragmentation”
  
  Helping shape legal precedent in alignment with our mission
  
  • How we will help shape legal precedent in 2023:
  
  • Identify at least 12 important, precedential cases and controversies
  
  • Pursue up to 3 filing briefs at appropriate U.S. courts of law
  
  • Leverage at least 4 amicus briefs as a mechanism for new allies to collaborate with the Internet Society
  
  Second stage
  
  • After these stages, working on the internet’s infrastructure
  
  • Connected the unconnected
  
  • Fostering sustainable peering infrastructure
  
  • Enabling sustainable technical communities
  
  • Measuring the internet
  
  Third stage
  
  • Empowering internet champions to defend the internet
  
  • Securing resources for growth and greater impact
  
  • Recognizing internet champions
  
  Advantages of intervention
  
  • Increasing connectivity amongst underserved populations
  
  • Increasing kids’ awareness of online exploitation
  
  • Protecting people’s data, helping secure global routing, and safeguarding Internet
  
  What we Learn
  
  • Local actions and interventions can create more global changes
  
  What we can Generalize
  
  • As the world changes, the Internet needs to as well, and safely.
  
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