Social Exclusion in an Information Age

1. Social Exclusion in an Information Age Multimedia Training Kit <www.itrainonline.org>

2. Content Overview • What is social exclusion and what are some of its forms? • What is social exclusion in the information age? • Opportunities and Threats • Regulation and social exclusion • Civil Society and Policy-making

3. Learning Objectives • Identify and define forms of social exclusion • Be able to give examples of how ICTs can be mobilised to mitigate social exclusion • Understand how ICTs can exacerbate and/or create new forms of social exclusion • Familiarity with frameworks for change and policy-making

4. What is Social Exclusion? The various ways in which people are kept from fully participating economically, politically, socially, and culturally in society; Is a result of not having power and hence access to decision-making that could influence policies or create opportunities for improving their standard of living.

5. Social exclusion because of... • poverty • ethnic and cultural factors • oppression and corruption • gender • geography • literacy and skill levels • physical disability and illness • others

6. Information Age • Information Society • Globalisation • ICTs for Development

7. Social exclusion in an Information Age • poverty • ethnic and cultural factors • oppression and corruption • gender • geography • literacy and skill levels • physical disability and illness • others

8. Information Society – Opportunities (1) Social inclusion is about removing the barriers and factors which lead to exclusion so people can participate. How can ICTs help do this?

9. Information Society – Opportunities (2) • Organising and networking • Accessing information • Creating content

10. Information Society – Opportunities (3) • Economic growth and access to new markets • Better access to education, distance and life-long learning • Health information and communication • Democratic development through enhanced transparency, equality and transparency

11. Information Society – Threats (1) ICT network infrastructure requires significant investment. Private sector investment is one of the key drivers for ICT development. What are some of the implications of this in terms of social exclusion?

12. Information Society – Threats (2) • Concentration of media ownership • Intellectual Property Rights (IPRs) • Surveillance and control over access and use of ICTs • Future exclusion

13. The Role of Regulation? Regulation can work in support of fighting social exclusion. In other instances, regulation can further entrench existing power structures.

14. Civil Society and Policy-making Participation and organisation is needed to: • promote and defend Communication Rights; • defend the internet as a secure and accessible space for social justice, campaigning and for promoting development; • provide input into national information society plans.

15. APC internet rights charter • The Right to Communicate • Freedom of expression and information exchange • Diversity, ownership and control of content • Free/open source software, technology development and intellectual property rights • Privacy • Global, regional and national governance of the Internet • Awareness, protection and realisation of rights

16. Four pillars of the CRIS campaign Communication Rights in the Information Society: • Creating spaces for democratic environments; • Reclaiming the use of knowledge and the public domain; • Reclaiming civil and political rights in the information society; and • Securing equitable and affordable access. <www.crisinfo.org>

17. Conclusions The digital divide has been described as an exacerbated form of other already existing divides – many of which are the causes of social exclusion. Social inclusion for all in an information age requires internationally recognised rights for communication and access to ICTs, and concerted efforts to protect the social sphere of ICTs.