🌍 How can web3 help solve real-world problems and drive the public good?

In the previous posts, I looked into the 2 of 5 Sitra’s megatrends: **The erosion of nature's carrying capacity, **and Challenges to wellbeing are increasing.

Today, we start diving into the third one:

🕊️ The battle for democracy is intensifying 🕊️

According to Sitra, the Finnish Innovation Fund, and their Megatrends 2023 report, the battle for democracy is intensifying, with democratic systems being challenged both from within and without.

Trust in decision-makers, institutions, and other citizens has fallen dangerously low, and misinformation and disinformation continue to incite mistrust.

At the same time, competition for digital power is accelerating, with disputes over the rules of the digital world, the resources required by new technology, and the direction of technological development.

The erosion of trust is the most significant problem facing both democratic and authoritarian systems. The breakdown of the media and information environment, combined with the rise of new communication platforms, has weakened the foundations of democracy worldwide. Targeted advertising on social media platforms has opened new avenues for election manipulation, while algorithms favor confrontation and exaggeration, contributing to a culture of misunderstanding and escalating discussions.

Artificial intelligence and other advanced technologies have the potential to undermine the foundations of democracy and citizen participation. Sophisticated surveillance systems and citizen scoring systems, based on facial recognition, data collection, and data mining, enable effective surveillance and control of citizens. These developments raise critical questions about the role of technology in shaping our democratic institutions and public spaces.

The crisis of democracy can be addressed by building trust in democratic institutions and empowering individuals.

🤯 Ok… so how can we do that? Where do we even start? 🤯

What captured my interest the most was the section about the rise of new communication platforms, and how it has weakened the foundations of democracy worldwide. I started thinking about the physical public spaces that we know and love, how they have been designed throughout history, and what role they had and still have when it comes to democracy.

In my architecture student days, I have spent quite some time thinking about public spaces, learning about their design, function, and impact they have on communities. 

When done right, public spaces can encourage citizen participation, foster and nourish communities, bring people together in tough times and create a sense of belonging.

They can be inclusive and accepting, no matter if you are an introvert or the biggest exhibitionist out there. 

And on the other hand, if designed poorly, or not at all, they can be quite the opposite - scary, dark, dangerous.

Now, after a decade working in the tech industry, I have come to realise there is yet another parallel between physical and digital environment, this time between physical and digital public spaces.

💥 As we continue to spend more and more time online, it becomes crucial to apply the principles of public space design to digital platforms, ensuring they are inclusive, engaging, and serve as forums for democracy.

In the coming posts, we will explore the principles of designing digital public spaces and their applications in the age of web3. Doing that, we have to consider the broader implications of these spaces for democracy, trust, and citizen participation. How can we work to counteract the erosion of trust and restore the foundations of our democratic systems and how might the principles for physical translate into digital.

Because Democracy is especially complex, yet very interesting topic, it will take more than one post to tackle and cover the problems we are experiencing in this digital age. I’ll make it into 3 or 4 parts. It will be a journey, I hope you join me with your thoughts, comments, ideas. 😊

We’ll start with Principles for designing physical public spaces, how they translate to digital and the role of web3 in all this.

Exciting! 😎

(Image: Created with DALL·E. Prompt: The battle for democracy, Erosion of trust in institutions; digital art)

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I’m Maša Černovšek, and I write about web3, UX and solving real-world problems. *Connect with me on LinkedIn!*