The utopian promise of the Internet was to democratise knowledge and promote free and open culture. However, efforts by some actors have contributed to the emergence of closed spaces of data sharing and access, which has perpetuated many of the same power structures and concentrations that exist in the offline world.
In this session, the panel will consider how compatible the ideals of open data are within a world that is increasingly characterised by conflict, competition and growing scepticism towards further globalisation.
The panel will discuss the prospects for open data initiatives that are vulnerable to this challenging geopolitical context. Topics to be discussed include the resilience of data sharing to political interests and the weaponisation of data and its infrastructure.
Jared conducts qualitative and quantitative research across a wide range of issues related to open data, and supports the ODI’s efforts to map complex technological, business, and regulatory landscapes. He specialises in emerging technologies and their implementation in, and impact on, commercial, public sector, and social contexts. Before joining the ODI, Jared worked as an analyst for a public consultancy firm in London, and as a researcher of technology futures at Nesta. He has a PhD in the history of science communication from Imperial College London and a master’s degree in science, technology, medicine and society from University College London. He is an expert in archival research, having logged countless hours at archives across the UK while researching his doctoral thesis on the history of postwar popular science radio.
