Politics and Society

The notion that personal data is “the new oil” is as ubiquitous as it is powerful, but it has misguided policies on many levels. This notion justifies institutions that drive unequal transactions between individuals and platform enterprises, as well as protectionist international policies. A fairer digital economy requires a move beyond the simplistic view of data as a resource.

Tech companies are transforming global power dynamics but their antagonistic relationships with governments threaten a future where societies can fully benefit from the fast-paced creation of technologies. Cooperation is needed to achieve true progress by successfully adapting to the transformative consequences of tech phenomena such as digitalization and the rise of big data.

Tackling the growing diabetes crisis with short-term behavioral-inspired lifestyle interventions is a positive step forward, but not enough to ensure long-term behavioral change. The UK government must also address the structural issues contributing to diabetes using traditional economic policies such as extending the sugar tax and enacting stricter advertising regulations and zoning laws.

In recent years, authoritarian and semi-authoritarian states have used technological advancements to extend influence or control over “their” diaspora for political purposes. Recent examples of this are troubling: as the long arms of authoritarian states increasingly undermine social cohesion and democratic values, the need for adequate policy responses in democratic states has become urgent.

The rise of populism and the growing political polarization in advanced economies has exposed the phenomenon of spatial inequality. Globalization and digitalization amplify spatial inequalities by further concentrating “gains” and “losses.” For policymakers, confronting this complex problem without promising a “return to the past” is the challenge of our time.

Populism has taken an illiberal turn. Protecting liberal, pluralist societies from the threat of illiberal populism will require deep reforms to our education, communications, and political systems.