Crisis in Tech Policy & Diplomacy

7-hour Interactive Workshop

Critical perspectives, Research-based

Understand the emerging “crisis in technology diplomacy”
Examine real‑world obstacles to whole‑of‑government tech impact assessment
Identify new roles for diplomats, regulators and corporate leaders in tech governance

No country has the capacity to assess the impact on society, politics or the economy of all the individual technologies flooding global markets or the many creative apps based on them. And now we are in the middle of an AI revolution. This workshop introduces key concepts, current dilemmas, and practical insights for managing this escalating crisis in technology policy. It is built around the concept and practices of Technology Impact Assessment (TIA). TIA is the systematic analysis of the impacts arising from the use of technologies. This includes both specialist assessment of their technical performance characteristics and cost-benefit considerations as well as consultations across diverse stakeholder groups (such as government, industry, academia, and society) to determine broader social, political, legal or economic consequences.

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KEY THEMES

Mapping the technology crisis
Technology Impact Assessment (TIA) at the National Level in Principle and Practice
TIA at the International Level
The future potential of TIAs
Critiques of global settings for TIA
International technology governance
Assessing the assessors: a capstone exercise.

AN ORIGIN STORY: URGENCY AND RELEVANCE

The workshop is based on research undertaken with a grant from the Australia India Cyber and Critical Technologies Partnership. It is based on material collected or created over one year by a multinational team of eight researchers through public webinars, private workshops, stakeholder interviews and substantial research papers. That work demonstrated important gaps in policy and practice for technology impact assessment (TIA) in both Australia and India. It also highlighted the potential value of a multilateral program across the Indo-Pacific region to involve other countries in establishing communities of practice in this policy discipline. The syllabus takes a multi-disciplinary public policy approach, integrating ethical perspectives, the economics and politics of technology development, and global governance considerations. Strategic foresight is a central element of TIA

BLENDED LEARNING INTERNATIONAL

The program is delivered by the Social Cyber & Tech Academy, in partnership with Blended Learning International, an Australian Registered Training Organisation with more than 20 years experience in Australia and overseas.