The Ada Lovelace Institute Ethics & Society Stage kicks off at 10am this morning with 'Do we need more WEIRDos in Whitehall' with @ChiOnwurah @Jackstilgoe @JeniT and @JohnNaughton
We'll be pulling out key points from the discussion in the thread below 👇
We'll be pulling out key points from the discussion in the thread below 👇
'We have passed peak trust' says @ChiOnwurah and Goverment missing tricks on data sharing, transparency, protecting digital citizens. She calls for a digital charter that empowers citizens and builds an ecosystem of digital governance.
Whitehall needs diversity of thought, expertise and people in Whitehall that believe in empowering citizens, bringing agency to lives and futures, not something WEIRDos will bring but can be achieved by opening up Whitehall and minds to an active view of technology in society.
@Jackstilgoe #COVID19 is not a failure of science but a failure of social learning. Saying we need more science in government won't get us to a good place. It's a failure of 'group think', and a lack of policy challenge.
Seductive idea that some people have a privileged view of the future - the #superforecasters. Even if we did know the future, would we be able to persuade people to act on it? Diversity in decision making is good but let's re-examine where Government is getting its science from.
@JeniT Being able to evaluate whether e.g. the #contacttracingapp is useful and valuable is important. Understanding data and evidence and being able to do computational modelling is important to understand impact of interventions before they are implemented....
There is capacity in Government to do this, and we need to grow it. Warning signs that people who come from strong mathematical backgrounds undersee how numbers in data are people's lives and communities - and have a different weight and quality to them. Need social scientists...
@JeniT You don't get transformation from a small cadre of specialised people. Data, science and evidence should be part of practice in policymaking. Need complimentary skills and diversity to see beyond numbers and make a positive difference to people's lives.
