Socrates Mexico 2024
Held in partnership with the Aspen Institute Mexico, the Socrates Mexico Seminar will take place at El Santuario in Valle de Bravo from January 25-28, 2024. Socrates international seminars include three seminar sessions, program meals, transportation from Mexico City to Valle de Bravo, and local excursions/tour in Valle de Bravo.
Please contact socrates@aspeninstitute.org if you are interested in participating.
Dystopia or Democracy? Rethinking Technology’s Role in Society
Since the late twentieth century, new technologies have been reshaping how individuals navigate their lives, as well as how businesses and other organizations operate. More recently, it’s become clear that these same technologies are having a profound influence on the workings of democracy. But what kind of influence? A decade ago, there was widespread optimism that, by giving everyone a global voice, social media platforms would be a boon to democratic societies. Today there’s rising concern that they represent a threat to democracy itself. Five billion people are now on social media, discussing everything from their hobbies and family lives to the climate crisis and other major challenges. But rather than fostering constructive discourse among users of diverse backgrounds and views, the platforms tend to herd us into ideological echo chambers where our existing beliefs are confirmed and other points of view vilified. With polling in crisis and news outlets increasingly serving partisan agendas, there’s currently no reliable source for public opinion. This is a critical factor in the social disintegration and loss of trust plaguing democracies around the world, not least for Mexico and its biggest ever election ever. Is the online public square hopelessly broken? If technology has put us on the road to dystopia, how can we change course and use it to build a healthier, more democratic world?
Moderator: William Powers is a technologist, New York Times-bestselling author and current Visiting Scholar for Humanistic Technologies at the Max Planck Center for Humans and Machines in Berlin.
Health and Safety Guidelines for In Person Events
The Aspen Institute is committed to creating a safe seminar experience for all participants. Please see our COVID-19 safety guidelines here.
These guidelines will be regularly updated to meet the latest health and safety guidance of the CDC and local authorities. If you anticipate any issues or have any concerns, please contact us at socrates@aspeninstitute.org.
