Duration
2 weeksWeekly study
4 hours100% online
How it works
Engaging in Activism for Social Change in Tech
Learn how to create an activist campaign to influence positive social change
This two-week course will take you on a deep dive into how power structures such as White supremacy, patriarchy, colonialism, and racial capitalism manifest in information technologies.
With this knowledge, you’ll explore how activism can challenge these power structures as you delve into the world of grassroots and human rights tech activism.
Explore online and social media activism
You’ll discuss what online and offline activism means to different activists as you explore different forms of activism to find the one that resonates with you.
Next, you’ll learn how to apply this knowledge to your context as you’re guided through planning and implementing online activist campaigns.
Once you have designed your own campaign, you’ll learn how you can contribute to an online activist community.
Learn how to influence positive social change
This course will help you gain important insights into AI and technology ethics education.
With this hands-on experience, you’ll learn how to turn concerns about technology into actions oriented towards positive social change.
Study alongside the specialists at UAL
You’ll learn from experts in the field at the University of the Arts London. Lead educator, Dr Peaks is Senior Lecturer and MA Internet Equalities Course Leader at the UAL Creative Computing Institute.
This subject is vitally important for ensuring that members of society gain more control over the technologies they use, and find new ways to challenge the inequalities technology can reinforce.
Syllabus
Week 1
Getting started with activism in tech
Welcome to the course
Welcome! This activity is about meeting the course team and your fellow learners, getting familiar with what you will learn, and discovering more about the activists who inspired us to create this course.
Exploring activism
You'll now discover what activism means to the course team and reflect on your own perspectives about activist work. We will also introduce the course brief for you to create a tech activism campaign of your own.
Inspiring examples of activism
In this activity you will reflect on different theories of change that activists use in their work, and compare case studies of technology focused activism. You will also start to define the focus on your campaign.
Beginning to plan your campaign
To get started with planning your campaign, this activity will focus on a method called 'power mapping'. This will allow you to identify who to target with your campaign as well as possible allies, networks and resources.
Wrapping up Week 1
Well done for all your work in Week 1! We hope you enjoyed getting to know the team, exploring activism and beginning to plan your campaign. This is a moment to reflect back on Week 1, and look forward to Week 2.
Week 2
Developing your campaign
Planning and self-care
In this activity you will produce aims and objectives for your campaign, discover how to assess and plan for risks associated with it, discover the importance of self-care, and create a self-care plan of your own.
Brainstorming actions and interventions
Thinking back to your campaign objectives, you will now develop ideas for actions and interventions to support your campaign. You will also assess whether these actions help you meet your goals.
Developing your campaign
In this activity you will create a timeline, discover why it is important to plan for contingencies, and create backup and escalation plans for your own campaign.
Launching your campaign
Now you have your campaign in place, it's time to collect feedback and make any adjustments, build up your confidence, and get ready to launch!
Wrapping up Week 2
Congratulations on completing Week 2! We hope you enjoyed the process. It's now time to celebrate yourself and your campaign, and consider your next steps before we say goodbye.
When would you like to start?
Start straight away and join a global classroom of learners. If the course hasn’t started yet you’ll see the future date listed below.
Available now
Learning on this course
On every step of the course you can meet other learners, share your ideas and join in with active discussions in the comments.
What will you achieve?
By the end of the course, you‘ll be able to...
- Explore what online and offline activism means to different activists
- Discuss forms of activism that resonate with you and that you can apply in your context
- Investigate examples of activism challenging power structures such as White supremacy, patriarchy, colonialism, and racial capitalism
- Experiment with planning an activist campaign
- Identify allies and funding to support your campaign
- Develop a campaign of your own
- Contribute to ongoing activist tech communities and campaigns
Who is the course for?
This course is designed for anyone interested in online activism.
You may be a creative graduate or computer science student, or you could be a social scientist or a professional looking to engage audiences through online advocacy.
Who will you learn with?
Hi! I'm Dr Peaks (they/them). I'm currently Senior Lecturer and MA Internet Equalities Course Leader at the University of Arts London's Creative Computing Institute. I publish research as "P M Krafft"
Ways to learn | Buy this course | Subscribe & save | Limited access |
---|---|---|---|
Choose the best way to learn for you! | $54/one-off payment | $244.99 for a whole year Automatically renews | Free |
Fulfill your current learning need | Develop skills to further your career | Sample the course materials | |
Access to this course | tick | tick | Access expires 26 Feb 2025 |
Access to 1,000+ courses | cross | tick | cross |
Learn at your own pace | tick | tick | cross |
Discuss your learning in comments | tick | tick | tick |
Certificate when you're eligible | Printed and digital | Digital only | cross |
Cancel for free anytime |
Ways to learn
Choose the best way to learn for you!
Subscribe & save
$244.99 for a whole year
Automatically renews
Develop skills to further your career
- Access to this course
- Access to 1,000+ courses
- Learn at your own pace
- Discuss your learning in comments
- Digital certificate when you're eligible
Cancel for free anytime
Buy this course
$54/one-off payment
Fulfill your current learning need
- Access to this course
- Learn at your own pace
- Discuss your learning in comments
- Printed and digital certificate when you’re eligible
Limited access
Free
Sample the course materials
- Access expires 26 Feb 2025
Find out more about certificates, Unlimited or buying a course (Upgrades) Sale price available until 3 March 2025 at 23:59 (UTC). T&Cs apply. |
Find out more about certificates, Unlimited or buying a course (Upgrades)
Sale price available until 3 March 2025 at 23:59 (UTC). T&Cs apply.
Learning on FutureLearn
Your learning, your rules
- Courses are split into weeks, activities, and steps to help you keep track of your learning
- Learn through a mix of bite-sized videos, long- and short-form articles, audio, and practical activities
- Stay motivated by using the Progress page to keep track of your step completion and assessment scores
Join a global classroom
- Experience the power of social learning, and get inspired by an international network of learners
- Share ideas with your peers and course educators on every step of the course
- Join the conversation by reading, @ing, liking, bookmarking, and replying to comments from others
Map your progress
- As you work through the course, use notifications and the Progress page to guide your learning
- Whenever you’re ready, mark each step as complete, you’re in control
- Complete 90% of course steps and all of the assessments to earn your certificate
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