Data Philanthropy and Individual Rights

PhiLab Blog, 2021

Data has become a highly valuable asset that can assist the philanthropic sector in achieving its goals and growing its footprint. The use of data in philanthropy has come to be known as "Data Philanthropy", "data donations" or "data for good".

PhiLab Blog, 2021

Data is important. From simple reference about the weather to elaborate collections for COVID-19 vaccine development-data empowers our lives. Philanthropy is no exception. Data about the philanthropic sector creates opportunities for those who study philanthropy (academics, researchers), for those who finance philanthropy (grantmakers, philanthropic funders) and for those who operate philanthropic organizations (managers, directors). The possibilities created by data are further multiplied when the data can be shared. This is the founding principle of data philanthropy, a term first introduced in 2011 by the United Nations Global Pulse. Data philanthropy is a type of collaboration, where private companies share the data for public benefit to help solve complex issues such as poverty, climate change, various diseases, to name a few. For example, Western Digital Corporation and the United Nation have partnered to explain how data philanthropy can accelerate action in climate change and this short YouTube video captures the essence of their collaboration.

In mature information societies sharing data is increasingly recognised as a crucial means to foster their development. However, competing tensions on data control and ownership, limited technical understanding, and the lack of an adequate governance framework pose serious challenges to attempts to share data among different actors. Data philanthropy, understood as the donation of data from both individuals and private companies, has been proposed as means to meet these challenges. While at first sight data philanthropy may seem an uncontroversial phenomenon, a closer analysis reveals a bewildering network of problems. In this article, I analyse the role of data philanthropy in contemporary societies and the moral problems that it yields. I argue that the solution to these problems rests on the understanding of the infraethical nature of data philanthropy and on the design of an ethical framework encompassing the right infraethics and the right ethics. This is a framework able to address the changes brought about the information revolution and to harness the opportunities that these pose for the prosperity of current and future information societies.

Philosophical Studies Series

We propose that the notion of individual sovereignty encompasses more than having the power to exclude others from one's personal space. Instead, sovereignty is realized at least in part along outward-reaching, interactive and participatory dimensions. On the basis of reflections from gift theory, we argue that donations can generate social bonds, convey recognition and open up new options in social space. By virtue of these features, donations offer the potential to advance individual sovereignty. We go on to highlight distinctive benefits of data donations, before articulating several difficulties and puzzles: data donors are bound to have a limited grip on future uses of their data and the people affected by their decision to share. Further characteristic traits of data donations come from the invasive and comprehensive character of state-of-the-art data gathering and processing tools, and the fact that the relevant sense of data ownership is far from straightforward. In order to minimize tensions with negative, protective aspects of sovereignty, we argue that thoughtful mechanisms at the level of consent procedures, the representation of data subjects in governance structures, and organizational-level constraints are necessary. Along the way, we will devote particular attention to challenges and opportunities within big data contexts.

2019

With data stockpiles growing exponentially, a bevy of new vistas for data use opens up. The digital age affords a fresh perspective for research into Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) and their potential for bringing positive change. ICT can and should be leveraged for global development and social inclusion. One of the most novel ways for achieving that end has been by adopting Data philanthropy (DP) as a practice. Specifically, DP is an emerging concept aimed at using proprietary firm data from both private and public companies for social and strategic benefit (Taddeo, 2016). Given the centrality of data in all forms of ICT, DP has proven itself to be impactful for empowering societies with better insights while giving a competitive boost to participating firms. Companies like Genentech and Pfizer and social networking sites like Reddit have been donating their proprietary data to organizations like the UN to create a sound infrastructure to facilitate firm level data sharing. This paper investigates the impact of data philanthropy on the strategic advantages for data donor firms and how data sharing not only helps solve social issues but aids the donor firm, as well. The paper explores the theoretical foundations of CSR studies and how data philanthropy can serve as a logical extension of the same. The implications of the research are discussed and are used to support data philanthropy adoption. The article employs a meta-view of multiple examples to highlight the potential which data philanthropy holds for the various stakeholders involved. We find that the outcomes of data philanthropy include more diverse sources of innovation, making the firm more attractive to millennials in terms of employment and market, and creating a greater impact than traditional corporate responsibility programs. Awasthi and George Harmonising strategic advantage with social good through Data Philanthropy

Philosophical Studies Series

Large corporations are attracting criticism for their quasi-monopolist role in the digital data domain. It has been argued that they are no longer regular market participants but have become de facto market regulators against whom public and civil society actors are powerless even when faced with stark ethical misconduct. Companies such as Google, Amazon, Facebook, and Apple (GAFA) have become a new Leviathan: a monster for which people give up freedoms in exchange for other goods that they consider essential. Data donation is a strategy that could, if certain conditions are met, help tackle the overarching power of multinational enterprises. I will propose that data donation, understood as a specific type of transaction, has three distinctive characteristics: relationality, indirect reciprocity and multiplicity. I suggest ways in which ethical and regulatory frameworks for data donation should consider these characteristics to ensure that data donations respond to the institutional and power relationships that digital data use is embedded in, that data donations contribute to the public good, and that they and protect the personal needs and interests of people involved in it.

2012

Open data involves a paradigm shift in the way organisations manage their information and data: moving from a default of charities keeping data resources locked up in underused internal systems, to building a shared 'Web of Data'. The emergence of the open data movement has supported powerful new models of creativity, innovation and public engagement.

2015

There is an emerging new paradigm for development in Africa that lays great emphasis on the importance of credible and good quality data for decision making at all levels to ensure evidence based governance and implementation to more effectively impact the quality of lives especially of the poor, vulnerable and marginalized sections of our population. Inadequate data on the philanthropy sector has hitherto been a great constraint for deeper impact on the contribution of the sector to national development. Accurate and reliable data and relevant information on the philanthropy sector is thus urgently needed to reflect the potential and contributions of the current philanthropy landscape especially as the world moves towards adopting the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in September 2015.Kenya lacks an organized framework for collecting reliable and comparable data on philanthropy in the country. It is on this basis that the Kenya Philanthropy Forum organized a Data Management Con...

IADIS INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL ON WWW/INTERNET

This article presents a qualitative research study which explores the emergent phenomenon of Data Philanthropy in South African corporate organisations. The main research objective is to investigate the corporate attitudes towards Data Philanthropy in the South African banking, retail and telecommunications industries. In particular, the study examines of the willingness, preparedness and concerns of corporations in respect of using their data and supporting data analytical technologies for social good, their chosen level of engagement in corporate social responsibility. Also investigated was and their willingness to change their current engagement to one that requires more efforts and tools to implement. The study includes a review which exposes gaps in literature that the research analysis and discussion will aim to uncover. The study used an inductive approach using thematic analysis. Four main organising themes are used to analyse the data which was collected through interviews namely Corporate Social Responsibility, Willingness, Preparedness and Concerns. A remarkable diversity in detailed sub-themes was uncovered for each of the main themes.

American Journal of Bioethics (AJOB), 2023

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