Deadline: 30 June 2024
The Applied Social Media Lab (ASML) at Harvard’s Berkman Klein Center invites designers, engineers, entrepreneurs, policy experts, and civil society advocates to apply to a one-day workshop to imagine and build new technology that supports healthier social media ecosystems.
ASML will host two versions of the workshop – one in-person and one remote – to stimulate dialogue about social media technology which centers the public interest.
The goal of the workshop is to facilitate interactive, creative discussions about new approaches for social media technology. To apply, participants must submit a proposal for such a new approach; the proposal may involve new software, new protocols, new datasets, or another kind of social-media-related product. Proposals should be original and actionable, must have limited or no support from existing social media platforms, and must focus on improving the public interest. Accepted participants will share and constructively critique their proposals with other participants and with ASML staff. At the end of the program, participants will have received valuable feedback and networked with a diverse community of responsible tech contributors.
Benefits
- In this workshop, you will:
- Engage in a collaborative workshop with like-minded professionals from diverse fields, including design, engineering, entrepreneurship, policy, and civil society.
- Present your proposal and receive constructive feedback from expert peers, allowing you to refine and enhance your concept.
- Participate in facilitated sessions designed to foster creative collaboration, potentially leading to new, consolidated product ideas.
- Become part of a community dedicated to building socially-responsible tech.
- A limited travel reimbursement is available on a need basis.
Social Media Proposal Format
- The workshop solicits creative proposals which seek to facilitate healthier online interactions. Examples of relevant project topics include civil discourse, personal safety, transparency tools, and platform interoperability. Participants should format their proposals as a slide deck (pdf, ppt, etc). The slide deck should be structured as follows:
- SLIDE 1: Overview and problem space– Describe your proposal and the issue to be solved (up to 50 words).
- SLIDE 2: Objectives and methods: Provide a description of what your proposal seeks to achieve and how (up to 50 words).
- SLIDE 3: Status & Timeline: Provide your current status (early-stage, late-stage, deployment, etc.) and the ideal timeline for your proposal’s development.
- SLIDE 4: Challenges & questions: Questions that you are facing now + your current development challenges.
- SLIDE 5: Needs (be specific!) Specific needs that you are searching for and why they are important to your project (e.g., “I am searching for UX design skills to produce a high-fidelity prototype so that I can present to partnering platforms”).
Expectations
- Participants must attend the full duration of the program and engage with their cohort members and ASML staff. By the end of the convening, participants will have exchanged ideas and feedback, enhanced their own proposals, and potentially identified new collaborations.
Who should apply?
- They welcome applications from a wide range of professional backgrounds who are passionate about transforming the social media landscape. Ideal candidates will have demonstrated at least three years of professional experience in a related field.
- Applicants should be committed to interdisciplinary collaboration and be prepared to fully engage with the event participants and ASML staff for the duration of the event.
For more information, visit ASML.
