Category Archives: Blog

Languages, Literacy, and Community Voice: Why Just AI Must Begin with Communities, Not Code

At the CDAC Public Forum combined with the fome Symposium, the session “AI in Crisis – What Next?” examined the social and ethical implications of artificial intelligence in humanitarian and crisis contexts. Within this, the breakout session “Inclusive AI: Languages, Literacy & Community Voice,” facilitated by Digital Empowerment Foundation, focused on a core concern: how AI systems intersect with linguistic diversity, social and digital divides, and community agency.

Digital Citizen Summit Townhall with Dr. Amandeep Singh Gill on People & Platforms: A Townhall Dialogue on Accountability and Co-Creating an Equitable Digital Future

The Townhall with Mr. Amandeep Singh Gill, United Nations Under-Secretary-General and Special Envoy for Digital and Emerging Technologies, held at the 7th Digital Citizen Summit 2025 at T-Hub Hyderabad, focused on the theme “People & Platforms: Let’s Talk Accountability.”

An Overview of UN Initiatives and Policies on Artificial Intelligence

Artificial Intelligence (AI), a technology that collects, classifies, and identifies patterns in data to perform tasks that are usually done by humans, can be considered one of the most prominent buzzwords of the 21st century.

How ‘DiDi’- an AI Chatbot is becoming the Tech-Guru for Rural Women

Until a few months back, Kalawati, a housewife from rural Ajmer, would mostly watch videos and reels on her son’s smartphone. Like her, many rural women across the country are made to hear, “Phone to mardon ke liye hota hai. Aurton ke haath me phone aye toh bas bigadne ka darr satane lagta hai” (Phones are meant for men—when a woman gets a phone, there is a fear of her going astray).

How Rural Women Entrepreneurs Are Reshaping Rural India?

In rural India, women have never been just caregivers—they have always been the backbone of their communities, the ‘silenced’ architects of the rural economy. Women-led micro-enterprises make up 20% of all MSMEs, employing 22–27 million people. Yet, an overwhelming 82% remain trapped in informality (NITI Aayog, 2023).

Women’s Role in Transforming Digital Education in Rural India

The role of women in care work and reproductive labour has been discussed extensively in popular media and critical feminist scholarship. In a rapidly digitalising country, patriarchy has successfully penetrated the digital realms, reinforcing divides that are not only spatial between the rural and the urban but starkly gendered, too.

Digital Swaraj Fellowship: Revisiting the Journey of DEF’s Flagship Programme

The Digital Swaraj Fellowship concluded its first Cohort 2023-2024 with a reflective three-day workshop from July 1-3, 2024, marking a significant milestone in the journey towards building a generation of youth for a robust digital ecosystem in India.

Digital Swaraj: Weaving Technology into India’s Social Fabric

The Digital Swaraj Fellowship is a well-conceived program that applies the philosophy of Swaraj (meaning ‘self-governance’) to digital innovation in a democracy. It draws inspiration from Gandhi’s principles and integrates them with the ideals of constitutional democracy, exploring how technology can be embedded into societal processes.

Co-creating Vision: Empowering Youth through Digital Swaraj Fellowship

Osama has been a good friend, guide, mentor, and a well-wisher to me for the last nine years. He is a visionary with 20 years of experience in transforming the lives of people and discussing the importance of digital in our lives.

Nurturing change: the journey of digital swaraj fellowship’s first cohort

As the first cohort of Digital Swaraj Fellowship comes to an end, reflecting on the whole journey has been a mix of experiences, learnings and emotions. The seed that was sown a year back has started sprouting, and the aim, going forward, is to nurture it to become a full-grown tree in the coming years.