20 Public Interest Technology Organizations You Should Know About
CHECK OUT THE FULL RESPONSIBLE TECH ORG LIST HERE
As Ford Foundation says, “Public interest technology is just what it sounds like—technology used to serve the public good.” Here at All Tech Is Human, we are focused on better aligning our tech future with the public interest. While it is easy to feel like the thorny tech & society issues we face are intractable, the good news is that there are a broad range of individuals and organizations committed to public interest technology (PIT).
Here are 20 public interest technology organizations, primarily based in the U.S. and Mexico, that you should know about:
Alliance for Congress (@allforcongress)
“The Alliance for Congress will help Congress invest in its own capacity to tackle big issues and serve the public good...A Congress that earns the public trust by more effectively listening, leading and legislating for our entire diverse nation.”
RESOURCES: Research and Resources page - Alliance for Congress
AnitaB.org (@AnitaB_org)
“At AnitaB.org, we envision a future where the people who imagine and build technology mirror the people and societies for whom they build it. We connect, inspire, and guide women in computing, and organizations that view technology innovation as a strategic imperative.
Our social enterprise supports women in technical fields, as well as the organizations that employ them and the academic institutions training the next generation. A full roster of programs helps women and non-binary technologists grow, learn, and develop their highest potential.”
Aspen Tech Policy Hub (@AspenPolicyHub)
“The Aspen Tech Policy Hub mixes the best of both Washington and Silicon Valley, bringing together stakeholders in policy and technology to train the next generation of policy entrepreneurs.
At the Aspen Tech Policy Hub, we take tech experts, teach them the policy process through fellowship and executive education programs, and encourage them to develop outside-the-box solutions to society’s problems. We model ourselves after tech incubators like Y Combinator, but train new policy thinkers and focus the impact of their ideas. We’re building new ideas for policymaking — every fellow must complete one practical policy output during their time with us — and an alumni base of technologists who understand policy and want to engage with it.”
Beeck Center for Social Impact & Innovation (@BeeckCenter)
“We surface, accelerate and scale solutions to fill gaps that impede positive social change…We value things differently. Our work centers on investing in outcomes for individuals and society. We believe impact at scale requires the courage to think, behave, and collaborate differently.
Better systems help people. We document what works and support implementation so solutions get to more places and help more people.”
The Civil Infrastructure Platform (CIP) (@cip_project)
“A collaborative, open source project hosted by the Linux Foundation. The CIP project is focused on establishing an open source “base layer” of industrial grade software to enable the use and implementation of software building blocks in civil infrastructure projects.”
Code for America (@codeforamerica)
“Code for America is committed to building a team as diverse as the nation we serve. We’re made up of people-centered problem solvers: technologists, advocates, storytellers, and organizers from many different backgrounds and communities around the country. We merge the best parts of technology, nonprofit, and government.”
RESOURCES: Programs, like Shrinking the criminal legal system, Strengthening the social safety net, and more!
Coding It Forward (@CodingItForward)
“Coding it Forward is a nonprofit by and for young people creating new opportunities and pathways into social impact and civic technology. CIF organizes the Civic Digital Fellowship, a first-of-its-kind technology internship program for innovative students to solve pressing problems in federal agencies, and the First Act Fund, a catalytic source of funding and support for young technologists with innovative ideas.”
RESOURCE: Civic Digital Fellowship and Civic Innovation Corps
Day One Project (@Day1Project)
“The Federation of American Scientists’ Day One Project is dedicated to democratizing the policymaking process by working with new and expert voices across the science and technology community, helping to develop actionable policies that can improve the lives of all Americans.”
RESOURCE: 2021 Annual Report
DemocracyLab (@DemocracyLab)
“DemocracyLab is a nonprofit organization that has created an open-source platform connecting stakeholders in civic technology. Our initial product seeks to optimize the connection between skilled volunteers and technology projects that advance the public good. Later iterations will focus on the needs of donors, citizens, and institutions.”
RESOURCES: Tech For Good projects, Annual Report
FFWD (@FfwdOrg)
“Fast Forward mobilizes the funding, resources, and support tech nonprofits need to create positive impact at scale.”
“The world’s biggest social problems, from healthcare to education to human rights, deserve the best technology solutions. Fast Forward invests in entrepreneurs who are using technology to accelerate social impact. Fast Forward’s investments span beyond philanthropic funding, through products and programs that bridge the tech and nonprofit sectors to build capacity for tech nonprofits. As the first and only organization focused exclusively on scaling organizations that combine the best tech with sustainable nonprofit business models, Fast Forward’s mission is to accelerate impact.” https://www.ffwd.org/
RESOURCE: The Tech Nonprofit Playbook - How to Start and Scale a Tech Nonprofit (ffwd.org)
New America’s Public Interest Technology (@NewAmericaPIT)
“New America’s Public Interest Technology team is committed to strengthening nonprofits and governments by providing them with the support and tools they need to deliver outcomes that better serve the public.”
RESOURCES: Public Interest Technology University Network, Understanding Data Privacy Protections Across Industries paper, Planning an Ethical Data Strategy for Justice Transformation toolkit
Partnership for Public Service (@publicservice)
"We serve as a bridge between administrations, across the political aisle and from government to the private sector, bringing together diverse perspectives to develop forward-thinking solutions and put them into action. But improving government requires more than just ideas—we need a talented corps of knowledgeable, action-oriented problem-solvers capable of driving results and innovation.”
RESOURCES: Areas of Work include Technology and more!
PIT Policy Lab (@PitPolicy)
“Working at the intersection of Public Interest Technology and agile policymaking, the PIT Policy Lab builds on top of sound foundations created through years of multiple stakeholder engagement to craft solutions to complex challenges through practical research, policy insights, and the drafting of proofs of concept in the field.”
RESOURCES: Areas of work include: Practical Research and Roadmaps, Responsible Use of Technology, and more!
Presidential Innovation Fellows (PIF) (@PIFgov)
“Presidential Innovation Fellows is committed to reflecting the diversity of the people we serve. We’re a multidisciplinary team of product designers, full-stack engineers, and VC-backed founders. We’re also artists. Parents. Immigrants. Veterans. Walking into the office, we all share a passion for civic purpose—people helping people…Hand-in-hand with federal agency leaders, we identify innovation opportunities of critical agency and/or national priority.”
presidentialinnovationfellows.gov/
RESOURCES: PIF Impact Report, Apply to PIF
Public Interest Technology Lab
"We help shape the future of technology and society to advance equity, expand opportunity and protect basic rights and liberties...The Public Interest Tech Lab at Harvard provides Harvard students and faculty with access to technological infrastructures, gadgets, algorithms, know-how and key resources to better understand how technology can either worsen or address society’s greatest challenges.”
RESOURCES: Projects
TechCongress (@congressfellows)
“We place computer scientists, engineers, and other technologists to serve as technology policy advisors to Members of Congress through the Congressional Innovation Fellowship, the Congressional Innovation Scholars program, and the Congressional Digital Service Fellowship. We bridge the divide of knowledge and experience between DC and Silicon Valley for better outcomes for both.”
Resource: Policy Opportunities for Technologists
The Tech Talent Project (@_TechTalentProj)
“The Tech Talent Project is nonpartisan, nonprofit project dedicated to increasing the ability of the U.S. government to recruit modern technical leaders in order to achieve critical economic, policy, and human outcomes. It was founded in 2017 by former technology leaders from the Obama and Trump White Houses.”
https://techtalentproject.org/
TheBridge (@TheBridgeWork)
“Our vision at TheBridge is to solve big problems at the intersection of innovation, regulation and culture in unorthodox ways. We break down silos and bridge this divide through education, community and deep cross-functional expertise.
TheBridge network is a diverse, cross-sector community of professionals spanning the entire tech policy ecosystem — from the c-suite to the white house to engineers to researchers — with a common interest in breaking down silos and collaborating to solve problems.”
U.S. Digital Corps (@USDigitalCorps)
“The U.S. Digital Corps is a new two-year fellowship for early-career technologists to work on critical impact projects including coronavirus response, economic recovery, cybersecurity, and racial equity in the federal government.”
RESOURCES: Application Process information
US Digital Response (@USDResponse)
“U.S. Digital Response (USDR) is a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization that helps governments and organizations respond quickly and efficiently to support the critical needs of the public. Leveraging a network of pro-bono technical expertise and modern, resilient technology, USDR addresses and uncovers solutions for common, systemic challenges that public servants are facing, leaving them better equipped to deliver services and support to millions of people nationwide.”
https://www.usdigitalresponse.org/
RESOURCES: Resources Page - U.S. Digital Response
USofTech / United States of Technologists (@usoftech_)
"The United States of Technologists is a collective effort to bring a diverse group of 10,000 technologists into the public sector across state, local, and federal government. We are part of the growing movement of public interest technologists, “adopting best practices in human-centered design, product development, process re-engineering, and data science to solve public problems in an inclusive, iterative manner—continuously learning, improving, and aiming to deliver better outcomes to the public.” [New America, 2018].”
RESOURCE: Resources Page - USofTech
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Check out All Tech Is Human’s full list of Responsible Tech organizations, along with Academic Centers & Institutes.
All Tech Is Human is a non-profit committed to building the Responsible Tech pipeline; making it more diverse, multidisciplinary, and aligned with the public interest. We unite a broad range of stakeholders in order to co-create a better tech future. Our activities includes a large community Slack group, regular livestreams and summits, Responsible Tech Job Board, mentorship program, university ambassadors program, regular working groups that release impactful reports, and more. Find all of our links here.
