Cisco and OECD Launch Digital Well-being Hub to Study Technology's Impact on Society

It's Time To Have A Real Conversation About The Quality Of Digital Life

That work starts today, with the launch of our Digital Well-being Hub This week, we launched the Digital Well-being Hub in partnership with the OECD to bring all the pieces together. The data, the science, and crucially, people's lived experiences, all in one place so we can better understand the impact digital technology is having on people's lives around the world. It's worth stopping for a moment and talking about what sets the Hub and our partnership with the OECD apart from other initiatives. Part-crowdsourcing tool, part-research tool, the Hub builds on the OECD's previous research to provide a comprehensive look at well-being in digital life - the risks and the benefits. What makes the Hub unique is how it gives us the ability to hear directly from everyday people and ask them what their digital life is like. We're collecting real-time evidence about how satisfied they are in their lives, their mental health, their digital skills, how they communicate with their friends and family, their feelings of personal security in a cyber world and their proficiency with AI. The world needs this holistic approach to shape conversations and policies in the years to come so we can help people, communities, governments, and industry responsibly navigate the AI era -- and help them get ready for what comes next. We don't expect these conversations to be easy. We cannot embrace the good and the great of technology without confronting the perils of connectivity. Here's how we're going to improve the quality of digital life for all. To address our digital well-being, we must first identify the existing gaps. For example, we know that 40% of people who use the internet in OECD countries lack basic digital skills, and 14% experience loneliness. The potential for digital tools to worsen these issues is a reality we must confront. But how do people experience these issues daily? And how do the dimensions of our digital life - digital skills, jobs, social connectedness, cybersecurity and more - all come together to impact our well-being? When digital technology is accessible, available, and affordable -- and people have the right skills -- it can improve economic well-being and transform the way we work, live, and connect. But the effects on society, the environment, and how these relate to our well-being are less clear cut. Excessive or problematic use heightens the risks and negative effects of digital technology. So to improve the quality of digital life, we must study, analyse and measure our digital experience. We can't close these gaps on our own. That's why we recognize the value of coming together at events like the OECD Well-being Forum. The conversations have begun. But with the solid base of evidence the Hub will help us build, they're about to become much more robust. The findings that will come from the Hub and our partnership with the OECD will inform existing and future dialogues with governments, industry, academia, non-profits, and communities. Conversations that are about unlocking the value of technology to power safe and inclusive communities, and resilient economies. Right now, the global conversation is dominated by how AI and new technologies are resetting the way we live, work, and connect. The opportunities are immense. But we aren't blind to the challenges. Cisco is -- and has long been -- committed to shaping responsible and ethical AI, securing critical infrastructure, and offering next-generation digital skills so everyone can benefit from the promise and opportunity of the AI era and prosper in a technology-driven world. We recognize that trust is the currency of the digital age, and it's incumbent upon business and industry leaders to be ethical and trustworthy stewards of technology and data to propel us into the digital future. Technology and automation will displace 83 million jobs in the next four years. And at the same time, create 69 million new jobs globally. The scale of those predictions takes on new meaning when you consider that six in ten workers will require training before 2027, but only half of workers are seen to have access to adequate training opportunities today1. We have a responsibility as technologists to make sure people have the skills and the resilience to live a fulfilling digital life. But what about the third of the world's population who live without access to the internet in a world fundamentally transformed by digital technology? The people who are, in effect, excluded from digital life? The risk is they will become invisible. That isn't fair. And it's entirely unnecessary. We have the capability to connect everyone, everywhere in this digital age. It just takes the will and a collaborative effort from government, academia, and industry. When we connect the unconnected, we have the potential to lift 500 million people out of poverty and contribute 6.7 trillion dollars to the global GDP2. When we achieve that future, we'll know that the research we started today with the OECD, and the vital contributions from people all over the world, helped make that happen. We built the Digital Well-being Hub with the OECD to give everyone a say in our collective digital future. From the smallest act -- lending 10 minutes of your time to tell us about your digital life -- you join our global effort to critically explore and better understand the impacts of technology on our well-being so that we can build sustainable, inclusive and resilient economies. Your contribution could be the turning point in a body of evidence that will change the world for someone you know. And someone you don't.

Cisco and the OECD: Building the World's First Full Picture of Digital Well-being By Investing.com

Pioneering research into the risks and benefits of digital life to help society prepare for the AI-era and beyond News summary: , /PRNewswire/ -- Cisco, the worldwide technology leader, with the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), has launched the Digital Well-being Hub, the world's first cross-cutting study into the complex relationship between digital technologies and individual well-being. As AI and technology rapidly transform the ways we live, work, and connect, there has never been a comprehensive understanding of the overall impact of digital transformation on our well-being. Until now. Daily Digital Experiences: the Missing Piece in Well-Being Existing research already indicates that 40% of adults in OECD countries lack basic digital skills, potentially hampering their ability to safely navigate digital environments, including understanding digital privacy and the mental health implications of online activities. The situation gets more complex when considering that more than half of the workers in these countries are concerned that AI-related data collection could result in biased decisions against them. However, this picture is still incomplete. What is missing is an understanding of how different people experience these interconnected issues on a daily basis and how they impact overall well-being. For instance, a lack of digital skills may limit job prospects, or uncertainty about application of technology might deter responsible social media use, or participating in online education, healthcare or civic engagement. "Digital well-being isn't one thing; it's multifaceted and interconnected, requiring a holistic understanding to responsibly navigate the AI era and beyond. But we've never fully examined technology's impact on our well-being across various aspects of everyday life such as education, health and jobs," said , SVP and Chief Innovation Officer, Cisco. "The evidence we gather from our Digital Well-being Hub will help people build healthier relationships with technology and create a more sustainable, secure, and inclusive digital future. By understanding how technology influences our well-being, we can unlock its full potential." Connecting the Dots in Digital Life The Hub aims to dig deeper into the interplay between these issues by taking a holistic view of digital well-being that makes connections between the use of digital technologies and factors such as life satisfaction, mental health, digital skills, cyber safety, civic engagement, climate consciousness and social connections. Contributions from visitors to the Hub will inform pioneering research that will go beyond technology to focus on outcomes that enhance the quality of digital life for everyone. "The Digital Well-being Hub shines a light on how advanced technology can build healthier lives and communities-and this is just the beginning," said , Cisco's , Policy & Purpose Officer. "Connecting global populations through shared experiences presents an uplifting vision, but also an important call to action on behalf of the 2.6 billion people who still lack access to the Internet. This means that a third of the global population-largely in the world's poorest countries-can't participate and won't be represented. We must commit to narrowing this gap as the first and most fundamental step to global well-being in the digital age." Building the First Full Picture of Digital Well-Being The groundbreaking study, the first to connect different well-being dimensions in a single view, wrestles with the contradictions of the digital world. Where digital technology is accessible, available, and affordable"and people have the right skills"it can improve economic well-being and transform the way we work, live, and connect. AI for example, can boost productivity and improve working conditions. But it can also show biases against women and minorities. The effects of digital technology on the social, environmental, and relational aspects of well-being are less clear-cut, with risks and negative effects heightened by excessive or problematic use. Part-crowdsourcing platform, part-research tool The Digital Well-being Hub is grounded in the OECD Well-being Framework. It captures real-time evidence of people's well-being, digital behaviours, and inequalities in technology use. Visitors to the Hub can also explore and interact with the OECD's existing findings on technology's impacts and compare country-level data. "Through the Digital Well-being Hub, we will hear directly from people to better understand the interplay between technology and life that can inform new decisions and policies, and spur action to improve outcomes for people," said , Director, OECD Centre for Well-being, Inclusion, Sustainability and Equal Opportunity (SO:FTCE11B) (WISE). "Up to 14% of people in OECD countries feel lonely, which could be potentially exacerbated by the use of digital tools. Through our collaboration with Cisco we are exploring the unintended consequences of excessive or problematic use of digital tools and understand how people live in the digital world. Our findings will help to shape policies and foster a more equitable and inclusive digital future." How's Digital Life for You? During the next several months, Cisco and the OECD are calling on people globally to contribute their experiences via the Hub. Once enough responses are collected, the OECD will analyse and synthesize people's experiences (the subjective data) with existing OECD research (objective data) to provide a more holistic view of digital well-being in 2025. Additional Resources: About Cisco Cisco is the worldwide technology leader that securely connects everything to make anything possible. Our purpose is to power an inclusive future for all by helping our customers reimagine their applications, power hybrid work, secure their enterprise, transform their infrastructure, and meet their sustainability goals. Discover more on The Newsroom and follow us on X at @Cisco. Cisco and the Cisco logo are trademarks or registered trademarks of Cisco and/or its affiliates in the and other countries. A listing of Cisco's trademarks can be found at www.cisco.com/go/trademarks. Third-party trademarks mentioned are the property of their respective owners. The use of the word partner does not imply a partnership relationship between Cisco and any other company.