Of course technology has had a positive impact on society and will continue to do so. How we work and how we communicate has been revolutionised, it saves enormous amounts of time and businesses have been able to grow much quicker because of it. It also means we have a more flexible society, one which allows people to be contacted anywhere – people no longer rely on office or house phones and computers, today we have mobiles, tablets, laptops and the Cloud.
Social Media has also had an amazing impact on society in my opinion, an example being the earthquake in Japan last year. Facebook & Twitter allowed families to make contact with one another when phone lines were down. Here in Bristol, a Twitter campaign called #Itsnotmuch raised over £3000 for the charity.
Until recently I would have found it difficult to come up with any major negative impacts of technology on society. Then I met Vipul Patel who is on a crusade to educate consumers on the true costs of technology. Vipul raises concerns on the ethical values of some technology manufacturers and introduced me to the campaign RAISE Hope for Congo. Here the militia, who have killed millions of Congolese citizens are funded through the selling of minerals which are used in our computers and mobile phones.
It’s clear there is a negative impact of technology, though I don’t think that this should necessarily discount the positive impact. I feel that as consumers we should be more aware of how and where we spend our money so that technology can continue to grow in the right way.
Decide for Yourself
If you are interested in hearing more about this debate, come along to Tech Talks in Bristol next Wednesday where we have two speakers examining the positive and negative impact of technology on society. Book Here. Or let us know what you think below.
(Image from Free Digital Photo’s)
Written by: Kerry Hale