15 - Digital community work

Summary

Introduction

The world is changing significantly, with digital technology and the internet a significant part of all our lives. Worldwide, 4.65 billion people (58.7%) use social media, with 63% of the world's population using the internet; on average, adults spend almost seven hours per day online (Datareportal, 2022). In the 21st century, it is often online and in the digital space that many people find and build community. Indeed, ‘few would argue that traditional, in-person, pedagogical practices are ideal for everyone’ (NovoEd, 2020, 10). With so much of our lives taking place online, opportunities and community spaces in which to connect have invariably reduced. Even prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, almost half of Americans (47 per cent) said they did not have meaningful in-person social interactions on a daily basis (Cigna, 2018). Community work seeks to engage people where they are and, as practitioners who build our practice on relationships, traditionally built on the streets and in community venues, we need to consider how to use digital tools to expand our reach and support with communities, to address the barriers to their full participation. This will include ‘those who may be geographically and socially isolated’ (European Commission, 2018, 2), as described in the following quote.

‘It's not just about access to devices or technology. It's a more complex challenge. We need to try to help people understand that it's not enough just to be able to build a Facebook post. In the 21st century there are a range of competences needed in order to be considered basically digitally competent. … All jobs [will] require digital skills of some sort. So, we’re still going to see a lot of people and face challenges in the coming years with automation and machine learning and all that kind of thing, starting to impact manual and unskilled work. It's a lot of work trying to reach those furthest behind and ensure we leave no one behind … it's still a huge uphill battle.’ (Mark Kelly, 2022, Focus Group)

Digital tools such as social media, online forms and e-mail offer a quick and easy way to target our engagements, to create rich learning experiences, increase participation, enhance community work outcomes, overcome barriers and provide high-quality data about the impact of our interventions.