Collective intelligence and capacity building

Abstract

The Information Society has new and specific characteristics. Information is digitalised, and therefore interactive, processable, transportable, accessible in new ways. Information is changing more quickly than before, and we see new types of information appear. The Information Society is a networked society, a society where collective capabilities are more and more needed, in addition to individual ones. Capacity building in the Information Society is not just an extension of the usual capacity building. New competences, new capabilities are necessary. These are not only technological competences, but more profound competences linked with new concepts. Not only competences linked to new knowledge, but competences linked to new ways to access knowledge. In particular three aspects of capacity building in the Information Society will be analysed: Accessing and processing knowledge in a networked world; Collective intelligence and collective capacity, and New citizenship in the Information Society. New capabilities cannot be acquired through the old ways of education: capacity building needs new contents and methods.