Law and Governance in the age of technology

The presence of technology in law and governance debates is not new. With each technological development in warfare, for example, the political and academic debate often referred to the challenges and changes the technology posed to international governance. Debates on arms races and control over proliferation of weapons apart, this paper focuses its attention on technologies often associated with the “Information Age” – the Internet, biotechnology, information gathering systems etc. These technologies, it is argued in this paper following Fukuyama and Wagner and Mordini, are different from previous technological developments: they are de-centred, dispersed and disseminated and their control and use depends on individuals, civil society, commercial entities and to a lesser extent with governments. These differences in technology influence the relationship between technology and governance changing the traditional role of technology in the law and governance process. This paper tries to identify the role(s) of technology in current day governance. The paper recognises three possible roles: technology as subject of governance; technology as regulator in the governance process; and technology as an enabler in the law and governance process. In conclusion, the author argues that the three roles are often intertwined, involving multiple actors in using technology for ‘better’ governance.

The working paper 'Law and Governance in the age of technology' can be found here.