Platforms, Governance, and Global Society (PGG)

Online platforms have risen as the infrastructural services of our time, transforming the existing societal structures and our daily lives and activities, such as news consumption, travelling, and shopping. 

Situated between nation states and individual users, online platforms have raised questions not merely about their implications for our lives and the society as a whole, but also about governance in a platform era: how governance is exercised by platforms and how to govern these platforms.

The PGG programme will conduct research on selected issues concerning online platforms and governance in a global society.

Our aims and methods are:

  • research prominent and emerging issues around online platforms and governance in a global society
  • identify the theoretical, practical, and policy issues to which it gives rise
  • conduct research into selected issues adopting a multi-disciplinary approach
  • provide a platform for discussion and debate among academics, policy-makers, and the business, corporate sector
  • bring together scholars and researchers, corporate practitioners and government officials, civil society and international agencies
  • forge links among nations, especially between western nations and China
  • publish and otherwise disseminate the results of research, policy analysis, and resulting practical issues
  • offer specialized courses and training in selected issues.