Civil Society

Think about the country that you live in - what does it take to make that
country operate smoothly? The government takes care of law and order and
businesses offer goods and services in exchange for money, which both help to
keep a society moving. But what about other groups, like churches or the PTA,
how do they contribute to your society? These other groups actually play a very
big part in how your country operates, and they fall into a category known as
civil society.
A civil society is comprised of groups or organizations working in the
interest of the citizens but operating outside of the governmental and for-profit
sectors. Organizations and institutions that make up civil society include labor
unions, non-profit organizations, churches, and other service agencies that
provide an important service to society but generally ask for very little in return.
Civil society is sometimes referred to as the civil sector, a term that is used to
differentiate it from other sectors that comprise a functioning society. For
example, the United States is made up of three sectors: the public sector, which
is the government and its branches; the private sector, which includes
businesses and corporations; and the civil sector, which includes the
organizations that act in the public's interest but are not motivated by profit or
government.
According to the World Bank: “Civil society ... refers to a wide array of
organizations: community groups, non-governmental organizations [NGOs],
labour unions, indigenous groups, charitable organizations, faith-based
organizations, professional associations, and foundations.”
The term became popular in political and economic discussions in the
1980s, when it started to be identified with non-state movements that were
defying authoritarian regimes, especially in central and eastern Europe and
Latin America.
 When mobilized, civil society - sometimes called the “third sector” (after
government and commerce) - has the power to influence the actions of elected
policy-makers and businesses. But the nature of civil society - what it is and
what it does - is evolving, in response to both technological developments and
more nuanced changes within societies

Examples of Civil Society at Work

In so many cases, it can be hard to know what organization falls into which
sector and why. This is because so many of these groups tend to work in
collaboration with one another in order to serve the public. Looking at some
examples of what falls into a civil society and how they contribute, should help
to bring more clarity.

On a global scale, organizations from civil society play an incredibly important

role. In the aftermath of a disaster, such as Hurricane Katrina or the 2010
earthquake in Haiti, groups like the American Red Cross and Habitat for
Humanity were instrumental in serving those affected and helping them get back
to normal. These groups are considered Non-Governmental Aid
Organizations (NGOs), which provide assistance to people for little or no fee.
NGOs fall into the category of civil society because they are not operated by the
government, are very often reliant on donations, and tend to be comprised of
volunteers.

Another example of civil society at work is civic groups, such as the Rotary Club
or Kiwanis. In the United States, these are groups that are made up of people
from the community who volunteer their time in order to raise money for
community projects or needs. Though these groups tend to be much smaller
than NGOs, they are important because they represent the ordinary citizen
contributing to the overall well-being of their community.
Leading civil society brands

Examples of well-known civil society organizations include Amnesty

International, the International Trade Union Confederation, the World Wide
Fund for Nature (WWF), Greenpeace and the Danish Refugee Council (DRC).

The story of why some of these organizations were founded gives some insight
into their motives and raison d’etre. The DRC, for example, is a humanitarian,
non-profit organization that came into being following the devastation of World
War II and the European refugee crises triggered by the Soviet invasion of
Hungary in 1956. It provides assistance to refugees, displaced people and their
host communities in conflict zones around the world.

The tech revolution

Civil society groups are becoming more tech savvy as they use social media
platforms and formats such as video and podcasts to raise awareness about their
causes and charitable donations.

But they are also using technology in ways that are more directly linked to
improving the efficacy of their work. Human rights group Amnesty International,
for example, is experimenting with a form of artificial intelligence known as
machine learning to see what influence it could have in areas such as policing,
criminal justice, the development of autonomous weapons and its possible
impacts on our rights to work and earn a living.

The WWF, on the other hand, is harnessing aerial drone technology, animal
tracking devices and infrared cameras in its battle against the illegal poaching
of endangered species.

FEMINISM
The term feminism can be used to describe a political, cultural or economic movement aimed
at establishing equal rights and legal protection for women. Feminism involves political and
sociological theories and philosophies concerned with issues of gender difference, as well as
a movement that advocates gender equality for women and campaigns for women's rights
and interests. Although the terms "feminism" and "feminist" did not gain widespread use until
the 1970s, they were already being used in the public parlance much earlier; for instance,
Katherine Hepburn speaks of the "feminist movement" in the 1942 film Woman of the Year.

According to Maggie Humm and Rebecca Walker, the history of feminism can be divided into
three waves. The first feminist wave was in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, the
second was in the 1960s and 1970s, and the third extends from the 1990s to the present.
Feminist theory emerged from these feminist movements. It is manifest in a variety of
disciplines such as feminist geography, feminist history and feminist literary criticism.

Feminism has altered predominant perspectives in a wide range of areas within Western
society, ranging from culture to law. Feminist activists have campaigned for women's legal
rights (rights of contract, property rights, voting rights); for women's right to bodily integrity
and autonomy, for abortion rights, and for reproductive rights (including access to
contraception and quality prenatal care); for protection of women and girls from domestic
violence, sexual harassment and rape;for workplace rights, including maternity leave and
equal pay; against misogyny; and against other forms of gender-specific discrimination
against women.

During much of its history, most feminist movements and theories had leaders who were
predominantly middle-class white women from Western Europe and North America. However,
at least since Sojourner Truth's 1851 speech to American feminists, women of other races
have proposed alternative feminisms. This trend accelerated in the 1960s with the Civil Rights
movement in the United States and the collapse of European colonialism in Africa, the
Caribbean, parts of Latin America and Southeast Asia. Since that time, women in former
European colonies and the Third World have proposed "Post-colonial" and "Third World"
feminisms. Some Postcolonial Feminists, such as Chandra Talpade Mohanty, are critical of
Western feminism for being ethnocentric. Black feminists, such as Angela Davis and Alice
Walker, share this view.