Collaboration will build bridges between the people building emerging technologies and policymakers

Filecoin Foundation for the Decentralized Web (FFDW) is proud to announce our award to TechCongress, an organization that provides fellowships to bridge the informational gap between technologists and policymakers in Congress. TechCongress does this by placing computer scientists, engineers, and other technologists on Capitol Hill to serve as technology advisors to members of Congress. Through this collaboration with FFDW, TechCongress will increase the number of technology advisors participating in its fellowship program by nearly 50 percent.

Since 2016, TechCongress has placed over 65 fellows in congressional offices, with the goal of building a new generation of technology leaders. TechCongress is lowering barriers between technology and political industries by giving technologists an opportunity to gain first-hand policy experience and helping congressional offices find qualified technologists to provide guidance around federal policy and technology-related issues.

“TechCongress fellows have served across both Democratic and Republican offices and committees and have contributed to incredible causes on and off the Hill,” said Travis Moore, founder and executive director of TechCongress. “Our fellows have been in conversations with government leaders on topics from data privacy, to election security, to the future of Web3, and we look forward to working with the FFDW team to expand our program, bringing more awareness and technical acumen to the heart of policy making.”

With the growing prominence of Web3 and increasing attention toward regulation of emerging technologies, having more advisors and fellows in Congress who have first-hand knowledge of these technologies is increasingly important. Through collaboration with FFDW, TechCongress will have more opportunities to recruit fellows from the Web3 ecosystem and help fellows to build relationships in Washington, D.C. with government leaders.

TechCongress operates three fellowship programs:

• The Congressional Innovation Fellowship, which places mid-career technologists on Capitol Hill for twelve months.
• The Congressional Innovation Scholars program, which places early-career technologists, including graduates of technical degree programs, on Capitol Hill for ten months.
• The Congressional Digital Service Fellowship is a one-time program to help members of Congress manage the digital challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic.

As technology touches on more issues under consideration on Capitol Hill, TechCongress aims to increase the availability of technical knowledge through fellow programs, and ultimately, help technologists play a bigger role in the development of tech policy.

“We’re thrilled to support TechCongress with this award,” said FFDW President and Chair Marta Belcher. “It has never been more important to have technologists on Capitol Hill informing policy, and this grant is a natural fit for FFDW’s mission to advance the decentralized web through education.”

If you’re interested in applying to be a TechCongress fellow for 2023, please visit techcongress.io for more details.