Programs
The Web Foundation is currently developing plans to fund projects around the world through these strategically integrated programs:
Web Science and Research
Goals of this program are:
- To study and understand how the web works in order to anticipate and ensure its future.
- To research issues (such as privacy and security) that impact the billions of people that use the Web.
- To understand how to make the Web stable and secure, and to mitigate threats and weaknesses.
- To spearhead thought leadership in Web research and to educate future Web Scientists.
To reach these goals, the initial activity for the program will be to promote expansion of the new field of Web Science through:
- Studies of the Web's development as an interconnected complex system (that combines disciplines of science, biomedical science, social science, and computer science, for example).
- Development of curricula in the discipline of Web Science at University and Post Graduate levels so that future Web Scientists can meet research and corporate needs.
- Conferences, summer schools, workshops, research publications, and outreach to government and industry think tanks.
Web Technology and Practice
The goals of this program are:
- To promote the development of technology and standards that foster creativity, collaboration, communication, and commerce.
- To encourage the spread of new technology that can be integrated and used alongside existing technology, ensuring the stable evolution of the Web.
- To ensure that the technology enables anyone to use the Web from any device, anywhere.
To reach these goals, the initial activity for the program will be to support the development of open, interoperable, high-quality Web Standards. A strong standards foundation has been one of the most important enablers of the exponential growth of the Web.
Web for Society
The goals of this program are:
- To learn from people in socially or economically deprived communities how the Web can better serve them.
- To leverage the Web to empower people, especially in under-served populations, by lowering barriers to life-critical services.
- To ensure the Web is accessible and useful to people, including people with disabilities, from different cultures, and language and literacy skills that span the range of the Earth's population.
To reach these goals, the initial activities for the program are:
- Studies that document needs, challenges, use cases, and success stories in the target populations.
- Support for efforts (individual, community, government, NGO, and private sector) to develop critical services, including those that provide access to better health care, nutrition, education, governmental support, emergency relief, social and commercial networking, environmental stewardship, and opportunities to conduct business on whatever scale is desired.
- Development of materials and tools (e.g., educational materials, guidelines, training programs) that directly support the application of Web technologies to addressing critical, real-world needs in under-served communities.