Dr. Terri Lyon is a licensed psychologist, professor, and the author of The Happy Activist. As the creator of the 5-Step Activism Path, she specializes in helping individuals achieve sustainable social change through a skills-based approach. Known as "The Activist for Activists," Terri is a dedicated environmental activist and animal lover who believes activism should motivate you, not drain you.
Artificial intelligence can help with some of the work behind activism: brainstorming ideas, drafting messages, organizing information, and turning a goal into manageable steps. Whether you are getting started or refining work you already do, use AI as a helper, but keep your own judgment in charge.
This post explores practical ways to use AI along the 5-Step Activism Path, while checking accuracy, protecting privacy, and deciding whether it actually saves you time.
Artificial intelligence is a broad category of computer systems that perform tasks such as recognizing patterns, making predictions, or generating content. This post focuses mainly on generative AI: tools that produce text, images, or other content in response to your instructions.
You can use these tools to brainstorm, draft, and organize. Their output still needs your judgment and, when it includes factual claims, verification.
But a polished answer is not necessarily an accurate one, and producing more content does not automatically create more change. The useful question is:
Which task could AI help me complete so I have more time and energy for my cause?
AI and Activism: Artificial Intelligence in Social Change
Here are practical ways to use AI along the 5-Step Activism Path, with checks to protect accuracy, privacy, and your own judgment. Using artificial Intelligence in social change means using its abilities to leverage your impact. Your use of AI can focus on how you want to achieve your goals for change.
In the following section are examples of how you can combine AI and activism.
Use AI as a Helper on Your Activism Path
My 5-Step Activism Path guides you to becoming a more effective and motivated activist. Here’s how artificial intelligence in social change can help you traverse the 5-step activism path:
Use AI to get personalized workouts, mindfulness exercises, and stress-relieving coping strategies.
Try This: Find One Manageable Action
Copy this prompt into an AI tool:
“I care about [cause]. These [activities] I find enjoyable. I can offer [skills]. I have [time available] each week. Suggest three small ways I could contribute. Explain what each involves and ask me questions if you need more information. Do not invent organizations or volunteer openings.”
Choose one idea that fits you. If it involves an organization, check its current needs directly before making a commitment.
Artificial Intelligence in Social Change Example
I asked four AI programs to provide real-world examples of activists using different activism methods. The AIs are:
Groq
Gemini
Claude
ChatGPT
Me: Will you provide 3 real-world examples of activists using different activism methods? I’m interested in hearing about non-traditional methods.
Groq: Certainly! Here are some real-world examples of activists using non-traditional methods of activism:
Artivism: Banksy, a renowned street artist, uses his art to raise awareness about various social and political issues. His works often depict powerful messages about war, poverty, and oppression. By placing his art in public spaces, he reaches a broader audience and encourages dialogue around these topics.
Flash Mobs: Flash mobs are a form of performance art used for activism. They involve a group of people gathering in a public space to perform a coordinated, unexpected action, often for a political or social cause. For example, flash mobs have been used to raise awareness about climate change, LGBTQ+ rights, and social justice issues.
Guerrilla Projection: Guerrilla projection is a form of activism that involves projecting messages, images, or videos onto buildings or other structures in public spaces. Activists use this method to bring attention to various social and political issues. For example, Greenpeace has used guerrilla projection to raise awareness about deforestation and climate change.
These non-traditional activism methods showcase the creativity and innovation of activists in bringing attention to social and political issues. By using unconventional tactics, activists can reach broader audiences, challenge the status quo, and inspire change.
Gemini: Absolutely! Here are some real-world examples of activists using creative and non-traditional methods to get their message across:
Street Art and Performances: Activists like Banksy use street art to make powerful social and political statements. The art can be large murals, stencils, or installations, often placed in high-traffic areas to grab attention. Similarly, performance artists use their bodies and actions to raise awareness about issues. For example, the group “The Yes Men” impersonated corporate representatives to expose environmental damage at conferences.
Social Media Campaigns: Social media provides a platform for rapid mobilization and creative expression. The #BlackLivesMatter movement effectively utilized social media to spread awareness of police brutality and racial injustice. Climate change activists have used online challenges and trends to educate the public about environmental issues.
Boycotts with a Twist: Beyond traditional product boycotts, activists have gotten creative. The “Buy Nothing Day” movement encourages people to abstain from all consumer spending for a day to make a statement against excessive consumerism. Similarly, the “Debt Strike” movement mobilizes people to refuse to pay student loans in protest of the high cost of education.
ChatGPT: Certainly! Activism comes in many forms, and non-traditional methods can often be the most creative and impactful. Here are some real-world examples of activists employing unconventional tactics:
Culture Jamming: The Yes Men impersonate representatives of powerful organizations to highlight their unethical practices. For example, they posed as representatives of Dow Chemical to announce a large compensation fund for victims of the Bhopal disaster, drawing attention to Dow’s lack of responsibility for the tragedy.
Tactical Urbanism: In the Parking Day Movement, activists transform parking spaces into mini-parks, temporary art installations, or other public spaces to raise awareness about the need for more pedestrian-friendly urban environments and to reclaim space from cars.
Performative Activism: The Guerrilla Girls are an anonymous group of feminist activist artists who wear gorilla masks in public and use facts, humor, and bold visuals to expose gender and ethnic bias in the art world.
Diversity and Inclusion Activism: April Reign started the hashtag campaign #OscarsSoWhite to draw attention to the lack of diversity in the nominations for the Academy Awards, sparking conversations and protests within the entertainment industry and leading to changes in nomination processes.
These examples demonstrate the diverse range of tactics activists use to challenge power structures, raise awareness, and inspire change.
Claude: Certainly, I’d be happy to provide some examples of activists employing non-traditional methods. Here are a few notable instances:
Guerrilla Gardening: In many cities, activists have taken to guerrilla gardening, which involves illegally cultivating gardens or plants on abandoned or neglected public spaces. This is often done to draw attention to issues like food deserts, urban blight, or the need for more green spaces. Groups like Green Guerrillas in New York City have been doing this since the 1970s.
Craftivism: This blends craft and activism, with activists using media like embroidery, knitting, or crocheting to create pieces that make political statements. The Revolutionary Rocks movement involved painting rocks with activist slogans and leaving them in public spaces. Groups like the Pussyhat Project used crafting for the Women’s March.
Planking/Freezing: Activists have used choreographed “frozen” poses in public spaces to draw attention to issues like climate change (Extinction Rebellion) or immigration policies (CIRCA Pinera in Chile).
The key theme is using unconventional, attention-grabbing tactics to raise awareness and make political statements outside of traditional protest methods. Let me know if you need any other examples!
That is cool! You can find inspiration in a few seconds. If you find something interesting, you could continue your journey by asking AI to tell you how to get started with that activism method.
Artificial Intelligence in Social Change: Applications
Choose one task you already need to complete, such as outlining a volunteer welcome message or organizing a list of ideas. Try an AI tool you can access and evaluate the result:
Did it follow your instructions?
Were its factual claims supported?
Were the results in your voice and did they and respect the people involved?
Did it save time after you checked and edited it?
Before uploading information, review the tool’s privacy controls. Keep supporter lists, private conversations, and sensitive details out of a general-purpose chatbot. And for meeting notes, obtain participants’ agreement before using an AI recording or transcription tool.
Keep using AI where it helps. You do not need to use it for every task.
In addition to the AI tools I already mentioned, you can find AI-powered apps for the tasks you want to accomplish. You may already be using some of them without realizing they are AI-powered. Helpers such as Canva, Google Maps, and Grammarly are AI-powered. Here are examples of using artificial intelligence in social change.
Advocacy and Communication
AI can help draft letters, blog posts, speeches, and social media messages for an audience you describe. Give it your purpose, key facts, and preferred tone, then edit the draft so it sounds like you. It can also draft translations. Have someone fluent in the language review important messages before sharing them.
Use your social media platforms more effectively with AI’s help so that messages reach the right people at the right time. For example, AI petition platforms can be used to personalize outreach. Or use AI to identify potential supporters for a protest.
Fundraising
Use AI to identify potential donors and suggest fundraising strategies. Suppose you’re looking for ideas for your next fundraising event. In that case, provide information about your organization and past events, and AI will provide ideas. For example,
“Given your organization’s focus on environmental conservation, you might consider a ‘Green Gala’ event. This could include a silent auction of eco-friendly products, a plant-based menu, and a keynote speech from a local environmental scientist.”
Activism can involve administrative tasks like data entry, petition circulation, or scheduling events. Ask AI to automate these processes, freeing you for more complex work.
When you need data for decision-making, AI searches for information, summarizes it, and creates a report. Always verify against the original sources.
Ask an AI-powered smartphone app to listen during a meeting and then document and organize the information. Before recording or transcribing a meeting, obtain participants’ agreement and check how the tool stores and uses the recording.
AI and Activism – Friend or Foe?
AI is fabulous. But we must face the fact that with its great power comes drawbacks. AI can be useful, but its limitations matter when your work affects other people.
Fact-Check your AI
AI can produce confident answers that contain incorrect facts, invented references, or outdated information. Asking for evidence-based information is a great idea but does not guarantee accuracy.
Open the sources it provides. Check that they exist, support the claim, and are current enough for your purpose. Check the organization’s own website or contact it directly.
The bottom line is that you should always review and verify information provided by AI.
Recognize that AI can be Biased
AI learns human biases, which we all have, whether we realize it or not. Biases may not be apparent unless you carefully consider the AI’s output. For example, I recently used AI to research feminism for a blog post, and it was obvious that the results left out women of color who were essential to the movement’s history.
Accessibility
Using artificial intelligence in your social change will make your activism work easier. However, remember that not everyone has access to technology, and relying solely on AI tools can risk excluding those already marginalized.
Avoid Using Personal Information
Never, ever put personal information into an AI. And if you are working with others’ personal information, make sure they consent to your use. Also, be transparent about how you will use it.
Keep supporter lists, private conversations, and sensitive identifying details out of general-purpose chatbots. Use fictional examples or remove identifying information when possible. If you work with an organization, follow its privacy policies and use approved tools.
Moving Forward with AI and Activism
Are you ready to use artificial intelligence in social change? Sign up! Some AI tools are free, others charge a fee, and others have free and upgraded tiers. I suggest you start with one to get a feel for AI and learn how to provide rich prompts to get the information you want. Then, expand your horizons by trying out others.
Once you’ve had time to try AI, pause and reflect on how it is helping you in your social change. Using AI is a process; you might need to change direction or learn new skills to maximize your results.
