A Knowledge Society generates, shares and makes available to all members of society knowledge that may be used to improve the human condition. It serves to transform information into resources that empower individuals to act. This means it goes beyond an Information Society, which is only concerned with the creation and dissemination of meaningful data.

The term "knowledge society" was first coined by the academic Peter Drucker in 1969 and came into its own in the 1990s, in particular through studies by researchers such as Robin Mansell and Nico Stehr. It's further popularised as key focus of international organisation such as UNESCO, The World Bank and the United Nations. It builds on 4 principles:

• Freedom of expression
• Universal access to knowledge
• Equal access and quality learning for all, and
• Respect for cultural and linguistic diversity

To live in a Knowledge Society means to be immersed in useful information curated into knowledge by sources you trust, enabling you to live healthier, more productive, and sustainable lives.

_{Sources: https://en.unesco.org/themes/building-knowledge-societies; Mansell, R. and Tremblay, G. (2013) Renewing the Knowledge Societies Vision for Peace and Sustainable Development; Stehr, N. (2018) Pioneer in the Theory of Society and Knowledge}