Events

The Responsible Technology Coalition (RTC) invites students, faculty, and staff to a talk by LSU assistant professor and CICS graduate, Dr. Mahmood Jasim.  “Human-Centered Collection and Analysis of Public-Generated Data,” is a hybrid event and will take place on February 28, 2024, from 5:30 – 7:00 in Lederle Graduate Research Center, room A112 or online. Pizza and other refreshments will be available. RSVP here.Decision making at the personal, local, and national level are increasingly fueled by data collected from public engagement platforms such as social media, review sites, and public solicitation forums. However, these platforms are often far from inclusive and people struggle to share their opinions due to the inaccessibility, rigidity, and safety concerns of these platforms. In this talk, Dr. Mahmood Jasim (LSU Assistant Professor and UMass CICS graduate) will demonstrate how human-centered approaches that…

The Responsible Technology Coalition (RTC) invites graduate students from all departments to submit physical representations of their public interest technology-related research to be part of an exhibit that will take place in the Science and Engineering Library in the Lederle Graduate Research Center low rise during the spring semester. An opening reception for the exhibit is scheduled for 4-6 p.m. on April 2. The RTC, a student group focused on issues related to responsible technology across academia, industry and government, is collaborating with the Public Interest Technology Initiative at UMass (PIT@UMass) along with the PIT-Club to curate the exhibit. The RTC is committed to seeing that technology is ethical, accountable and dedicated to the advancement of dialogue, policy and practice around responsible technology at UMass and society at large. The exhibit aims to educate the campus community about PIT and highlight PIT-related…

Join Xiao-Li Meng (Harvard University) and the editors of the Harvard Data Science Review (HDSR) for a stimulating virtual panel entitled, “Future Shock: Grappling with the Generative AI Revolution." The conversation, and the HDSR publication of the same name scheduled to be published in January, will explore the broad spectrum of questions raised by recent advancements in foundation models and generative AI tools like ChatGTP, including:To what extent are these advancements presenting contemporary society with dangers of future shock?To what degree and how is the accelerating pace of the generative AI revolution putting novel, and potentially unsustainable, pressures on accepted norms and practices of scientific research, teaching, scholarship, and academic publication?How is the hasty industrialization of this set of technologies impacting broader social, cultural, economic, political, and legal structures, dynamics, and institutions? How can policymakers, regulators, civil society organizations, and…

The Multistakeholder Model is described as a framework that encourages the engagement of various stakeholders in Internet Policy Development Processes (PDPs). These stakeholders include governments, technical community, standards bodies, civil society, research institutions and businesses, among others. In this talk, Sarah Kiden will explore the role of the model through the lens of the At-Large Advisory Committee (ALAC) - a constituency that represents the interests of end users to ICANN. She will highlight some initiatives that she has been involved in, and share insights relevant to Public Interest Technology. Sarah Kiden is a Public Interest Technologist and Design Researcher working at the intersection of technology and society. As a Marie Curie Research Fellow, she is completing a joint industrial PhD between Northumbria University (UK) and Mozilla. Her current research interests include the exploration of policy…