Gender data gaps are widely documented in fields from medicine to urban planning to product design. Yet, these same datasets, rife with biases, are being used to inform AI applications, which in turn, perpetuate (if not worsen) the gender inequalities found across society. Given that AI is playing an increasingly critical role in our global technological, economic, and medical systems, and considering that only 16% of skilled AI workers are women, it’s a problem that’s set to only get worse. Yet, it cannot be ignored that there are huge opportunities for AI to contribute to solving society’s greatest humanitarian and environmental challenges. So does AI have a rightful place in advancing gender equality?
This session at the 2023 Global Digital Development Forum, Ronda Železný-Green, Ph.D., alongside a panel of gender and data equity experts, will begin by debating the merits of AI and gender. Building on fresh research and case studies, we will consider both the risks that AI presents in perpetuating inequalities, but also the promise of leveraging it to narrow the gender gap. Panelists will then examine new applications of AI to advance gender equality and will surface emerging practices to scale adoption by policymakers.
Speaker
Ronda Železný-Green, Ph.D. is the former Director of Digital Learning for data.org. She is a diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) changemaker creating systems to empower Black people, women, people with disabilities, and other marginalized populations in the technology and education sectors.
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