A collaboration between 4 European organisations to unleash the potential of artificial intelligence in fostering youngsters' civic participation
RUNNING TIME
2023 – 2024
ROLE
Leading partner
Art direction
Training development
Category
Education and training
Arts and technology
2030 GOALS
Can artificial intelligence be not just a tool but a topic for discussion and debate? This is the challenge set by four European organisations – Baltan Laboratories, Fundación Zaragoza Ciudad del Conocimiento – FZC, Ohme, led by Sineglossa – for the MACHINES FOR GOOD project, an initiative co-funded by the European Union under the CERV programme. This acronym stands for ‘Citizens, Equality, Rights and Values’: it is a programme launched in 2021 by the European Union and will last seven years, until 2027. It aims to support and develop open, democratic, equal and inclusive societies, based on the rule of law, encouraging the democratic, civic and social participation of people and cultivating the individual specificities of European cultures, based on common values, history and memory.
Project steps
MACHINES FOR GOOD contributes to achieving this goal by using artificial intelligence not only as a tool but also as a driver of youngsters participation when combined with the arts.
To do so, the project includes a series of training workshops based in each country where the partners are – Italy, Belgium, the Netherlands, Spain – addressed to teenagers and young people, in which artificial intelligence tools will be shown and used to critically address issues related to 4 technological challenges:
- technology and climate change,
- technology and community,
- technology and sustainability,
- technology and democracy.
From these workshops, a set of guidelines to be discussed with local and international policy makers and stakeholders will emerge. Then, they will be published as policy recommendations to raise awareness about Artificial Intelligence and its potential for participation.
Workshop for citizen engagement
- MACHINES FOR SUSTAINABILITY
Educational workshops to engage teenagers with art and artificial intelligence for collecting and reporting stories of environmental, social, cultural and economic sustainability
April – May 2023
Liceo Scientifico Cambi Serrani (AN), Istituto Istruzione superiore Benincasa (AN), Liceo Brocchi (VI), Istituto Istruzione Superiore Scotton (VI), Italy
promoted by Sineglossa
360 students between 14-18 years - MACHINES FOR COMMUNITY
Workshops titled “AI IN THE HOOD” to engage inhabitants for designing the future of Eindhoven neighbourhoods with artificial intelligence tool
April – May 2023
Eindhoven, Netherlands
promoted by Baltan Laboratories - MACHINES FOR DEMOCRACY
Educational workshops led by Noray Collective on deepfakes and cinema, starting from Q is for Climate and Elvis, two artworks by English artist Libby Heaney
April – May 2023
4 study centers (IES Luis Buñuel, IES Andalán, IES Goya, IES Valdespartera) and ETOPIA Center for Art and Technology
promoted by FZC Fundacion Zaragoza Ciudad del Conocimiento
189 students between 14 – 18 years - MACHINES FOR FOOD & CIRCULAR ECONOMY
Interactive workshops to increase civic awareness about how artificial intelligence could help for tools repair and circular economy
July 2023
FARI – AI for the Common Good Institute
promoted by Ohme
50 participants
Workshops with policy makers
To deepen the understanding of AI’s impact on sustainability, promote awareness and knowledge–sharing, and enhance collaboration for more effective and inclusive sustainable development efforts, for the second part of the “Machines for Good” project each partner held a workshop addressed to local policymakers, weaving together technology, society, and policy to pave the way for a more sustainable future.
- AI in the Hood. Imagining a green space for our neighbourhood: Baltan Laboratories focused on the Rochusbuurt neighbourhood, utilising the GPSA method and UrbanistAI for collaborative public space envisioning.
- AI and Climate Change in Policy making: Ohme explored the synergy between AI and art for civic engagement in climate change, featuring talks on AI literacy and animal language.
- Fiest Up. AI, Participation and Creativity: Zaragoza’s event saw a transformative shift in participants’ perceptions of AI, with positive outcomes in the AI and Youth Film Lab and a techno-poetry workshop.
- Sustainability and Policy making: Sineglossa facilitated dialogue between young representatives and administrative figures, leading to a commitment to open forums and ongoing discussions on sustainability initiatives.
Final online event
Following the experience gained from the thematic workshops, recommendations for policy makers were presented online on 22 March 2024. They address how to adapt the institutional context to the new cultural challenges driven by AI.
The event included a keynote lecture by Hugues Bersini, international AI expert, professor at the Free University of Brussels and co-director of the IRIDIA lab.
Policy recommendations
The project Machines for Good has constituted an attempt to address and give answers to the aforementioned gap: how can AI-based technologies and art practices be used to increase public engagement? The project has embarked on a transformative journey, seeking to answer pressing questions surrounding the fusion of AI-based technologies and art practices to enhance public engagement.
Read the final observations addressed to stakeholders and policy makers, developed by policy analyst Luca Baraldi following discussion among project partners on how AI can be used to increase civic engagement.
Credits
MACHINES FOR GOOD is an initiative led by Sineglossa, in collaboration with Baltan Laboratories (Netherlands), Ohme (Belgium), FZC – Fundacion Zaragoza Ciudad de Conocimiento (Spain), co-funded by the European Union under the CERV programme. This acronym stands for ‘Citizens, Equality, Rights and Values’: it is a programme launched in 2021 by the European Union and will last seven years, until 2027. It aims to support and develop open, democratic, equal and inclusive societies, based on the rule of law, encouraging the democratic, civic and social participation of people and cultivating the individual specificities of European cultures, based on common values, history and memory.
