While there are certainly benefits, the breadth of concerns that AI, and particularly generative AI, pose for consumers is broad. And beyond privacy, governments are not doing much in the way of consumer protection. Furthermore, real protections will require worldwide standards and enforceable regulations. In this far-reaching conversation, Helena Laurent, director general of Consumers International, and Senior Fellow Wendell Wallach outline the challenges. For more, please go to...

In this episode, host Hilary Sutcliffe explores . . . ethics from another angle, with Christian Hunt, author of Humanizing Rules: Bringing Behavioural Science to Ethics and Compliance. It's mind-boggling how many principles and guidelines are available on creating ethical cultures or delivering ethical technologies. But these are often high level and abstract, easy to talk about, and hard to do. Hunt’s book explores ethics not top down from the c-suite, but from the bottom up; using...

All eyes are on San Francisco today as U.S. President Joe Biden and Chinese leader Xi Jinping meet in a highly anticipated session during the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit being held in the U.S. for the first time in 12 years. The tightly choreographed discussions are expected to lead to announcements on a diverse array of topics from re-starting climate talks to improving military to military communications and combating the fentanyl trade. Bethany Allen, China reporter...

It is important for scientists from the Global South to be engaged in research and discussions around solar radiation modification (SRM) because its potential impacts would affect everyone, says Inés Camilloni from the University of Buenos Aires. Researchers need to consider the risks of SRM against the risks of a dangerously warming planet. More research is needed, because the world currently does not know enough to make informed decisions. Dr. Camilloni is currently associate professor...

In this episode, host Hilary Sutcliffe explores . . . trustworthy tech development from another angle, investigating not just fresh thinking, but fresh doing. As part of her work on trust and technology governance, she seeks to understand the processes of those organizations who are taking trust and responsibility seriously from the start, and find out what they do and how they do it. Sutcliffe explores the practicalities of how a company can provide evidence of trustworthiness with Julie...

In this discussion with Senior Fellow Arthur Holland Michel, Wired senior writer Will Knight reflects on a busy decade of reporting on artificial intelligence. Taking a step back from the hype (and a deep breath), Knight and Holland Michel discuss whether a true AI revolution is actually upon us, consider how the technology is and is not governable, and talk about the experience of coming face to face with a military robot. For more on this talk, please go to carnegiecouncil.org.  For more...

Does a "national interest" articulated largely from a Washington, DC perspective connect with the "doorstep" interests and concerns of citizens across a large and diverse country? As we come to the end of several important cycles in world affairs—the close of the post-Cold War era and the beginning of the Fourth Industrial Revolution—how might a new generation of Americans redefine the goals and purpose of U.S. global engagement? This special Doorstep episode was recorded live at The Ohio...

At Carnegie Council, we believe that cooperation is an essential virtue in the pursuit of an ethical life. And yet, it seems that cooperation is often absent from public life today. If we don’t take steps to enhance cooperation—both in our personal lives and collectively as a society—there is little hope of addressing shared global challenges such as climate change, AI, political violence, and more. In this keynote event for Global Ethics Day 2023, Carnegie Council President Joel Rosenthal...

In this episode, host Hilary Sutcliffe explores . . . technological progress from another angle. Does technology increase prosperity, make our lives better and create lots of new jobs? Or in reality does it promote greater inequality, more badly paid jobs and exploited workers, with the prosperity going to the few and not the many? Sutcliffe explores with Professor Simon Johnson the lessons of over a thousand years of technological progress and they discuss the practicalities of what he...

In this Ethical Article, Visiting Fellow Zhanna Malekos Smith discusses China's effort in space and lunar exploration. As Xi Jinping tries to soften China's "wolf warrior" style of diplomacy, how is this reflected in its space policy? To read this article, please go to carnegiecouncil.org. 

For ethics to be truly global, voices from all around the world need to be part of the international affairs discourse. And as these discussions still often begin in Western publishing houses and take shape in Global North classrooms, the academic world must make sure Global South perspectives are welcomed.  Ahead of Global Ethics Day 2023, scholars from the Global South and North will come together to discuss the barriers to knowledge production in the academic world and how to bring new...

Does a "national interest" articulated largely from a Washington, DC perspective connect with the "doorstep" interests and concerns of citizens across a large and diverse country? As we come to the end of several important cycles in world affairs—the close of the post-Cold War era and the beginning of the Fourth Industrial Revolution—Doorstep co-hosts Nick Gvosdev and Tatiana Serafin look at a new generation of Americans, who are working to redefine the goals and purpose of U.S. global...

Young people need to learn more about solar radiation modification, and provide their inputs to governments, think tanks, and policymakers, says Brazilian climate activist Clara Botto, in this C2GTalk. “We need to have global conversations to address something that might have global impacts,” she adds. That is why she and her colleagues have launched SRM Youth Watch, a global platform aimed at informing and bringing new communities into the debate. Clara Botto has been engaged with...

Cities around the world are facing numerous climate-related challenges such as rising sea levels, flooding, and extreme heat. These challenges place significant strain on local economies and disproportionately impact the most vulnerable residents. The severity of the situation is further compounded by population growth within cities, with the UN projecting that nearly 70 percent of all people will reside in urban areas by 2050. In order to support safe and sustainable urban environments,...

In this Ethical Article, Visiting Fellow Arta Moeini analyzes the ongoing "Great Transition" in international affairs. With the U.S.-led "rules-based" world order seemingly at its endpoint, how can Western nations adapt? To read this article, please go to carnegiecouncil.org. 

What does "foreign policy for the middle class" look like on the ground three years into President Biden's policy to integrate global and local concerns? Foreign Policy for America Foundation's Kristina Biyad joins Doorstep co-hosts Tatiana Serafin and Nikolas Gvosdev to discuss her new report "Intermestic Policy Initiative: Local Perspectives on U.S. Foreign Policy." Biyad spent two years traveling, visiting five cities across the U.S. to speak with a diverse array of community leaders...

As world leaders gather in New Delhi for the G20 summit, Prime Minister Narendra Modi takes India center stage. Jawaharlal Nehru University's Dr. Happymon Jacob joins Doorstep co-hosts Tatiana Serafin and Nikolas Gvosdev to assess what to expect from India's leadership on a vast array of global challenges from climate to green energy initiatives to the Ukraine-Russia war. With China's Xi Jinping and Russia's Vladimir Putin missing from the table, will India take the lead in representing the...

In this thought-provoking episode of the Artificial Intelligence & Equality podcast, Carl Miller tackles the pressing question: Can we code power responsibly? And moreover, how do we define "power" in this context? Diving headfirst into the complex intersection of artificial intelligence and power dynamics, Miller, author of The Death of the Gods, warns against ascribing human-like understanding to AI systems and applications. He posits that power enables us to discern how lives are...

It is essential for young people in the Global South to become more involved in international climate discussions, including around solar radiation modification, says Ghanaian climate activist Nii Noi Omaboe. His decision to screen a documentary about SRM at Accra sustainability week prompted many questions, both about the risks and insufficient governance, but also about opportunities for research. Omaboe is experienced in youth governance, human rights, and global sustainable development...

In this Ethical Article, Visiting Fellow Zhanna L. Malekos Smith discusses U.S.-UK space and cyber policy and the ethics and sustainability concerns around "counterspace" weapons. What’s at stake if there’s a war in space? To read the article, please go to carnegiecouncil.org. 

Nuclear weapons today remain a very real existential threat to the future of humanity. Recent developments such as Putin’s posturing regarding use in Ukraine, combined with the stalling of international efforts to reduce nuclear stockpiles, force us to reconsider the ethics of nuclear weapons at this critical moment for global security. On August 9 —78 years to the day after the U.S. dropped an atomic bomb on Nagasaki—Carnegie Council convened a virtual panel to reflect on and explore...

Consultation and engagement with civil society in the Global South is essential for inclusive governance of solar radiation modification (SRM), says Dr. Shuchi Talati, the founder of the Alliance for Just Deliberation on Solar Geoengineering in this  C2GTalk. This will not be easy, and requires building trust and knowledge over time, but as international attention to SRM increases, it will be increasingly important to empower vulnerable communities. Talati is an emerging climate technology...

In the governance of AI a few small initiatives have had a large impact. One of these is the Center for AI and Digital Policy (CAIDP), led by Marc Rotenberg and Merve Hickok, our guests in this Artificial Intelligence & Equality podcast. Among CAIDP activities is the yearly publication of an Artificial Intelligence and Democratic Index, in which more 75 countries (as of 2022) are rated on an array of metrics from endorsement of the OECD/G20 AI Principles to the creation of independent...

Skies turned saffron-colored and smoke blanketed parts of the Midwest and Northeast this summer as Americans experienced the impact of fires raging in Canada. The 2023 Canadian fire season has been record-breaking with nearly 3,500 new fires—significantly above the ten-year average—with about 600 active fires and over half "out of control. In this virtual event, John Vaillant, author of Fire Weather: A True Story From A Hotter World, joins Doorstep co-host Tatiana Serafin to discuss how we...

Small islands face devastating impacts from climate change, not just from rising seas, but from threats to their economic underpinnings such as fishing and tourism. In this C2GTalk, Ronny Jumeau explores the challenges of adaptation, and outlines the expertise climate nations can bring to tackling the climate crisis, especially through nature-based solutions in the ocean. He says islands must be at the table when considering new climate-altering approaches, but is wary of efforts that might...