In this presentation, Prof Prainsack will introduce the concept of data solidarity as both a normative principle and a practical framework for governing digital technologies, particularly artificial intelligence (AI). AI systems depend heavily on data. However, how this data is collected, shared, and governed significantly impacts whether these systems uphold or undermine democratic values. She will argue that integrating solidarity into data practices — by promoting inclusivity, transparency, and shared responsibility — is crucial for addressing power imbalances and ensuring that AI contributes to social justice, democratic participation, and the common good.
Register here.
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Barbara Prainsack is a Professor at the Department of Political Science at the University of Vienna, where she also directs the Centre for the Study of Contemporary Solidarity (CeSCoS), and leads a Work Programme on Data Solidarity. Her work explores the social, regulatory and ethical dimensions of biomedicine and bioscience, as well as practices and institutions of solidarity in healthcare and beyond. Her latest books are: The Pandemic Within: Policy Making for a Better World (with H. Wagenaar, Policy Press, 2021); and Personalised Medicine: Empowered Patients in the 21st Century? (New York University Press, 2017). A new monograph on States of Solidarity: How to save a world in peril is under contract with Oxford University Press. Barbara is also a member of the Austrian National Bioethics Committee advising the federal government in Vienna, and Chair of the European Group on Ethics in Science and New Technologies advising the European Commission. She holds an Honorary Professorship at the School of Social and Political Sciences at the University of Sydney and is an affiliate at the Centre for Health, Law, and Emerging Technologies (HeLEX) at the University of Oxford. She is also a member of the British Royal Society of Arts, an elected foreign member of the Danish Royal Academy of Sciences and Letters, an elected member of the Academia Europaea (AE), an elected member of the German National Academy of Science and Engineering (acatech), and an Elected Corresponding Member of the Austrian Academy of Sciences.
Fotocredit: Johanna Schwaiger
Our "the Bigger Picture" webinar series aims to provide new insights and ideas beyond specific sector. The webinars last for one hour, with a keynote followed by moderated Q&A. This is live stream only, with no recording.