NGO Interview Partners Needed for AI & Social Justice Participation Study

Why is the PAIRS - Participatory AI Research & Practice Symposium taking place in parallel with the India AI Impact Summit 2026 for the second year in a row? Because there seems to be broad agreement on one core issue: when decisions potentially affect human lives, the public must be meaningfully involved. The more difficult question is: what does that actually look like in practice? At PAIRS, Steven Vethman and I presented our ongoing research project, where we explore what meaningful participation could mean from the perspective of civil society organizations working at the intersection of AI and social justice. Our intermediate findings suggest a clear direction: CSOs prefer long-term collaboration over short-term consultation. And they repeatedly emphasize humility as a crucial component throughout the entire process as a foundational attitude. Of course we are not alone in raising this question. The symposium was filled with amazing presentations, upcoming projects, and great reflections on ongoing challenges. Two personal highlights: - Jeremy Boy and Iffat Anjum presenting findings from an extensive qualitative study showing how citizens’ perceptions of what AI actually is can differ significantly from expert understandings. And why bringing these perspectives together is essential. - Muthuri Kathure on a comparative case study highlighting the importance of democratic deliberation across regional contexts. A big thank you to Anna Colom, PhD Colom for the excellent panel moderation, and to Pierre NORO and Renee Sieber for organizing such a timely and necessary event. By the way: Are you working in an NGO focusing on AI and social justice and would like your voice to be part of this conversation? We are currently looking for interview partners. We appreciate if you might fill out our form (https://lnkd.in/edyXKm6s) to be contacted as a participant or simply to receive updates about the project. Of course, you can also just write me a quick message on LinkedIn or E-Mail. Let's take the discussion on participation out of being a side topic and center those voices who need to be heard!