Empowering and civil society and equality-defenders to monitor, prevent and seek to halt AI-generated discrimination

This workstream seeks to facilitate network-building, while equipping and empowering social equality stakeholders with EbD thinking so they can better understand its proper role (and limits) in addressing unfair digital discrimination. These stakeholders include public equality defenders (so-called “ Equality Bodies ” under the European Union Non-discrimination Directives), civil society organisations, digital rights advocates and policymakers engaged in digital transformation programmes: all of whom share an interest in identifying effective legal, organisational and technical strategies to ‘equality-proof’ the design and implementation of AI systems, particularly those people encounter in everyday life. 

To this end, we will develop and publish ‘explainers’ for social equality stakeholders aimed at enhancing their knowledge, awareness and understanding of EbD approaches, including practical guidance aimed at ‘demystifying’ technical standards. These resources will help equip social stakeholders operating globally, regionally and nationally with a suite of tools and techniques to enhance their capacity to monitor and investigate the fundamental rights impacts of data-enabled services, focusing on their discriminatory impacts, and support policy reform to address current legal deficiencies. This workstream will include outreach, training and network building activities, including and the provision of on-line training sessions. 

Within the UK, Karen Yeung will seek to help equip the Equality and Human Rights commission with the knowledge and understanding needed to adopt EbD approaches in monitoring the compliance of automated systems with anti-discrimination and human rights law through her secondment to the EHRC (around 1 day per month). This will include providing the EHRC with expert advice and support for its AI and equality programme, including application of the public sector equality duty to automated systems deployed by public authorities.