BEGIN:VCALENDAR
VERSION:2.0
PRODID:-//Edinburgh Futures Institute - ECPv6.17.4.1//NONSGML v1.0//EN
CALSCALE:GREGORIAN
METHOD:PUBLISH
X-ORIGINAL-URL:https://efi.ed.ac.uk
X-WR-CALDESC:Events for Edinburgh Futures Institute
REFRESH-INTERVAL;VALUE=DURATION:PT1H
X-Robots-Tag:noindex
X-PUBLISHED-TTL:PT1H
BEGIN:VTIMEZONE
TZID:Europe/London
BEGIN:DAYLIGHT
TZOFFSETFROM:+0000
TZOFFSETTO:+0100
TZNAME:BST
DTSTART:20250330T010000
END:DAYLIGHT
BEGIN:STANDARD
TZOFFSETFROM:+0100
TZOFFSETTO:+0000
TZNAME:GMT
DTSTART:20251026T010000
END:STANDARD
BEGIN:DAYLIGHT
TZOFFSETFROM:+0000
TZOFFSETTO:+0100
TZNAME:BST
DTSTART:20260329T010000
END:DAYLIGHT
BEGIN:STANDARD
TZOFFSETFROM:+0100
TZOFFSETTO:+0000
TZNAME:GMT
DTSTART:20261025T010000
END:STANDARD
BEGIN:DAYLIGHT
TZOFFSETFROM:+0000
TZOFFSETTO:+0100
TZNAME:BST
DTSTART:20270328T010000
END:DAYLIGHT
BEGIN:STANDARD
TZOFFSETFROM:+0100
TZOFFSETTO:+0000
TZNAME:GMT
DTSTART:20271031T010000
END:STANDARD
END:VTIMEZONE
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Europe/London:20260917T180000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/London:20260917T193000
DTSTAMP:20260917T184504Z
CREATED:20260625T115514Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260917T184504Z
UID:10000371-1789668000-1789673400@efi.ed.ac.uk
SUMMARY:Universities and the Future of Truth: AI\, Free Speech\, and Power
DESCRIPTION:At a time when artificial intelligence is reshaping how information is produced\, distributed\, and consumed\, questions of truth\, trust\, and authority have become increasingly urgent. What happens when AI systems mediate public debate\, generate knowledge\, and influence what we see\, believe\, and share? How should universities respond to a world of contested expertise\, information abundance\, and growing distrust in institutions? Bringing together perspectives on technology\, democracy\, public discourse\, and digital rights\, this discussion will explore the role of universities in defending open inquiry\, fostering critical thinking\, and sustaining the conditions for informed public life.  \n\n\n\nSpeaker Biographies\n\n\n\n\n\nRumman Chowdhury\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nRumman Chowdhury\, PhD\, is a globally recognized expert in responsible AI\, governance\, and algorithmic accountability. She is the CEO and founder of Humane Intelligence public benefit corporation\, and the co-founder of Humane Intelligence\, a nonprofit advancing community-driven AI auditing and evaluation. Appointed as the U.S. Science Envoy for Artificial Intelligence\, she engages in global AI governance efforts with a focus on emerging markets. Previously\, she led AI ethics teams at Twitter and Accenture\, pioneering enterprise-level AI risk mitigation tools. Rumman is also a Responsible AI Fellow at Harvard’s Berkman Klein Center and a trusted advisor to international organisations on AI policy and ethics.  \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nJillian C. York\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nJillian C. York is a writer and activist whose work examines the impact of technology on our societal and cultural values. Based in London\, she is the Director for International Freedom of Expression at the Electronic Frontier Foundation\, a fellow at the Center for Internet & Human Rights at the European University Viadrina\, a visiting professor at the College of Europe Natolin\, and the author of Silicon Values: The Future of Free Speech Under Surveillance Capitalism (Verso 2021).  \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nJeffrey W. Howard\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nJeffrey W. Howard is professor of political philosophy and public policy at University College London\, where he is director of the Digital Speech Lab. He is co-editor of the journal Political Philosophy.  \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nChair: Emily Sullivan\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nDr. Emily Sullivan is Senior Lecturer at the University of Edinburgh’s Department of Philosophy. She is the Co-Director of the Centre for Technomoral Futures in the Edinburgh Futures Institute and an Associate Editor for The British Journal of Philosophy of Science. In 2025 she was awarded the Herbert A. Simon Award from the International Association of Computing and Philosophy (IACAP) for outstanding research in computing and philosophy. She is currently the PI on an ERC Starting Grant (2025-2030) that conceptualizes and evaluates machine learning models across science and society as a type of toy model. In this project\, she bridges epistemic and ethical issues in simple computational models with complex modern day machine learning models.
URL:https://efi.ed.ac.uk/event/universities-and-the-future-of-truth-ai-free-speech-and-power/
LOCATION:Edinburgh Futures Institute\, Level 0 Event Space\, 1 Lauriston Place\, Edinburgh\, EH3 9EF\, United Kingdom
CATEGORIES:Future University,Talk/Discussion
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://efi.ed.ac.uk/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/17-Sept-Universities-and-the-Future-of-Truth_-AI-Free-Speech-and-Power.jpg
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Europe/London:20260917T140000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/London:20260917T153000
DTSTAMP:20260917T143434Z
CREATED:20260625T115413Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260917T143434Z
UID:10000370-1789653600-1789659000@efi.ed.ac.uk
SUMMARY:Teaching\, Learning\, and the AI University
DESCRIPTION:Artificial intelligence is accelerating change across higher education\, challenging established assumptions about teaching\, assessment\, expertise\, and the value of a university education. As new models of learning emerge\, what should the university of the future look like? Who will shape it\, who will benefit from it\, and what role should universities play in preparing people for a rapidly changing world? This panel will explore how institutions can respond to technological transformation while preserving their educational mission and public purpose.  \n\n\n\nSpeaker Biographies\n\n\n\n\n\nRose Luckin\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nRose Luckin is Professor Emerita at University College London and Founder and CEO of Educate Ventures Research (EVR). An internationally recognised expert on artificial intelligence and education\, she has more than 30 years of experience researching how technology can support teaching and learning. Rose advises governments\, policymakers\, and industry on the ethical and effective use of AI in education and is a leading voice on the future of learning in an age of rapid technological change. She is co-founder of the Institute for Ethical AI in Education and the author of several influential books\, including Machine Learning and Human Intelligence: The Future of Education for the 21st Century and AI for Schoolteachers.  \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nJanja Komljenovic\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nJanja Komljenovic is a Senior Lecturer in Education Futures at the University of Edinburgh. Her research focuses on the political economy of higher education and the digitalisation\, datafication\, and platformisation of universities. Her approach intersects economic sociology\, science and technology studies\, and higher education research. She has published internationally on higher education policy\, higher education markets\, and educational technology. Janja acts as a consultant on various international higher education policy projects\, serves as an evaluator for national quality assurance agencies\, and is a member of committees within international organisations.  \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nAndrew Maynard\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nAndrew Maynard is a scientist\, professor\, and author at Arizona State University\, where he directs the Future of Being Human initiative. His work explores the nature of advanced technology transitions from a transdisciplinary perspective\, and spans conceptual understanding of the shifting dynamic between technology\, society and the future\, to what it means to flourish in a technologically-transformed world. While his work addresses many facets of emerging technologies\, he is increasingly focused on both the challenges and opportunities emerging around frontier AI modes; especially where they challenge established ideas around learning\, education\, meaning-making and human identity. Andrew has worked with organizations from the OECD and the Canadian Institute for Advanced Research\, to the World Economic Forum; has given testimony to congressional committees on tech innovation; is the author of the books Films from the Future and Future Rising\, and co-author with Jeffrey Abbott of AI and the Art of Being Human. He is a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science. \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nNoah Sobe\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nNoah W. Sobe\, PhD\, is Chief of Section for Higher Education at UNESCO headquarters in Paris.  Prior to this appointment he had a two-decade career as a professor at Loyola University Chicago.  He was previously at UNESCO (2019-2022) helping to lead a flagship futures of education initiative.  Additionally\, he is a past president of the Comparative and International Education Society (CIES) and former co-editor of the journal European Education. \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nChair: Sian Bayne\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nSian Bayne is Professor of Digital Education at the University of Edinburgh. She directs the Centre for Research in Digital Education where her research is currently focused on higher education futures and on interdisciplinary and critical approaches to researching digital education.  
URL:https://efi.ed.ac.uk/event/teaching-learning-and-the-ai-university/
LOCATION:Edinburgh Futures Institute\, Level 0 Event Space\, 1 Lauriston Place\, Edinburgh\, EH3 9EF\, United Kingdom
CATEGORIES:Future University,Talk/Discussion
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://efi.ed.ac.uk/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/17-Sept-Teaching-Learning-and-the-AI-University.jpg
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Europe/London:20260917T100000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/London:20260917T113000
DTSTAMP:20260917T105746Z
CREATED:20260625T115259Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260917T105746Z
UID:10000369-1789639200-1789644600@efi.ed.ac.uk
SUMMARY:The Future of Research in an Age of AI
DESCRIPTION:Artificial intelligence is transforming how knowledge is produced\, analysed\, and shared across every discipline. From scientific discovery and creative practice to the humanities and social sciences\, new tools are reshaping the research process and raising fundamental questions about expertise\, evidence\, and the future of scholarship. How might AI change what researchers do\, how research is conducted\, and what universities contribute to society? This panel will explore the opportunities\, challenges\, and responsibilities facing research institutions as they navigate a new era of knowledge creation. \n\n\n\nSpeaker Biographies\n\n\n\n\n\nDevi Sridhar\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nDevi Sridhar is a writer\, broadcaster and world-leading expert in public health and wellbeing. She is Professor and Chair of Global Public Health at the University of Edinburgh and has advised the WHO\, UNICEF\, UNESCO and the Scottish\, UK and German governments. Devi appears regularly on ITV and Channel 4 News\, has a bi-weekly column in the Guardian\, and a certified Level 3 Personal Trainer. Her first popular book\, Preventable\, was a BBC Radio 4 Book of the Week and a Sunday Times bestseller. Her latest book How Not to Die (Too Soon)’ was a Financial Times Book of the Year in 2025.   \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nChristopher Smith\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nProfessor Christopher Smith is the Executive Chair of the Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC)\, UKRI International Champion and Creative Industries Responsible owner UK Research and Innovation (UKRI).  He has been involved across his career in culture\, heritage and the arts in Scotland\, Italy and globally.  He has been Professor of Ancient History at the University of St Andrews since 2002\, and was also Vice-Principal (2007-2009)\, before being seconded as Director of the British School at Rome\, the UK’s leading humanities and creative arts research institute overseas\, from 2009 to 2017.  In 2025 he was appointed as the Chair of the Board of the National Library of Scotland (NLS). He is the author or editor of over 20 books from textual editions to museum studies.  He is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts and a Member of the Academia Europaea.  \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nMichael Rovatsos\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nMichael Rovatsos is Dean of Research and Innovation at the College of Science and Engineering and Professor of Artificial Intelligence at the School of Informatics. He has previously held key leadership roles at the University as Director of The Bayes Centre\, Deputy Vice Principal for AI\, and institutional lead on AI adoption. He currently serves on the Scottish Government’s Tech Council\, the Board of The Data Lab and acts as academic University liaison at the Alan Turing Institute. He has over 25 years of experience in AI research\, where he develops to support collaboration between human and/or artificial agents. He has published over 100 scientific articles on various topics in AI\, and has been involved in research and innovation projects that have received over £20 million of external funding. \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nChair: Marion Thain\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nMarion Thain comes to Edinburgh Futures Institute from her role as Professor of Culture and Technology at King’s College London\, where she was Executive Dean of the Faculty of Arts and Humanities for 6 years. While at King’s she founded and led the Digital Futures Institute\, which grew out of her Centre for Attention Studies. She began her career as a Junior Research Fellow at Cambridge University\, and worked in English departments at Russell Group universities before moving to New York University as a professor of Arts and Literature (in English and the school of the interdisciplinary global liberal arts) and Director of Digital Humanities. She returned to the UK in 2018. Marion is interested particularly in the relationship between culture and technology (considering ‘technology’ in the broadest sense)\, and in formations of disciplinarity and interdisciplinarity. Details can be found at https://www.marionthain.org 
URL:https://efi.ed.ac.uk/event/the-future-of-research-in-an-age-of-ai/
LOCATION:Edinburgh Futures Institute\, Level 0 Event Space\, 1 Lauriston Place\, Edinburgh\, EH3 9EF\, United Kingdom
CATEGORIES:Future University,Talk/Discussion
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://efi.ed.ac.uk/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/17-Sept-The-Future-of-Research-in-an-Age-of-AI.jpg
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Europe/London:20260602T180000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/London:20260602T191500
DTSTAMP:20260625T095655Z
CREATED:20260409T134034Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260625T095655Z
UID:10000353-1780423200-1780427700@efi.ed.ac.uk
SUMMARY:Beth Simone Noveck: Civic University – Democracy\, AI\, and the Public Imagination
DESCRIPTION:Join Beth Simone Noveck in conversation with Oliver Escobar for a timely exploration of the civic role of the university in an age of democratic uncertainty and rapid technological change. This event will examine how universities can act as democratic institutions – harnessing AI not just as a tool for innovation\, but to strengthen participation\, trust\, and public problem-solving. At a moment when democracy feels increasingly fragile\, what responsibilities do universities hold as civic actors embedded in society? And how can they help design and deploy technologies that serve the public good rather than concentrate power? This conversation invites us to reimagine the university not only as a site of knowledge\, but as a vital partner in renewing democratic life. \n\n\n\nPart of the Future University programme\, this event looks beyond immediate sector challenges to ask what kind of institutions we need for the future – and how universities can rise to meet that moment. \n\n\n\nImage credit: Elise Racine & The Bigger Picture / https://betterimagesofai.org / https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ \n\n\n\nSpeaker Biographies\n\n\n\n\n\nBeth Simone Noveck\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nBeth Simone Noveck is a professor and director of the Burnes Center for Social Change at Northeastern University. She leads The Governance Lab and its InnovateUS initiative. Former U.S. deputy chief technology officer and the first state chief AI strategist\, she founded AI for Impact\, which builds democratic AI with communities. She is the author of Solving Public Problems: A Practical Guide to Fix Our Government and Change Our World and writes on AI and democracy at rebootdemocracy.ai. \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nChair: Oliver Escobar\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nProfessor Oliver Escobar is the Chair of Public Policy and Democratic Innovation at the University of Edinburgh. He works on participatory and deliberative democracy\, with a focus on public participation\, policy work\, the commons\, political inequalities\, and the governance of the future. Oliver combines research and practice to develop social and democratic innovations across various policy and community contexts. He was Academic Lead on Democratic Innovation at Edinburgh Futures Institute (2019-2023)\, and Co-director of CRITIQUE  (2021-2023). Read more about Oliver: https://www.sps.ed.ac.uk/staff/oliver-escobar \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n \n\n\nRegister now
URL:https://efi.ed.ac.uk/event/beth-simone-noveck-civic-university-democracy-ai-and-the-public-imagination/
LOCATION:Edinburgh Futures Institute\, Level 0 Event Space\, 1 Lauriston Place\, Edinburgh\, EH3 9EF\, United Kingdom
CATEGORIES:Future University
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://efi.ed.ac.uk/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/2-June-Beth-Noveck.jpg
END:VEVENT
END:VCALENDAR