Harnessing FCAI research for sustainability – new Highlight program maps connections
The new program looks for ways that AI research can help us build a more sustainable future, and helps research projects communicate about their contribution.
Ruotsalainen’s own research concentrates on AI methods using spatiotemporal data that enable safe automatic transport for sustainable smart cities. The red lines depict radio signals from navigation satellites. Image: Caroline Sassali / c.e.s design
How can AI research be harnessed for the aid of sustainable development? Where can we find new initiatives, what about novel applications for existing innovations?
These questions are what Laura Ruotsalainen, the newest member of the FCAI steering group, is now delving into.
Ruotsalainen believes that links between AI and sustainability will not be difficult to find.
“What sustainability studies need from AI research is, actually, precisely what FCAI researchers already do: We need AI that is understandable and that takes user needs into account”, she explains.
“What we need next is for FCAI researchers to recognize that these things are also important for sustainability studies.”
Ruotsalainen believes it is central to develop a new perspective to existing research.
“When a new method is taken into use in a particular field, it often easily stays there”, she says.
“I suspect that, at FCAI, it is important to recognize how the research that is already being conducted would be of great use for sustainable development.”
The new Highlight F is called AI for Sustainability. Work has begun with discussions among professors, and promising links between research fields have already been found. Ruotsalainen mentions material studies as one field producing promising results for sustainability; another one is the development of AI methods that predict air quality. Also Ruotsalainen’s own work, which is concerned with urban traffic and city planning, is clearly interconnected with sustainability studies. In addition to finding connections and putting forward new initiatives, the Highlight program will also help relevant research projects find collaborators and communicate about their research to decision-makers.
Laura Ruotsalainen is associate professor at the University of Helsinki and Helsus (Helsinki Institute of Sustainability Studies).