As a field of inquiry, space ethics is relatively new, and space ethicists’ influence on decision making has been limited. Space ethics prompts us to ask whether certain motives are defensible, what risks and trade-offs they entail, and which activities should be permitted, among other questions. Daniel Munro says that as private commercial activities become increasingly involved and space exploration ramps up, we need to make sure space ethics are keeping pace.
In this new CIGI paper, Alex He examines China’s practices related to standard setting in areas such as 5G and the Internet of Things, artificial intelligence and smart cities, data centres and cloud computing, submarine and territorial cables, and ultra-high voltage electricity transmission in Belt and Road Initiative countries, and assesses how the policies of the Chinese government and the practices of the country’s Digital Silk Road enterprises impact global standard setting.
Apr. 6 and Apr. 7, 1:00 p.m. EDT (UTC–04.00) both days: There’s still time to register for Toward a World-Class Health Data System. Jointly hosted by University of Waterloo and CIGI, this virtual conference features two dozen leading experts throughout Canada and globally who will explore the intersection between health data, digital health and governance for the betterment of our society and improved public health outcomes. Registration for the two half-day sessions is free to all. Learn more here.
On March 1, President Joe Biden declared that “we must hold social media platforms accountable for the national experiment they’re conducting on our children for profit.” In this op-ed first published by Techonomy, Susie Alegre argues that because the United States is home to so many of the tech giants using the surveillance advertising business model, the White House’s newfound interest in regulation could be transformative.
It is becoming increasingly clear that its invasion of Ukraine represents a colossal miscalculation by the Kremlin. Democratic nations have responded with far more severe financial measures than thought likely, with Group of Seven governments freezing the large foreign currency reserves amassed by Russian leaders. As James A. Haley explains, this and other actions have cut Russian banks off from global financial markets, and forced Russia into financial autarky.
On March 30, Minister of Canadian Heritage Pablo Rodriguez and Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada David Lametti announced a new expert advisory group on online safety as the next step in developing legislation to address harmful online content. The group is composed of 12 experts and specialists from across Canada who will contribute their diverse knowledge and experience and includes Taylor Owen and Heidi Tworek. You can read more here.
Susie Alegre has just published Freedom to Think: The Long Struggle to Liberate Our Minds, reviewed here by The Guardian.
Six days into the Russian invasion, a Ukrainian cabinet minister, Mykhailo Fedorov, sent out an extraordinary appeal via Twitter to the world’s commercial satellite companies. The private sector has rallied to the Ukrainian cause with observation satellites that can penetrate cloud cover. As Wesley Wark writes in this op-ed first published in the Ottawa Citizen, the world’s first satellite spy war, featuring a starring role for private sector companies, is yet another step into the unknown caused by Putin’s war.
Canada’s parliamentary Standing Committee on Industry and Technology recently published its across-party-lines recommendation to stop the proposed mega-merger of two of the country’s largest telecoms providers. Keldon Bester writes that this bold, clear recommendation is refreshing because of the recent history of merger remedies in Canada’s wireless market. Further, it should hearten the Competition Bureau to act decisively to defend Canadians and the future of the domestic telecoms market.
Until recently, the idea of science extending the human lifespan to 150 years or beyond was the stuff of science fiction. The rapid pace of technology is making that a possibility, according to some scientists, but Matthew D. LaPlante isn’t sure society is ready for a world dominated by centenarians. LaPlante, co-author of Lifespan: Why We Age — And Why We Don’t Have To with David A. Sinclair, was Taylor Owen’s guest last week on the Big Tech podcast.
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