Co-led by Miranda Kajtazi, Associate professor in informatics, and Lena Halldenius, Professor in human rights studies, the theme will run from September 2024 to June 2025 and will address the pressing issues of digital inequalities and safeguarding human rights in our increasingly AI-driven world.
Distinguished team members include Moa Petersén, Mia Liinason, Osama Mansour, Petra Gyöngyi, Susanne Frennert, Karen Søilen and Sue Anne Teo, coming together from different parts of Lund University. The theme also welcomes three distinguished Pufendorf fellows: Becky Faith from the Institute of Development Studies, Cathy Urquhart from the Manchester Metropolitan University Business School and Victoria Adelmant from the New York School of Law.
During the first day of team meetings on September 12th, the discussion focused on the critical implications of digitalisation from a justice perspective. The group emphasised the need not only to critique but also to propose solutions for addressing digital inequalities. Technological determinism, the idea that technology develops autonomously while society must adapt, was heavily challenged, instead lifting the idea that digitalisation must always be contextualised.
As the DigiJustice theme unfolds over the coming months, it promises to serve as a collaborative platform for innovative interdisciplinary research that addresses the the complex interplay between technology, justice, and human rights in an era of rapid AI advancements.
Each member was asked a question about their interpretation of the theme-adopted phrase "DigiJustice".
What does DigiJustice mean to you?
Miranda Kajtazi
“DigiJustice theme is founded by an interdisciplinary team with innovative thinkers, who will not only explore digital justice from multiple perspectives, but also contribute with a broader understanding that the consequences of digitalisation are far more extensive than we often realize.“
Lenna Halldenius
“DigiJustice is an opportunity to work together to uncover the complexities and perplexities of what it is to live in the digital world and to rethink familiar frameworks of justice and human rights with emerging tech-dependent vulnerabilities in mind.“
Moa Petersén
“DigiJustice is a chance to use several complementary scientific perspectives to show the social complexity in implementation of digital technology.“
Mia Liinason
“To me, DigiJustice is a space for cross-disciplinary encounters that can push our thinking about the interrelated dynamics of justice and digitalisation further. It gives luxury time for focus, for being challenged and inspired, and possibilities for developing cutting-edge insights on the intersection between justice and digitalisation.“
Osama Mansour
“Digital justice for me means that one has to think critically about the role of technology in our lives. That is, technology should not be understood in deterministic ways implying that it is always improving people’s lives.“
Petra Gyöngyi
“To me, DigiJustice is an opportunity to critically think together about the future of judicial systems. What will judicial decision-making look like in the digital age? Do we need to re-think our fundamental legal values? And, how can we address through legal means currently less visible or quantifiable digital harms in our societies?“
Susanne Frennert
“DigiJustice, from an engineering perspective, is about questioning how digitalisation and AI impact society and safeguarding that they enhance, rather than undermine, our core human values—whether emotional, social, physical or financial. As engineers, we must recognise that humans are both creators and users of technology, and this interaction mediates not only our abilities but also our moral and ethical frameworks. For me, DigiJustice advocates for the careful and deliberate development of digital technologies and AI that support human dignity and well-being. I hope that through our collaborative work as researchers from diverse fields, we can influence future digital innovations to be thoughtful, inclusive and aligned with core human values, in order to avoid reckless disruption or harm to individuals and society as a whole.“
Karen Søilen
“DigiJustice is an opportunity to work across disciplines to forge new conceptual vocabularies that can address the human vulnerabilities of the digital age.“
Sue Anne Teo
“To me, DigiJustice is an opportunity for us to critically think about how justice should look like in the digital age. Are there new or exacerbated inequalities? Are there new vulnerabilities? Are existing frameworks (e.g. human rights) up to the task? Do we need a new framework to think about a more inclusive vision of justice for the digital age? - these are some of the questions i hope to address.“
