By CBCGDF, Submitted to UNESCO, Summer, 2020

Suggestion I:

 “Biodiversity Conservation: To help revert the present pace of biodiversity loss” should be added to Part II AIMS AND OBJECTIVES of the Recommendation.

Rational:

China Biodiversity Conservation and Green Development Foundation (CBCGDF) understands  that the ethics of Artificial Intelligence (AI) needs to take into account the holistic nature of  ethics formed as  human are confronted three crises: of Biodiversity Loss, Climate Change and the global Public Health Emergency- COVID19.  Hence “Biodiversity Conservation: To help revert the current pace of biodiversity loss” should be added to Part II AIMS AND OBJECTIVES of the Recommendation.

Unprecedented Biodiversity Loss has become one of the three key challenging crises facing all humanity today. The Recommendation under consultation is exactly in accordance with what UNESCO believes to be an urgent need that a normative instrument on the ethics of artificial intelligence is needed to address the ethical, social and political problems during the current global health crisis. Biodiversity has become inextricably linked to ethical, social, economic and political issues. This means that the ongoing changes shared by human thinking and behavior, i.e. the  ethics for biodiversity, must be brought into the scope of AI research in time to ensure the comprehensiveness and appropriateness of  the its general direction of development.

It is essential that Biodiversity needs to be elevated to a central position in the Recommendation. New thinking and new behavior in response to the dramatic loss of biodiversity, climate change and public health emergency are evolving into a new and more comprehensive  set of moral standards shared by all the stakeholder in the global human society. This implies that the Recommendation, if adopted as the cornerstone for future AI development, must take into account these  emerging standards , to ensure that ethical, social, economic and political issues can be adequately addressed both in times of peace and confrontation as well as in extraordinary situations like the current global health crisis.

What are the new ethics? Biodiversity conservation and green development are the new ethics. Generally speaking, ethical changes in response to the present three crises go faster than corresponding and more orthodox changes in the national and regional legislations. As a typical example of ethical change.  In the COVID-19 era, wearing a mask in public has been considered a matter of public morality, though  previously it was often considered impolite . Focusing on biodiversity is a new set of standards  in addressing biodiversity, climate change and public health crises. In the age of the industrial civilization, human health generally seen  as the sole factor assessing the use of pesticides. But this single-side myopia has led to cases in India and the United States  where  hawks and tigers have become sick or put in life threatening danger  by the poison from pesticides accumulated in the food chain on which they depend. Should issues such as these be considered in setting new guidelines for the development and use of pesticides? Biodiversity is the foundation of life on Earth. Human health ultimately depends on the provision of ecosystem products and services which are needed for human survival. The loss of biodiversity impinges on ecosystem functions, and one of its most immediate consequences is increased environmental vulnerability to health risks.

Suggestion II: 

The phrase “to ensure the maintenance and conservation of biodiversity” should be added to Article 18 on the protection of the environment and that a reference to biodiversity should be added to Article 29 on sustainability in the first set of principles. Also, in Policy Action 4, biodiversity protection should be added to Article 65.

Rational:

Indeed, many articles have already mentioned the protection of the environment. Still, it remains at the surface of the discussion on sustainable development and carbon emissions, without a deep appreciation of the importance of biodiversity conservation on which it rests. It is only when there is a healthy development of the whole ecosystem  that renders discussion on such  conservation initiatives increasingly valuable. As we can see, biodiversity is almost invariably ignored in many of China’s current ecological projects.

Not only in nature’s domains but also in urban areas, environmental and biological diversity issues should be considered in AI development. Current problems of over-consumption and landfills threaten the ecological as well as the physical wellbeing and health of city dwellers and the of cities themselves. Without the adoption of the four principles and two points, AI decisions will be short-sighted, profit-driven, detrimental to the overall development of cities and their inhabitants. Currently, around the world, professional, civic and citizen organizations proactively advocate that  initiatives such as waste reduction,  circular economy recycling, etc., be included in policy decisions. Therefore, it is essential to transfer such explorations to the development of AI algorithms, so that AI can also learn and “understand”the possible impacts and consequences of similar initiatives. 

The planet is currently facing its sixth mass extinction, the loss of biodiversity is intensifying due to human behavior, the climate crisis existentially requires people to adapt, and public health is now understood as  an issue that cannot be ignored. Under these circumstances, it is not viable or ethical for AI to be used to stimulate further production and over-consumption, nor should it approach the problem from the perspective of “promoting material prosperity”, which can only lead to the escalation of existing and future wellbeing and survival-threatening crises. AI must be used  to support  humans in their quest for not only for survival but for quality of life, wellbeing and happiness For AI to be of real benefit for humanity and to support the optimum fulfillment of, SDGs, and CBD, we need to ensure that  biodiversity is an integral, dynamic and vibrant  pillar of the AI initiative in order to bring its force to support the harmonious coexistence of  humankind and nature.

Suggestion III：

Experts in the field of Biodiversity Conservation should be involved in the Ad Hoc Expert Group in charge of the drafting of the Recommendation.

Rational:

The China Biodiversity Conservation and Green Development Foundation (CBCGDF) has noticed that the present Ad Hoc Expert Group in charge of the drafting of the Recommendation does not include relevant experts in the field of biodiversity. Therefore, we would like to suggest biodiversity experts should be involved in the AI-related process: Research, Design, Development, Deployment and the Use of AI.

Faced with the challenges of the three crises, people have realized that a fundamental transformation is needed. We, human beings are the trigger of all crises, but we are also the ultimate resolvers  of the three crises and of course the beneficiaries.

In the process of drafting the Recommendation, we need not only to respect ethical science and all the related branches of science and learning, but we must have a clear  vision and understanding of biodiversity and ensure that appropriate experts, practitioners and involved public in biodiversity, climate and public health to participate in the whole process.

We believe that new and additional insights contributed by biodiversity experts, practitioners and involved public to the Recommendation will ensure its adaptation to and consistency with the ethics during the new era of Ecological Civilization.

We must pay serious and consequent attention to newly emerging consideration and standards for ethics related to  biodiversity brought about by the intensifying crises. Constructively, and inviting biodiversity experts, practitioners and involved public leaders to actively participate in the drafting process of the Recommendation. This will permit, support and facilitate a better integration of the ongoing revolutions surrounding biodiversity and AI. We believe this will result inlong-term positive implications for the realization of the SDGs, sustainable development and the creation of a harmonious society and an ecological civilization.

Writer: Linda

Editor:Daisy

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