Increasingly emerging technologies such as Artificial Intelligence (AI), Extended Reality (XR) and Quantum technologies are disrupting research and education practices. The way technology shapes practices is increasingly taken seriously in the research and education sector, which strives at a digital transformation in line with ‘public values’ [1,2,3]. Public values can be seen as “values whose importance we consider so high as a society that we organize them at the level of society”[4]. Aligning technological developments with public values requires new capabilities and ways of working by a broad group of institutional stakeholders. 

This roundtable aims to initiate dialogue among philosophers, ethicists, technologists, educators, and researchers about how ethics of technology can be brought into daily practice in the research and education sector. This perspective is informed by a discussion paper, "Responsible Tech: On Public Values and Emerging Technologies", where we see ‘responsibility as a practice’, a practical skill that needs to be developed and exercised [5]. In the roundtable we seek to engage with, refine, and broaden the framework of responsible tech to reflect the realities of stakeholders in the field having to apply methodologies developed in academia. 

Our discussion will focus on ethical, legal, and social aspects (ELSA) of new technologies, emphasizing the role of methodologies like value-sensitive design and responsible research and innovation (RRI). These methodologies can guide ethical approaches towards responsible AI and XR in educational settings. But the proof is in the pudding, how do we make this happen? The roundtable is a collaborative inquiry, inviting participants to analyze, question, and contribute to developing responsible tech practices.

We invite the 4TU.Ethics and ESDiT community to contribute their perspectives, expertise, and experiences. This engagement helps by enriching the discussion on responsible tech, ensuring it reflects current academic knowledge and expertise. 

Our confirmed participants:
John Walker – SURF (moderator): Responsible Tech Advisor, MSc Philosophy of Technology. Responsible XR advisor for national Npuls program. 
Duuk Baten – SURF (moderator): Responsible Tech Advisor, MSc Philosophy of Technology. Member of EU expert group on ethical guidelines for AI in Education (‘21-‘22). 
Taylor Stone – TU Delft: Program and community manager TUD AI Initiative. PhD in Ethics of Technology from TUD.
Olya Kudina – TU Delft: Assistant professor in Ethics of Technology. Co-lead AI DeMoS Lab.
Eliana Bergamin – Erasmus University Rotterdam: PhD Candidate - Erasmus AiPact 
Frank Benneker – University of Amsterdam: Central Information Manager Education, developer of UvA-wide Responsible IT strategy
Sage Cammers-Goodwin – University of Twente: Postdoctoral Researcher for HOLDEN Project 

Literature:
[1] “Digitalisering bedreigt onze universiteit. Het is tijd om een grens te trekken,” de Volkskrant, December 22, 2019,
[2] Public values taskforce. (2021). Advisory report on public values in education [Advisory report]. Universiteiten van Nederland.
[3] Kennisnet & SURF. (2021). Value Compass for digital transformation of education. https://www.surf.nl/files/2022-01/surf-value-compass-english.pdf. 
[4] Van Dijck, J., Poell, T., & De Waal, M. (2016). De platformsamenleving: Strijd om publieke waarden in een online wereld.; 
[5] SURF (2023). Responsible Tech: On Public Values and Emerging Technologies. Utrecht. (Authors: Baten, D., Walker, J.) https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.10054653