IRES: Digital Civics Exchange (DCX) for Citizen-Centered Artificial Intelligence

Artificial Intelligence (AI) significantly influences various aspects of life, yet its development often prioritizes business and governmental applications over the needs of everyday citizens. To address this gap, our project facilitates International Research Experiences for Students (IRES) that enable 30 US undergraduate and graduate students to collaborate with experts in Citizen-Centered AI (CCAI). CCAI combines Community Informatics and Digital Civics approaches to ensure technological advancements are aligned with community needs and stakeholder perspectives. Students will participate in a six-week immersive research experience with our Northumbria University collaborators, whose backgrounds in human-computer interaction, computer science, design, and psychology will improve the breadth and depth of the students’ CCAI projects. This initiative supports NSF’s mission by advancing science, promoting national welfare, and fostering diverse educational opportunities, particularly for underrepresented groups in computing. This IRES project focuses on providing students with hands-on research experiences in Citizen-Centered AI (CCAI) across diverse contexts such as health, democracy, security, and co-creation. Students will collaborate with faculty and doctoral trainees at Northumbria University, working on interdisciplinary projects that integrate public participation in AI design and critically assess AI's societal impacts. The program encompasses four key themes: 1) Communities, Democracy, and Society, where projects will enhance civic engagement through AI-driven public service delivery and governance participation; 2) Health and Wellbeing, where research will focus on AI tools in medical decision-making, transparency in health recommendations, and ethical AI mental health chatbots; 3) Identity, Privacy, Security, and Mis(dis)information, where projects will address AI personalization, misinformation detection, and bias mitigation; and 4) AI, Design, and Co-Creation, where students will explore AI as a collaborative actor in design processes, policy co-creation, and speculative futures. In all of these key areas, students will develop skills in relevant research methods and technologies, engage with local community partners, and build professional networks, enhancing their expertise in CCAI and contributing to the broader field of human-centered AI. This program aims to produce publications, foster interdisciplinary collaboration, and create pathways into STEM careers, ultimately promoting responsible AI development that benefits society. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.