This session will delve into the transformative potential of AI and other technologies in the realm of peacebuilding. We will explore how these tools can be harnessed not only to foster peace but also to decolonise our approaches to teaching, research, and practices within the peace and security sector.

You do not need any prior knowledge of AI to enjoy this event.

This event is part of the ‘Digital Decolonisation: Visibilities and Invisibilities in the Age of Algorithms’ series which begins on Tuesday 20 May with ‘Decolonisation in the Age of AI’ and continues on Thursday 22 May with ‘(De)coloniality and Humour in the Age of AI’. You may also be interested in 'Decolonising AI with Memes: A Practical Way to Critically Engage AI in Teaching and Learning' on Friday 23 May.

Register on Eventbrite. This event will be hybrid, with the option for you to attend in-person or online.

Speakers

Dr Colin Irwin is an aquanaut, Arctic explorer and social scientist. He completed his PhD at Syracuse University in 1985 with a thesis on the Canadian Inuit and how they developed a society without war. By applying the Inuit principals of inclusive consensus decision making to public opinion polls he was able to help the parties elected to peace negotiations in Northern Ireland bring an end to their civil war in 1998. Since then he has worked for Governments, NGOs and the UN applying these lessons in the Balkans, Israel and Palestine, Kashmir, Sri Lanka, Sudan, Syria and Cyprus. Most recently, in collaboration with Remesh AI and the UN’s Innovation Cell, these same principals have been applied in Yemen, Libya and Iraq using Artificial Intelligence to create mappings of consensus with up to a thousand participants in real time digital dialogues. Analysis, questionnaires, books and reports are available on his website at www.peacepolls.org.

Naomi Mwelu Kilungu G. is an armed conflict and peace technology expert, re- searcher, and advocate for localization and decolonial approaches in African peacebuilding processes. As the Founder of AI for Peace Africa, she integrates ethical, decolonial AI frameworks into peace and security initiatives across African settings. Her work focuses on decolonial AI, children in war, and subaltern dis- courses, emphasizing inclusive and culturally grounded solutions. Currently a PhD student at the University of Nairobi, Kenya, Naomi is advancing her research on the intersections of AI, decoloniality, and peacebuilding.

Dr Samuel Oyewole is a Research Fellow at the Ocean Regions Programme of the Department of Political Sciences and the African Centre for the Study of the United States (ACSUS), University of Pretoria, South Africa, and a lecturer at the Federal University Oye-Ekiti, Nigeria. His research interests cover African affairs, crisis management, development, aerospace, defence and security studies, and international relations. His articles have appeared in many reputable journals. He is the author of Utilitarianism in Outer Space: Space Policy, Socioeconomic Development and Security Strategies in Nigeria and South Africa (Springer, 2024) and co-editor of several books.

Dr Meghna Singh is an artist, creative technologist and researcher with a PhD in visual anthropology. She is a Postdoctoral Fellow at the School of Communication & Culture at Aarhus University Denmark and a fellow at the Open Documentary Lab at MIT. Working at the intersection of arts and technology, she creates immersive environments highlighting issues of ‘humanism’. Her interest lies in creating public art installations that activate spaces while highlighting colonial and capitalist legacies within urban cityscapes.

Organisers

Dr Christoffer Guldberg is a Lecturer in the Faculty of Social Science & Public Policy, King’s College London. He has written extensively on the war on drugs and online activism and violence in Brazil and beyond. His teaching methods have been published as blogs and a peer-reviewed article at King’s Academy, the University of Warwick, and the King’s Decolonial Blog, undotcomfortable, and he has a podcast on decolonising AI at King’s - a Mostly Human Podcast.

Mireille Kouyo is a PhD student, jointly studying with the African Leadership Centre at King’s College London and the University of Pretoria. Her research explores the empirical reality of what local actors are doing at the grassroots level and seek to understand the relationships between actors in the process of building positive peace. She has previously co-organised a workshop on ‘Decolonising the Researcher’.

King's Festival of Artificial Intelligence

This event is part of the King’s Festival of Artificial Intelligence. Running from Tuesday 20 May to Saturday 24 May, the free, five-day festival brings together a diverse line-up of experts to consider critical questions about artificial intelligence in the context of healthcare, education, sustainability, policy, and creativity.

Festival events will take place across several King’s venues, so please check carefully where the event is taking place. Festival event times may be subject to change. Any changes will be communicated to attendees via Eventbrite emails.

Please note, King's events are free, which means we routinely overbook to allow for no-shows and avoid empty seats. Admission is on a first come, first served basis, so please arrive in good time to avoid disappointment. We will not be able to admit those without tickets or latecomers.