UNESCO: Harnessing AI innovation to accelerate sustainability for the planet

Paris, 12 February— UNESCO, in collaboration with UNEP, StartUp Inside, and Microsoft, will host a global virtual conference, AI for the Planet, on 16 February (2pm – 6pm, Central European Time). During the event, leading international experts and AI pioneers will share concrete solutions, identify best practices, celebrate successes, and inspire AI innovations to accelerate sustainable development.

The interactive conference will feature three panels of experts and AI pioneers who will deliver keynote addresses and present AI-powered solutions developed to mitigate climate change, ensure nature and biodiversity conservation, and promote better management of pollution and waste.

It will be the first in a series of monthly discussions, Tuesdays Together for the Planet, that will seek to connect two megatrends that are crucial for the future of humanity: climate change and the governance of digital technology. They will explore ways to connect these challenges to drive sustainability as scientific assessments estimate that humanity only has ten years left to overcome the unprecedented global environmental challenges it faces.

The global community can still not measure progress against 68% of the internationally agreed Sustainable Development Goals for 2030 (cf. https://www.unenvironment.org/resources/report/measuring-progress-towards-achieving-environmental-dimension-sdgs), although 10-20% of decarbonization goals could be met through digital technologies (cf.https://www.ctc-n.org/sites/d8uat.ctc-n.org/files/resources/full_report2.pdf) and ICT solutions can help cut 9.7 times more CO₂ than they emit (cf. https://www.ctc-n.org/sites/d8uat.ctc-n.org/files/resources/full_report2.pdf).

The Tuesdays Together for the Planet series aims to mobilize urgent international cooperation by highlighting the potential of big data, AI and digital transformation to bring about the exponential progress needed to meet the challenges of environmental sustainability and avert massive environmental disasters. ***

More information about the conference including registration see: https://AIfortheplanet.org

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Media Contact: Clare O'Hagan: c.o-hagan@unesco.org; +33 (0)145681729