Artificial Intelligence (AI) systems are increasingly used by the US federal government to replace or support decision making. AI is a computer-based system trained to recognize patterns in data and to apply these patterns to form predictions about new data for a specific task. AI is often viewed as a neutral technological tool, bringing efficiency, objectivity and accuracy to administrative functions, citizen access to services, and regulatory enforcement. However, AI can also encode and amplify the biases of society. Choices on design, implementation, and use can embed existing racial inequalities into AI, leading to a racially biased AI system producing inaccurate predictions or to harmful consequences for racial groups. Racially discriminatory AI systems have already affected public systems such as criminal justice, healthcare, financial systems and housing. This memo addresses the primary causes for the development, deployment and use of racially biased AI systems and suggests three responses to ensure that federal agencies realize the benefits of AI and protect against racially disparate impact. There are three actions that federal agencies must take to prevent racial bias: 1) increase racial diversity in AI designers, 2) implement AI impact assessment, 3) establish procedures for staff to contest automated decisions. Each proposal addresses a different stage in the lifecycle of AI used by federal agencies and helps align US policy with the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) Principles on Artificial Intelligence.

The conflict in Syria has led to one of the biggest refugee crises in history. An estimated 660,000 Syrian refugees have moved to neighbouring Jordan, many of whom are highly vulnerable to monetary poverty and food shortages. To reduce the daily inequalities faced by Syrian refugees, humanitarian agencies are progressively shifting to programmes that encourage financial inclusion and self-reliance. Operating since 2016, Building Blocks, a cash-based assistance programme created by the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP), uses blockchain technology rather than traditional financial service providers to supply monetary assistance for food purchases by Syrian refugees in Jordan. Beneficiaries have their identities confirmed though iris scanning when purchasing goods at supermarkets within the camps. Following authentication, monetary assistance is provided to complete the transaction. This system benefits over 100,000 Syrian refugees registered on the UNHCR’s PRIMES database and WFP has plans to scale up the programme to include more beneficiaries. This technology assessment focuses on understanding the governance of blockchain technology in Building Blocks (if any), and on finding opportunities for WFP operating partner agencies consisting of UNHCR, UNICEF, UN Women, Oxfam and Mercy Corps, to coordinate with and join the programme. Scaling up Building Blocks will benefit refugees and displaced people by giving these individuals a semblance of normalcy in a situation of vulnerability and crises. We advise WFP to collaborate with its partners to form a blockchain humanitarian consortia governing Building Blocks to avoid duplicating efforts and to achieve their shared objectives of delivering humanitarian aid in a sustainable manner. Other recommendations include to have UNOCHA and UNHCR as data aggregator and coordinator, respectively, to grant joint access to PRIMES for non-UN operating partners, to coordinate efforts with UNHCR’s Common Cash Facility programme, to consider renewable energy sources and to build local technical capacity for women in refugee camps. The involvement of operating partners in governing technology used in such processes will ensure equity of aid delivery, resulting in a broader governance, thus reducing inequality.

In the fall of 2019, the Journal of Science Policy & Governance and the United Nations Major Group for Children and Youth teamed up to launch a joint call for submissions for a special topics issue around the “implications of emerging technologies on inequalities and sustainable development.” This is the cover memo to the "Special Issue on the Impacts of Emerging Technologies Inequality and Sustainability" with the guiding questions for the authors and commentary from distinguished leaders.

Assistive technologies are used to enhance the day-to-day functionality of people with disabilities by improving their quality of life and by reducing the impact of disability in their lives. Various socio-economic, cultural, contextual, medical, personal, and family-related factors determine the feasibility and outcomes of using assistive technologies. While various forms of assistive technologies are being widely used for rehabilitation, recreational, or personal purposes around the world many still remain inaccessible and vastly unaffordable in countries around the world. Literature suggests that, when comparing high income countries with low and lower-middle income countries, differences among the longevity, availability, ease of users, affordability and, most importantly, the recognition of the need for an assistive technology, are common, with those measures lagging in low and lower-middle income countries. Certain targeted interventions have been suggested to provide insight into how discrepancies in promoting the use of assistive technologies between developed and developing nations can be minimised with the goal of reducing the global impacts of disability.

Digitalization has disrupted the way products are distributed. With this came an influx of products that depend on network effects and thrive in a winner-takes-all market environment (Schilling 2002). A similar trend is being observed in many frontier technologies, including applications in the so-called ‘gig economy’, which will create winners and losers. Simultaneously, governments are experiencing an erosion of their tax base (Peng 2016). These resources are desperately needed to tackle the widening digital divide, combatting the lack of electricity, and providing internet access to the poorest (International Energy Agency 2017). The current strategy of the United Nations (UN) shows promise. However, the way the UN currently operates has not been adapted to meet the challenges of a digital economy. This is often observed in global-to-local applications, especially when generalized frameworks fail to adapt to communities with different characteristics and needs. The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are a guiding light to rally stakeholders around specific key issues and opens the field for collaboration. The UN is in a unique position to convince all participants to engage in negotiations, to mobilize substantial resources, and has the best chance to get concessions on restrictive systems such as the intellectual property arrangements (Haugen 2010). Systems need to be in place to facilitate technology transfers and capacities need to be built up to give the least developed countries (LDCs) a chance of catching up. The UN needs to bring international institutions, governments, civil society, academia, and the private sector to the table to enable LDCs to determine their own future (Moyo 2010). The UN should introduce more heuristic analysis tools to bring more diverse partners into workable collaborations to address these challenges. A new leadership system should also be introduced to provide clearer direction and autonomy to their contributors.

The United Nation’s (UN) 6th Sustainable Development Goal seeks to enable the availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all by 2030 (UN Sustainable Development Goals Platform). Lusaka, Zambia has thirteen peri-urban areas (PUAs), all with poor sanitation conditions (WHO / UNICEF). The SaToTM brand, created by the LIXIL Corporation, offers a suite of frontier sanitation technologies including various safe and affordable toilet products for use in lower-and middle-income countries (LMICs) in Africa and Asia. This study examines the potential market demand and environment for the SaToTM Pan Sit and Squat toilets in the Bauleni PUA. In Lusaka, landlords (LLs) hold the decision-making power regarding household-based infrastructure; therefore, this study measures LL interest in the SaToTM Pan Toilet technologies for the LL’s personal and familial use as well as for use by their tenants. 30 semi-structured interviews with conveniently sampled, adult LL residents of Bauleni were conducted to capture their demographic, sanitation, and toilet history status as well as their SaToTM Pan product interaction. Quantitative data was analyzed in Stata; qualitative data was analyzed via thematic content analysis. Results indicate that there is an overarching positive preference toward the SaToTM Pan Sit toilet compared to all other presented sanitation technology alternatives. Conducting a SaToTM Pan Sit toilet user trial and social marketing campaign pilot could potentially aid in efforts to effectively and affordably decrease the incidence of water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH)-related disease transmission in Zambia.

The emergence of private space activities is pushing the boundaries of the space industry with technological innovations that may soon enable the targeting of the novel market segments of space research and exploration, space resources utilization, and human access to space. Planetary protection is defined as a set of guidelines that aim to prevent the forward contamination of celestial bodies with biological material from Earth and the backward contamination of the terrestrial biosphere with extraterrestrial biological material. Significant questions are expected to be raised in the future with respect to potential forward and backward contamination issues of emerging private space activities. Unfortunately, the jurisdiction over and the enforcement of forward and backward contamination prevention measures to private space endeavors are currently facing policy and regulatory gaps and ambiguities. The key challenges with the current planetary protection policy landscape indicate that these contamination issues of private space activities can indeed have lasting negative impacts on social, economic, and environmental equity, sustainable development on Earth, and the sustainable exploration and development of other celestial bodies. Drawing on its multidisciplinary expertise, the UN system is favorably positioned to play a key role in stimulating a novel planetary protection framework for emerging private space activities. Firstly, it can provide an international forum for the harmonization and agreement on such a framework. Secondly, it can create a financing mechanism to fund international research and development consortia of public and private organizations under a pre-competitive collaboration scheme for planetary protection technologies. Thirdly, it can establish a process of civic engagement to promote the meaningful participation of the civil society in the formulation of this framework. A prudent consideration of this matter may not only counteract the inequitable distribution of any unintended negative consequences, but may also facilitate economic development in a respectful, sustainable, and responsible manner.