by Editor | Jul 19, 2021 | Event Updates
On July 15, 2021, the book Remaking the World – Toward an Age of Global Enlightenment, was officially posted on Boston Global Forum and United Nations Centennial Initiative for download.
The book proposes pathways toward a more humane, peaceful, and secure world, largely by harnessing the potential of Artificial Intelligence (AI), blockchain, and other Digital Age technologies.
Distinguished contributors to the book include:
- Shinzo Abe, Prime Minister of Japan
- Ash Carter, Former US Secretary of Defense
- Vint Cerf, “Father of the Internet”, Google
- Nazli Choucri, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)
- Ramu Damodaran, Chief of United Nations Academic Impact
- Michael Dukakis, Former Governor of Massachusetts, Chair, Boston Global Forum
- Eva Kaili, Member of the European Parliament
- Robin Kelly, U.S. Representative (Illinois),
- Ban Ki-moon, the United Nations Secretary-General
- Didzis Kļaviņš, University of Latvia
- Taro Kono, Defense Minister, Japan
- Zlatko Lagumdzija, Former Prime Minister, Bosnia & Herzegovina
- Stavros Lambrinidis, EU Ambassador to the United States
- Ursula von der Leyen, President of European Commission
- Yasuhide Nakayama, Defense State Minister, Japan
- Paul Nemitz, Principal Advisor, European Commission
- Nguyen Anh Tuan, CEO, Boston Global Forum
- Andreas Norlén, Speaker, Swedish Parliament
- Joseph Nye, Harvard University
- Zaneta Ozolina, University of Latvia, Co-Chair of Riga Conference
- Thomas Patterson, Harvard University
- Judea Pearl, University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA)
- Alex “Sandy” Pentland, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)
- Sir Iain Duncan Smith, MP, UK Parliament
- Vaira Vike-Freiberga, President of World Leadership Alliance-Club de Madrid, Former President of Latvia
Here is the link: https://bostonglobalforum.org/bgf2022/publications/remaking-the-world-the-age-of-global-enlightenment-2/
by Editor | Jul 11, 2021 | News
In the book Remaking the World – Toward an Age of Global Enlightenment, a Global Enlightenment Program is a part of the AIWS Ecosystem, the Global Alliance for Digital Governance (GADG), and fundamental to AIWS City. Content of this program is proposed:
- Rights and responsibilities of a global citizen – the Social Contract for the AI Age
- AIWS Value System
- Resources and assets of a citizen:
- Knowledge, innovations, creativity
- Basics of history
- World culture
- Nature beauty
- The Arts
- Moral, ethics, honesty, tolerance
- Friends, communities, networks
- Tools, apps, platforms:
- Apps and tools for life and work
- AIWS Innovation Exchange Platform
- Set up a path for life
- Lifelong learning, problem-solving, innovation, and creativity
We call on educators and innovators to contribute their ideas for the AIWS Global Enlightenment Program.
If you have any ideas, suggestions, please send email to [email protected]
by Editor | Jul 11, 2021 | News
On July 14 at 2:35 PM EDT, Father of Internet Vint Cerf, contributor to the book Remaking the World – Toward an Age of Global Enlightenment, 2019 World Leader in AI World Society, will speak about the People-Centered Economy.
Here is Vint Cerf’s message in the book:
We will need an international call for an operation in order to induce and introduce this people-centeredness into the use of artificial intelligence, because we will and use these techniques on a global scale. The internet has already penetrated about 50% or more of the world and of course as the chief internet evangelist of google, I’m hoping that it will be possible for everyone to get access to the internet before the end of this decade and certainly by 2045, if they want access to it. It would not occur to me to force anyone to use the internet, but I would like it to be accessible, available, sustainable, affordable, and useful for anyone who wishes to use it.
So now we have to figure out what the international agreements are going to be, not only to deal with the abuses of the internet and its applications, but also the potential abuses of machine learning. And that is going to requirement some deep thought and some deep understanding and some dependence on technologists who are much smart than I am, about how those technologies could be abused and what we can do to both detect and defend against that. And so as we design a people-centered and artificially intelligent world, where the tools get smarter and smarter, we will have to think our way through exactly that set of problems. And so those of you who are on this call and those that you will talk to afterwards, I say to you how important it is that we get this right, that we consider how to effect, a good effect and how we make sure that if they are abused, that we detect and defend against that. And so that’s quite a challenge and charge to give to this group but your histories already tell us you are capable of dealing with charges like this and that’s why you’ve been assembled today to talk about this problem and the promise of artificial intelligence and the problems that it may introduce.
by Editor | Jul 11, 2021 | News
Leaders and governments have perceptions about threats from totalitarian governments abusing technology, AI, and the digital sphere. There are awareness and debates already, now it is time for actions.
Fundamental for a peaceful, secure, prosperous world: governments, corporations, organizations, and people need to respect and apply values and standards proposed in Social Contract for the AI Age, in AI International Accord and in the book Remaking the World – Toward an Age of Global Enlightenment.
The world lacks a coordinator of resources: governments, international organizations, corporations, think tanks, civil society, influencers for these purposes and goals.
BGF and AIWS propose an initiative to meet this need: establishing Global Alliance for Digital Governance (GADG). This is a part of Social Contract for the AI Age, AI International Accord and BGF Conference of July 1st, 2020.
GADG is not an organization – it is a network for sharing and cooperating between resources, coordinated by BGF and AIWS.
Governor Michael Dukakis, co-founder and Chair of The Boston Global Forum (BGF), and Mr. Nguyen Anh Tuan, CEO of BGF and GADG team, will connect and coordinate with resources for this mission and goal.
GADG call on governments, organizations, corporations, influencers, educators, innovators, creators, and all to join GADG for this cause.
Meaningful contributions will be recognized by AIWS Rewards.
We will introduce more details of Global Alliance for Digital Governance in the Weekly next weeks.
Contact: [email protected]
by Editor | Jul 5, 2021 | News
On July 2, 2021, President Ursula von der Leyen, recipient of the World Leader for Peace and Security Award 2020, presented by Boston Global Forum and Michael Dukakis Institute, gave a speech at a news event meant to usher in Slovenia’s six-month term at the EU’s helm, NexgenerationEU, European Commission President von der Leyen also urged Prime Minister Janez Jansa to swiftly nominate a delegate to the EU prosecutor’s office, a new body aimed at investigating graft across the 27-nation bloc.
“The European Union is cautiously reopening, we are shifting now from crisis management to long-term recovery efforts. #eudebates #Economy #ECON #Eurozone #Euro #Recovery #NRP #Slovenia And #NextGenerationEU is kind of the engine of this recovery. It will be up to us, together, to steer this recovery, and make sure it works smooth and fast on the ground. And I count on the Presidency’s support to approve as many national recovery and resilience plans as possible before the summer break. Because this is crucial, so the money starts flowing now as soon as possible. As you have said Prime Minister, our recovery will be sustainable, it will be digital. With NextGenerationEU, we have EUR 800 billion – in today’s prices – worth of investments, and this will make the European Green Deal a reality. It will enable our societies to embrace the digital revolution. ….. And I welcome your intention to start trilogues before the end of the year on our proposals for a safer, more open European digital space, namely, you know them: the Digital Services Act, the Digital Markets Act, and on data governance.”
by Editor | Jul 5, 2021 | News
AIWS seeks to create an AIWS Ecosystem that empowers citizens to create value for themselves, for others, and for society through the application of artificial intelligence, digital, blockchain, and data science technologies. It is a sharing ecosystem that rewards both the creators and users of these technologies, as well as an ecosystem that encourages everyone to innovate. It breaks down the hierarchies that traditionally have created unequal power relationships, paving the way to a sharing society. It recognizes the value of every citizen, as well as every citizen’s creative potential. It seeks to promote citizens’ economic wellbeing while also promoting ethical and community values. It aims for nothing less than the creation of a more trusting, prosperous, and compassionate world where people can live more fulfilling lives, materially and ethically.
The foundation of AIWS is the Social Contract for the Artificial Intelligence Age, which was developed by the Boston Global Forum in consultation with leading thinkers and practitioners. The Social Contract has been endorsed by organizations, including The World Leadership Alliance – Club de Madrid, which is the organization of former heads of state and heads of government of democratic countries.
As with earlier social contracts, the Social Contract for the Artificial Intelligence Age is rooted in the rights and interests of individuals, and what governments and other entities must do and are prohibited from doing to safeguard these rights and interests. The AI Social Contract and AIWS Ecosystem envision a world where everyone’s contribution is recognized and everyone has a right to education and ready access to information and technology, where no one is above the law, and where integrity, knowledge, creativity, and honesty are seen as key values in shaping policy and society. It envisions a world where governments adhere to basic values and are accountable and transparent.
The AIWS Value System
Remaking the world as a more humane, peaceful, and secure place rests on promoting the values that will foster that world. To that end, AIWS has created the AIWS Value System as a means of guiding and encouraging individuals to contribute to a changing world.
The AIWS Value System focuses on creative or innovative acts that foster a sharing society. Such acts can take many forms but would include:
– Creation or promotion of innovative ideas and organizations that offer meaningful paths for people’s political, social, economic, or moral development
– Creation or invention of technological advances that improve the lives of ordinary people
– Innovative approaches to art, culture, sport, or entertainment that improve the quality of life for ordinary people
– Voluntary acts – everything from charitable contributions to the granting of access to data – that enhance the lives of ordinary people
– Acts that promote the values inherent in the Social Contract for the Age of Artificial Intelligence
As these examples indicate, the AIWS Value System centers on action designed to help ordinary people and that contributes to the building of a sharing society.
Promoting the AIWS Value System
The AIWS Value System recognizes acts that often take place in the absence of supportive mechanisms. Yet, the creation of such mechanisms can incentivize and facilitate acts of this kind. To this end, AIWS is:
– creating the Global Enlightenment Education Program. This program will aim to inform ordinary citizens about the world in which they live, and how they can help improve it. The program will be dedicated to lifelong learning and the fostering of views that will enable ordinary citizens to be more innovative, tolerant, and participatory. The program will place special emphasis on reaching people in more remote areas who are typically left behind by technological change. The program will also emphasize the contribution that everyone, whatever their location or background, can make to the common good.
– promoting the development of legal systems that protect creativity and innovation and that respect the rights and interests of ordinary people.
– promoting creation of a cultural, social, economic, and political environment that encourages and rewards creativity and innovation; that respects the rights, interests, and abilities of ordinary people; that encourages popular participation in the creation of a more humane world; that rewards those individuals who make noteworthy creative and innovative contributions to the common good; and that recognizes those who, through ideas and action, make significant contributions to politics and society.
– promoting the development of technology systems that support creativity and innovation; that broaden participation by ordinary citizens; that contribute to the digital-age education of these citizens; that give ordinary citizens the means to directly create products and services; that foster meaningful work opportunities; that provide ordinary citizens with greater access to essential services, such as health care; and that suppress fraudulent and other harmful acts that injure ordinary citizens.
by Editor | Jul 5, 2021 | Event Updates
On July 1, 2021, Remaking the World – The Age of Global Enlightenment was officially made available. This book is a collaboration between the Boston Global Forum (BGF) and the United Nations Academic Impact (UNAI) as a part of the United Nations Centennial Initiative. The official announcement of the book was organized on May 27, 2021.
The book proposes pathways toward a more humane, peaceful, and secure world, largely by harnessing the potential of Artificial Intelligence (AI), blockchain, and other Digital Age technologies. A key proposal is the adoption of an AI International Accord that would bind nations to constructive uses of AI and prohibit destructive uses. The book proposes a Social Contract for the AI Age as the theoretical and ethical foundation of the Accord. The book also proposes the AI World Society (AIWS) as a vehicle through which individuals and civic organizations can help foster an Age of Global Enlightenment.
AIWS seeks to create an AIWS Ecosystem that empowers citizens to create value for themselves, for others, and for society through the application of artificial intelligence, digital, blockchain, and data science technologies. It is a sharing ecosystem that rewards both the creators and users of these technologies, as well as an ecosystem that encourages innovation. It breaks down the hierarchies that traditionally have created unequal power relationships, paving the way to a sharing society. It recognizes the value of every citizen, as well as every citizen’s creative potential.
Governor Michael Dukakis, Co-founder and Chair of Boston Global Forum, states that “the book is significant contribution of BGF and UNAI to shape peace, security, and prosperous world in the AI and Digital Age. Thank Editor Nguyen Anh Tuan for his excellent work for this book and the United Nations Centennial Initiative as well as AI World Society (AIWS).”
Ramu Damodaran, Chief of the United Nations Academic Impact and Co-Chair of the United Nations Centennial Initiative, said on the May 27, 2021, book launching event, “The United Nations Academic Impact is proud to join the Boston Global Forum in an initiative that looks to the 2045 centennial as an opportunity to reframe the possibilities inherent in the United Nations while remaining true to the power of its promise a century earlier.”
The book is free to download from July 15, 2021, at https://un100.net/books-un/
or at https://bostonglobalforum.org/bgf2022/publications/ai-world-society/
or send email to [email protected]
by Editor | Jul 5, 2021 | Publications
Apply AIWS Ecosystem at AIWS City: A Model for the Digital Age
Nguyen Anh Tuan
The Digital and AI Age is remaking the world. The issue is whether that remaking will serve the common good. Judging from history, it is a mistake to assume that such an outcome will occur without empowering ordinary citizens. The Artificial Intelligence World Society (AIWS) is such an effort.
In this article, I discuss the need to empower citizens and the steps required to achieve that goal. The article concludes with a discussion of AIWS City, which is a digital city being created as a model for how ordinary people can be empowered in the Digital and AI Age.
The Goal of AIWS
AIWS seeks to create an AIWS Ecosystem that empowers citizens to create value for themselves, for others, and for society through the application of artificial intelligence, digital, blockchain, and data science technologies. It is a sharing ecosystem that rewards both the creators and users of these technologies, as well as an ecosystem that encourages everyone to innovate. It breaks down the hierarchies that traditionally have created unequal power relationships, paving the way to a sharing society. It recognizes the value of every citizen, as well as every citizen’s creative potential. It seeks to promote citizens’ economic wellbeing while also promoting ethical and community values. It aims for nothing less than the creation of a more trusting, prosperous, and compassionate world where people can live more fulfilling lives, materially and ethically.
The foundation of AIWS is the Social Contract for the Artificial Intelligence Age, which was developed by the Boston Global Forum in consultation with leading thinkers and practitioners. The Social Contract has been endorsed by organizations, including The World Leadership Alliance – Club de Madrid, which is the organization of former heads of state and heads of government of democratic countries.
As with earlier social contracts, the Social Contract for the Artificial Intelligence Age is rooted in the rights and interests of individuals, and what governments and other entities must do and are prohibited from doing to safeguard these rights and interests. The AI Social Contract and AIWS Ecosystem envision a world where everyone’s contribution is recognized and everyone has a right to education and ready access to information and technology, where no one is above the law, and where integrity, knowledge, creativity, and honesty are seen as key values in shaping policy and society. It envisions a world where governments adhere to basic values and are accountable and transparent.
The AIWS Value System
Remaking the world as a more humane, peaceful, and secure place rests on promoting the values that will foster that world. To that end, AIWS has created the AIWS Value System as a means of guiding and encouraging individuals to contribute to a changing world.
The AIWS Value System focuses on creative or innovative acts that foster a sharing society. Such acts can take many forms but would include:
– Creation or promotion of innovative ideas and organizations that offer meaningful paths for people’s political, social, economic, or moral development
– Creation or invention of technological advances that improve the lives of ordinary people
– Innovative approaches to art, culture, sport, or entertainment that improve the quality of life for ordinary people
– Voluntary acts – everything from charitable contributions to the granting of access to data – that enhance the lives of ordinary people
– Acts that promote the values inherent in the Social Contract for the Age of Artificial Intelligence
As these examples indicate, the AIWS Value System centers on action designed to help ordinary people and that contributes to the building of a sharing society.
Promoting the AIWS Value System
The AIWS Value System recognizes acts that often take place in the absence of supportive mechanisms. Yet, the creation of such mechanisms can incentivize and facilitate acts of this kind. To this end, AIWS is:
– creating the Global Enlightenment Education Program. This program will aim to inform ordinary citizens about the world in which they live, and how they can help improve it. The program will be dedicated to lifelong learning and the fostering of views that will enable ordinary citizens to be more innovative, tolerant, and participatory. The program will place special emphasis on reaching people in more remote areas who are typically left behind by technological change. The program will also emphasize the contribution that everyone, whatever their location or background, can make to the common good.
– promoting the development of legal systems that protect creativity and innovation and that respect the rights and interests of ordinary people.
– promoting creation of a cultural, social, economic, and political environment that encourages and rewards creativity and innovation; that respects the rights, interests, and abilities of ordinary people; that encourages popular participation in the creation of a more humane world; that rewards those individuals who make noteworthy creative and innovative contributions to the common good; and that recognizes those who, through ideas and action, make significant contributions to politics and society.
– promoting the development of technology systems that support creativity and innovation; that broaden participation by ordinary citizens; that contribute to the digital-age education of these citizens; that give ordinary citizens the means to directly create products and services; that foster meaningful work opportunities; that provide ordinary citizens with greater access to essential services, such as health care; and that suppress fraudulent and other harmful acts that injure ordinary citizens.
Test Model: AIWS City
The AIWS Value System is innovative and, as such, untested for its utility. AIWS will test the concept by creating the AIWS City, which will be a virtual digital city dedicated to promoting the values associated AIWS. We envision it as a community of scholars, innovators, leaders, and citizens dedicated to fostering thought, creativity, and ethical behavior.
The digital platform for AIWS City has been created and the first phase of the project will be launched on September 9, 2021. AIWS City has offices in Boston, Massachusetts (USA); Tokyo (Japan), and NovaWorld Phan Thiet, Ha Noi, and Nha Trang (Vietnam), with plans to expand to other locations at a later time.
AIWS City will include the following components:
– AIWS Home, which is the personal space of the “citizens” of AIWS City. Each citizen will have a “digital home” for their work, innovation, and entertainment. The digital home will have secure computing, data storage, and Cloud service, as well as access to data sets, software programs, and tech support.
– AIWS University, which is a digital-age university for lifelong learning. The university will focus on courses that help leaders, managers, and students understand and apply digital technology, including Artificial Intelligence, cybersecurity, machine learning, and blockchain. It will also include courses designed to give individuals an understanding of the larger world of which they are a part. A signature feature of the university will be its course offerings in leadership, which emphasize ethical, compassionate, team-centered, and socially responsible leadership in the Digital Age.
– AIWS Global Enlightenment Education Program, which was described earlier in this article. Citizens of AIWS City will receive a daily bulletin with information and ideas that can enhance their global understanding and enrich their personal lives.
– AIWS Forum, which will feature lectures by the world’s leading digital thinkers – scholars, innovators, philanthropists, political leaders, artists, and corporate executives. There will also be seminars and discussion groups designed to bring together communities of interest. This Forum will promote AIWS Ecosystem and AIWS Value System.
– AIWS Vint Cerf Museum of the Internet, which is named after Vint Cert, who is “the father of the Internet” and a frequent contributor to the Boston Global Forum and AIWS. The museum will be interactive and trace the history of the Internet, including the contributions of Vint Cerf and other major figures in the Internet’s development.
– AIWS History of AI House, which will display the history of AI and serve as a venue for deliberation on issues relating to AI.
– AIWS Market, which will feature products and services that promote a healthy, ethical, and productive lifestyle. The market will also serve as a small business incubator, assisting these businesses in building their brand and entering the digital market. The market will support the sale of creative and innovative products and services that promote the common good.
– AIWS College Preparatory Academy, which will assist students from developing countries to prepare for and gain admission to high-quality colleges and universities.
– AIWS Innovation Hub, which will serve as an incubator to help firms, inventors, innovators, and entrepreneurs turn their ideas into reality. They will be able to discuss their ideas and problems and hear from experts and practitioners on how to advance or solve them. The Innovation Hub will promote pioneering models that foster social responsibility and will reward their developers through the AIWS Rewards Program.
-AIWS Window on the World, which will provide AIWS citizens with virtual tours of the world’s great museums, concert halls, palaces, public buildings, stadiums, ancient ruins, landmark buildings, and natural wonders. And it will give them opportunities to interact with creative individuals from these venues.
AIWS Rewards Program, which will be an experimental program to test the feasibility of a value marketplace – a mechanism through which societal contributions can be exchanged for goods and services. Based on a cryptocurrency (Crypto-AIWS-Rewards), the program will seek to help reformers, innovators, artists, and others who contribute to human progress but who typically do not receive commensurate material benefits.
Remaking the World Requires Reimagining It
The great question of the Digital and AI Age is not technological in nature. Rather it is the question of what type of society we seek to create through the application of digital technology.
The digital and AI revolution and trailblazing ideas will reshape the world. Like previous industrial revolutions, it will have a transformative effect on the way we live and relate to each other. Like the others, it will be disruptive. Some business sectors will wither, while others will thrive. That is true also of people. With the other revolutions, the outcome was determined almost entirely by market forces, which worked primarily to the benefit of the powerful, typically at a significant cost to ordinary people.
AIWS seeks to ensure that the historical pattern does not become a defining feature of the Digital and AI Age. AIWS is a reimagined world, one where the rights and interests of ordinary citizens are paramount and where action is taken to empower them in ways that enlarge their voice and influence and that give them the agency to help shape a new world. AIWS recognizes that this reimagined world will require concerted action by governments, individuals, organizations, and firms. Each must be a source of innovation, and each must adhere to AIWS standards and values. Together, we can remake the world and usher in an Age of Global Enlightenment.
by Editor | Jun 27, 2021 | News
From Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, artist Will Pham sent the letter and his piece “Dance in Mercy” to Governor Michael Dukakis, co-chair of the United Nations Centennial Initiative, Board of Leaders of AIWS City:
“With the dream of building a new world that is more intelligent, more efficient, more authentic, and more compassionate; a place where humankind is more affectionate to each other, a fulfilled world of wisdom, creativity, and compassion, I have dedicated many enthusiasm and knowledge, intertwined with an intense love for peace to delineate the work “The Dance in Mercy – Vu Khuc Nhan Ai” as a small gift to Humanity in general, and The United Nations Centennial Initiative in particular.
This piece was inspired by the Ballet No. 20 “Lebedinoye Ozero – Swan Lake” by Composer Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky circa 1875-1876. This play is based on a Russian fairy tale as well as an old German tradition, about Odette, a princess who is cursed to be transformed into a swan, and when she finds her love, Siegfried; their true love, broke the curse, making not only the other swans transformed into humans but also Siegfried and Odette, under the vision of these beautiful swans, were flying together to heaven, vowing to be together forever after.
“The Dance in Mercy” will be a painting filled with positive energy wherever it is displayed. When other people observe this painting, I aspire to not only perceive this energy, but their sense of vision will be overwhelmed by the rich colors from the piece, and so on, the message of peace that I want to deliver will appear. I feel immensely honored and appreciative to be a part of the 100th anniversary of The United Nations. From the bottom of my heart, I wish that through this memorable opportunity, my team and I will have a durable relationship with The United Nations; and together we will take a step closer to our peaceful world, spreading positive messages via art to all human beings. Additionally, in my humble opinion, my brainchildren, which are my works of art, will be approached more widely by the public, expanding indefatigable positive energy, the truthful meaning of life, and most importantly, supporting human peace.
“Let’s reach for the sky, even if we cannot pick the brightest star, at least we can stand among the stars to light our dreams.”
I dedicate this work to The United Nations Centennial Initiative.”
