Projects
Council on Technology and Social Cohesion
Lisa Schirch and the Peacetech and Polarization Lab led the research and February 2023 conference to launch the Council on Technology and Social Cohesion. Dr. Schirch co-chairs the Council and works closely with a wide range of partner organizations around the world to catalyze this new field. In this role, Schirch sits on the advisory committee for the Plurality Institute, the Alliance for Peacebuilding’s Community of Practice on Digital Peacebuilding, and Braver Angel’s Scholar’s Council
Democratic Inputs to AI Ethics
With a grant award from OpenAI, this project led by Andrew Konya of Remesh uses this platform to develop a method for public input into the governance of AI assistants such as ChatGPT. Lisa Schirch and the PTAP Lab are a member of this team.
Our paper detailing the democratic process innovated in the Round 1 grant from OpenAI can be found here: Deliberative Technology for Alignment, ArXiv, 6 December 2023. Our Notre Dame PTAP Lab was chosen as part of the small group of grantees that will continue for another round of experimentation on democratic inputs.
Technology and Peacebuilding Publication Series, Toda Peace Institute
In collaboration with the Tokyo-based Toda Peace Institute, we commission and edit a series of short blogs and longer reports on the role of technology in peace and conflict. Please send a paragraph outlining your proposed blog or report to lschirch@nd.edu if you are interested in publishing in this series.
AI Hatespeech Responder Chatbot
This student-led project is building an AI training data set of evidence-based conflict resolution communication skills to generate responses to hate speech.
This project received seed funding from the Civic Health Project and is now in formal partnership with the Dangerous Speech Project to further develop a prototype by April 2024.
Designing Inclusive VR Headsets
In collaboration with the Notre Dame Navari Family Center for Digital Scholarship, this student-led research project seeks to design virtual reality (VR) headsets that work for all people.
Afghan Digital Dialogue and Deliberation (ADD)
In partnership with the Notre Dame Afghanistan Program on Peace and Development (AfPAD), the PTAP Lab is exploring the potential to use new platforms designed for “listening at scale” to hear the voices and ideas of Afghans now spread across the globe. The project aims to develop a methodology for ongoing consultation with and among people from Afghanistan.
This project is now collaborating with the Computational Democracy Project to begin using Pol.is technology for Afghan dialogues in spring 2024.
Digital Platform Designs and Depolarization
The PTAP lab conducts ongoing research on trends in polarization, particularly in the US with a focus on public school policies and School Board deliberation. In collaboration with new tech platforms designed for digital dialogue and deliberation and US bridgebuilding organizations, the PTAP lab is laying the groundwork for a comparative study of digital platforms and community level depolarization efforts in the US.
VR for Social Cohesion
Working in collaboration with the Notre Dame Navari Family Center for Digital Scholarship, this project supports student research using 360 cameras to document social change processes.
Digital Peace Factory
The Digital Peace Factory incentivizes and generates digital content to explain and support effective communication and peace processes to address issues of conflict and injustice.
Tech and Racial Justice
In collaboration with the Notre Dame Accomplice Project, this student-led project documents discussions involving race and racism at Notre Dame and designs tech-facilitated responses to reduce and prevent racism.
Designing Tech for Social Cohesion
This research includes identifying new technology platforms the digital anatomy of affordances that contribute to social cohesion.