Papers by Anais Rességuier
An evaluation by the Office of Development Effectiveness of Australia’s response to the Horn of A... more An evaluation by the Office of Development Effectiveness of Australia’s response to the Horn of Africa humanitarian crisis, 2011. Foreword This report identifies many strengths of the Australian response to the humanitarian crisis in the Horn of Africa in 2011. At the time, humanitarian operations in severely affected areas were fraught with danger and were extremely difficult. Australia was a new player compared to other donors with years of experience in the region and a much larger presence on the ground. The Australian aid program responded quickly, despite limited capacity and experience in the region. The speed and flexibility of operations were notable strengths of the Australian response. Australian funds clearly saved lives; however, the results depended on more than funds alone. Effective coordination of response efforts is a persistent challenge for the global humanitarian system. Australia’s role in influencing implementing partners and coordinating important aspects of ...
Open Research Europe, 2021
This article shows that current ethics guidance documents and initiatives for artificial intellig... more This article shows that current ethics guidance documents and initiatives for artificial intelligence (AI) tend to be dominated by a principled approach to ethics. Although this brings value to the field, it also entails some risks, especially in relation to the abstraction of this form of ethics that makes it poorly equipped to engage with and address deep socio-political issues and the material impacts of AI. This is particularly problematic considering the risk for AI to further entrench already existing social inequalities and injustices and contribute to environmental damage. To respond to this challenge posed by AI ethics today, this article proposes to complement the existing principled approach with an approach to ethics as attention to context and relations. It does so by drawing from alternative ethical theories to the dominant principled one, especially the ethics of care or other feminist approaches to ethics. Related to this, it encourages the inclusion of social scienc...
Artificial Intelligence in Medicine, 2021
This chapter explores AI through a philosophical and ethical lens. This includes an examination o... more This chapter explores AI through a philosophical and ethical lens. This includes an examination of how AI impacts on medicine in terms of uses and promises, limitations, and risks, as well as key questions to consider. While AI offers scope for complex and large-scale data processing, with the promise of an increase in efficiency and precision, some central limitations need to be highlighted. The use of AI also brings some pertinent and predictable, as well as unpredictable risks, such as those due to biases. Also considered is what may be lost where AI replaces established processes, not least those relational and interpersonal aspects that are central to healthcare. By covering these and related issues, this chapter offers ways to evaluate, and also balance, key benefits and risks arising from the application of AI to the medical sector.
Disasters, 2017
This paper examines humanitarianism's moral positioning above private and political interests to ... more This paper examines humanitarianism's moral positioning above private and political interests to save lives and alleviate suffering. It does not aim to assess the legitimacy of this stance, but rather to probe the way in which humanitarian actors relate to this moral dimension in their everyday work. It investigates empirically humanitarian ethics from the perspective of humanitarian actors, drawing on interviews conducted in Beirut, Lebanon, in 2014. As it is exploratory, three key conceptual innovations were required. The first of these is the introduction of the tools developed to consider a neglected reality: humanitarian actors' 'moral sense' vis-à-vis the humanitarian sector's 'moral culture'. Second, the study shows how the sector's moral culture is structured around the notion of 'concern for persons in need'. Third, it analyses the way in which the sector and its actors handle the asymmetrical relationships encountered daily. Ultimately this paper seeks to valorise humanitarian actors' creativity in their common practices and explore potential challenges to it.
Big Data & Society, 2020
Ethics has powerful teeth, but these are barely being used in the ethics of AI today – it is no w... more Ethics has powerful teeth, but these are barely being used in the ethics of AI today – it is no wonder the ethics of AI is then blamed for having no teeth. This article argues that ‘ethics’ in the current AI ethics field is largely ineffective, trapped in an ‘ethical principles’ approach and as such particularly prone to manipulation, especially by industry actors. Using ethics as a substitute for law risks its abuse and misuse. This significantly limits what ethics can achieve and is a great loss to the AI field and its impacts on individuals and society. This article discusses these risks and then highlights the teeth of ethics and the essential value they can – and should – bring to AI ethics now.
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Papers by Anais Rességuier