Special Issue on Language, Law and Rights: Balancing AI Driven Technology and Equity

28.05.2024

Call for Papers — Deadline Extension

Special Issue: Language, Law and Rights: Balancing AI Driven Technology and Equity

Guest Editors: Angela Soltan, Lucia Ruiz Rosendo, Rebekah Rousi

 

Publication: Vol. 12(1), 2025 (June, 2025)

Extended deadline: 25 January 2025

 

Keywords:
Artificial Intelligence, Language and Law, Language Rights, Linguistic Justice, Ethical AI, Human-Machine Interaction, Minority Languages and Communities, Accessibility, Digital Transformation, Language Policy

Main question: 
Is artificial intelligence (AI) truly serving humanity, or is it exacerbating existing inequalities and unlawfulness? This special issue explores the complex interconnections between language, law, and rights in the era of AI-driven technologies.

The Challenge
The technological landscape is undergoing game-changing shifts. These shifts concern not only digital applications available for widespread consumption, including what we know as artificial intelligence (AI)-driven applications, but also the ways we interact and collaborate/co-create with this technology. At its core, AI is a tool that processes and generates human-like language. The power it holds and the impact it has are the reflection of the design and deployment choices people make. The lack of focus on equity and ethical considerations in AI design can exacerbate existing social inequalities and marginalise vulnerable communities even further. Large language models (LLMs), in particular, can perpetuate existing inequalities due to biases in training data and limited language representation, and subsequently lead to unlawful acts.

The Impact on Language and Society
AI-driven technology is increasingly integrated in every layer of human activity. Large language models (LLMs) in particular, have been the focus of most discussions as this technology enables the generation of content that previously required extensive human labour. Moreover, LLMs operationalise language in a way that allows non-expert humans to access, interact with and control other types of pervasive technology like chatbots, avatars, robots, Internet of Things (IoT) devices, etc. 

In this evolving landscape, not all languages stand equal. Many language communities lack access to AI and its benefits, raising concerns about equitable participation and opportunities. Increased reliance on technology can also create social pressure to keep up, potentially marginalising people without access or skills. How do these developments impact languages, the law, cultures, identities, and sense of belonging?

The Focus of this Special Issue
This Special Issue explores the multifaceted impact of AI on language and law, language rights, human rights, and linguistic/social justice, particularly for those who speak minority or marginalized languages. We seek to address the challenges and explore solutions for a more equitable and inclusive AI landscape.

Call for Papers
We invite transdisciplinary contributions from researchers, academics, and practitioners in fields such as linguistics, law, computer science, sociology, ethics, and disability studies. We particularly welcome submissions that address:

  • The impact of AI on minority and marginalized language communities
  • The role of law and policy in shaping the future of language and AI
  • Ethical considerations in the design and deployment of language technologies
  • Co-designing technology with diverse communities
  • Strategies for promoting linguistic justice and equity in the digital age
  • Accessibility and assistive technologies for language access

 

Themes:
- Human-Machine Collaboration: co-creation between humans and AI, the impact of AI on human agency, and the ethical considerations of human-machine interaction.

- Equity and Justice: access to information and services, the digital divide, and the rights of marginalized language communities.

- Language Policy and Planning: language rights in the digital age, language policy in multilingual societies, and the impact of technology on language planning and language use.

- Vulnerable Communities: specific needs and challenges of vulnerable groups, such as people with varied cognitive, communication, physical and sensory abilities, minorities, and people affected by crises.

- Language Technology and Society: broader societal impacts of language technology, such as the role of AI in shaping cultural identity, the use of language technology in public services, and the ethical implications of AI-driven communication.

 

Book reviews:
Suggest books published recently to be reviewed for the special issue.
Length: ≃ 7000-8000 words (Guidelines available here)

 

Queries: 
For any queries, please contact the guest editors of the special issue.

 

References:
Artificial Intelligence Act. 2024. "The EU Artificial Intelligence Act: Up-to-Date Developments and Analyses of the EU AI Act." https://artificialintelligenceact.eu/.

Bloed, Arie & Pieter Van Dijk. (2000) “Declaration on the rights of persons belonging to national or ethnic, religious and linguistic minorities.” In Protection of minority rights through bilateral treaties, edited by Arie Bloed & Pieter Van Dijk, 199–203. Leiden: Brill Nijhoff. https://doi.org/10.1163/9789004479333_013 

Daly, Emma, et al. (2023) “Results of the Forward-looking Community-wide Consultation.” In European Language Equality: A Strategic Agenda for Digital Language Equality, edited by Georg Rehm and Andy Way, Springer International Publishing, pp. 245-262, DOI 10.1007/978-3-031-28819-7. Accessed 3 November 2023.

De Meulder, Maartje. (2021) “Is “good enough” good enough? Ethical and responsible development of sign language technologies.” Proceedings of the 1st International Workshop on Automatic Translation for Signed and Spoken Languages (AT4SSL), vol. Virtual. Association for Machine Translation in the Americas, pp. 12–22, https://aclanthology.org/2021.mtsummit-at4ssl.2.

European Union (2022) “Green paper on ageing - Publications Office of the EU, https://op.europa.eu/en/publication-detail/-/publication/ce2ab168-7f23-11ec-8c40-01aa75ed71a1 

Greenwood, Faine et al. “The signal code: A human rights approach to information during crisis.” Harvard Humanitarian Initiative. https://hhi.harvard.edu/publications/signal-code-human-rights-approach-information-during-crisis. Accessed November 25, 2023.

Mäkipää, J. P. (2023). Explaining Accessibility: Possible Variables in Users’ Abilities, Tasks, and Contexts in IT Artefact Use. AIS Transactions on Human-Computer Interaction, 15(4), 414-441.

United Nations (1992) Declaration on the Rights of Persons Belonging to National or Ethnic, Religious and Linguistic Minorities, 1992,  https://www.ohchr.org/en/instruments-mechanisms/instruments/declaration-rights-persons-belonging-national-or-ethnic. Accessed 7 August  2024.

United Nations (2007) “Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.” www.un.org/disabilities. Accessed 17 01 2023.

United Nations (2017)  Language Rights of Linguistic Minorities: A Practical Guide for Implementation. Special Rapporteur on minority issues: Geneva, http://www.ohchr.org/Documents/Issues/Minorities/SR/LanguageRightsLinguisticMinorities_EN.pdf.

WHO (2024) Assistive technology https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/assistive-technology

Zanatto, Debora, et al. (2023) “Constraining the Sense of Agency in Human-Machine Interaction.” International Journal of Human–Computer Interaction, DOI: 10.1080/10447318.2023.2189815.

 

Submission link: Make a new submission