Humanity in the Intelligent Age: Empathy, Responsibility, and the Duty of Care
We are entering the intelligent age – an era shaped by AI, automation, and digital transformation. Technology is no longer just a tool; it influences how we think, learn, and make decisions. But as we embrace innovation, we must ask: what does it mean to remain truly human?
AI is redefining intelligence, yet human intelligence is more than computation – it is creative, emotional, and relational. As technology reshapes work and learning, will it empower or displace? Will it amplify bias or challenge it? Will it divide us or bring us closer together?
Learning is the key. In an age of disinformation and division, how do we cultivate critical thinking, ethical leadership, and emotional resilience? How do we uphold empathy, responsibility, and the duty of care while shaping a future that remains deeply human?
Neil Selwyn
Professor, Monash University
Neil Selwyn is a professor in the Faculty of Education, Monash University, Melbourne – having previously worked in the Institute of Education, London and the Cardiff School of Social Sciences. He has spent the past 30 years researching the integration of digital technology into schools, universities and adult learning.
Neil is recognised as a leading international researcher in the area of digital education – with particular expertise in the ‘real-life’ constraints and problems faced when technology-based education is implemented. He is currently working on nationally-funded projects examining the roll-out of educational data and learning analytics, AI technologies, and the changing nature of teachers’ digital work.
Neil has carried out funded research on digital technology, society and education for national research agencies and funders in the UK, Australia, US, Sweden and Uruguay, alongside projects for the BBC, Gates Foundation, Microsoft Partners in Learning, Save The Children, National Assembly of Wales and UNESCO.
Neil is a regular keynote speaker at international conferences and he also produces the ‘Meet The Education Researcher‘ and ‘Education Technology Society‘ podcasts.
Andrew Maynard
Professor in School for Future of Innovation in Society, Director of Future of Being Human Initiative, Arizona State University
Dr. Andrew Maynard is Director of the Arizona State University Future of Being Human initiative and a professor in the Arizona State University School for the Future of Innovation in Society. His research focuses on successfully navigating transitions at the nexus of emerging technologies, society, and the future, including the intersection of technologies such as AI with education and learning. He is an elected fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, a member of the Research Council of the Canadian Institute for Advanced Research (CIFAR), and currently serves on the selection committee for the World Economic Forum annual list of top ten emerging technologies. As well as publishing in the academic press, Andrew writes for a number of platforms, including the Substack The Future of Being Human. He is also the author of the books Future Rising: A Journey from the Past to the Edge of Tomorrow, and Films from the Future: The Technology and Morality of Sci-Fi Movies, and co-host of the podcast Modem Futura. Andrew originally trained and worked for many years as a physicist, and received his PhD in physics from Cambridge University, UK.
Maja Göpel
Political Economist, Transformation Expert, and Sustainability Scientist, Global Eco Transition gGmbH
Prof. Dr. Maja Göpel has been working for more than 25 years as a political economist, transformation expert, and sustainability scientist at the intersection of science, politics, and society. A policy advisor, bestselling author (Rethinking Our World, We Can Do Better, Ullstein Verlag, translated into ten languages, and Values, Brandstätter Verlag), and sought-after speaker, she is Professor of Sustainability Transformation at Leuphana University Lüneburg and founder of Mission Wertvoll.
Photo Credit
Wolf Lux
Moderator
Donald H Taylor
Chair, Learning Technologies, United Kingdom
Donald H Taylor has worked in learning and technology since the mid-1980s.
He has chaired the Learning Technologies Conference in London since 2000 and writes and speaks world-wide. His annual L&D Global Sentiment Survey, started in 2014, provides a unique perspective on L&D trends from over 100 countries. From 2010 to 2021, he chaired the Learning and Performance Institute.
He chairs the Workforce Development board for VC firm Emerge Education, and advises several EdTech start-ups.
The author of Learning Technologies in the Workplace, Donald is a graduate of Oxford University and the recipience of an honorary doctorate from London’s Middlesex University.