The "Civic Infrastructures" node will investigate the implications of AI for reshaping civic infrastructures, which include not only physical roads and computational grids but also decision-making systems in law and policy, as well as institutions and practices that sustain communities. New AI tools promise to transform democratic governance, streetscape planning, water management, and transportation systems. But how do people imagine the stakes of changing the infrastructures of everyday life? How can communities use AI technology to improve their quality of life while also recognizing concerns about privacy, security, and civil rights? How can such concerns be addressed by regulatory practices grounded in ethical and legal precedents? This CAIEF node will answer these questions by examining the emerging roles of AI in infrastructure governance and in the civic imagination, aiming to craft narrative-driven community processes for reimagining sociotechnical systems.
Node Coordinator: Mollie Cohen D'Agostino