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Asked by fear20yet to Arnold, Edna, Elkana, Gliday, Jacinta, Michael, Mike, Mmboyi, Sally on 11 Jul 2025.
Question: how does your work impact society or the environment and are there ethical dilemmas in your field of research?
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Michael Kimwele answered on 11 Jul 2025:
My work contributes to advancing knowledge, solving real-world problems, and improving lives. For example:
In science and technology, research can lead to innovations in healthcare, clean energy, agriculture, or education, improving quality of life and promoting sustainability.
In environmental science, research helps us understand climate change, biodiversity loss, and pollution—informing better policies and conservation efforts.
In computer science and AI, we develop tools that can improve efficiency, automate tasks, enhance access to information, and support decision-making in medicine, transport, and education.
Are there ethical dilemmas in my field? Yes. Some include:
Privacy vs. progress: In data science and AI, we must balance collecting data to improve services with protecting individuals’ privacy and rights.
Bias and fairness: AI models can reflect and even amplify societal biases, leading to unfair outcomes in areas like hiring, policing, or lending.
Environmental impact: High-tech research (like large AI models or mining for materials used in electronics) can consume a lot of energy or damage ecosystems.
Dual-use technologies: Some research can be used for both good and harm (e.g., facial recognition for safety vs. surveillance and control).
That’s why ethical reflection, transparency, and accountability are essential in all research and innovation work.
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Sally Odunga answered on 11 Jul 2025:
How my work impact society or the environment
I help carry out research to find out how farmers and fishers affected by climate change can still get food, earn money, and stay mentally healthy. After doing this research, I give advice to leaders and decision-makers on what they can do to help improve the lives of these people.My biggest ethical challenge:
Sometimes during data collection, we meet very poor people who haven’t even eaten since morning. Research is supposed to be voluntary and usually doesn’t come with payment. So the hard part is deciding whether to give them money — which we’re not supposed to do — or just go ahead with the interview and leave. It’s a difficult situation.
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