Where technology meets the human being: Trinity launches Human+
Posted on: 09 June 2020
Trinity College Dublin today launches Human+, a groundbreaking fellowship which places the human at the centre of technology innovation to serve the long-term and collective needs of society.
Co-funded by the European Commission’s Horizon 2020 Marie Sklodowska-Curie Actions, the programme was ranked 2nd in Europe among dozens of applications for its unique approach to driving technological innovation from the human perspective.
An online panel discussion on the 11th of June, ‘Human+Technology Beyond COVID-19’, will mark the launch, bringing together experts from enterprise and academia to discuss why technological design must begin and end with the human experience to the fore, in all of its diversity.
In a world where the word ‘zoom’ has become a verb, the role of technology is ever more prevalent.?Rapid developments in information technology and the impact of AI, data-centric automation and the mass adoption of online engagement have opened unfamiliar frontiers in all areas of society. Big data and machine-learning are challenging the nature of the human experience and transforming our experience of social interaction, medicine, governance, entertainment, journalism, and privacy.
The Covid-19 pandemic has given us a glimpse of how a technology-based future can impact our daily lives across all levels of our society. It is imperative that we study the implications and opportunities of the digital impact on humans, both in the present crisis and beyond Covid-19.
The Trinity Long Room Hub Arts and Humanities Research Institute and the ADAPT Centre ( the world-leading SFI Research Centre for Digital Media technology hosted by Trinity College Dublin) will address this opportunity through the Human+ programme, which connects computer science with arts and humanities researchers and enterprise.
Human+ is a five-year international and interdisciplinary fellowship programme that will create a unique research and training collaboration that integrates expertise and insights from the arts, humanities and computer sciences, as well as real-world scenarios from industry and enterprise.
Dr Patrick Prendergast, Provost of Trinity College said:
“With increasing calls for human-centric approaches to critical questions concerning the rapid expansion of adaptive technologies and their impact on humanity, the securing of the Horizon 2020 Marie Sk?odowska-Curie COFUND Action for Human+ to address these questions has never been more timely. The Human+ programme places Trinity at the forefront of innovation through collaboration between Arts & Humanities, Technology and Industry partners to address real-world problems from the human perspective. These programmes are incredibly competitive and I was particularly delighted to see that this COFUND was ranked second in Europe.”
Professor Jane Ohlmeyer, Director, Trinity Long Room Hub, Arts & Humanities Research Institute, said:
“Many of the world’s most pressing problems today require solutions beyond the scope of one single discipline or industry. The alignment of technology and interdisciplinary research that explores the human experience delivers the potential to advance our fundamental understanding of the role and impact of technology from the human perspective. Tomorrow’s solutions must be informed by the insights of the Arts and Humanities, forged with technological breakthroughs of Computer Science & Engineering and mobilised within the enterprises of the future. “
Professor Vinny Wade, Director of ADAPT Centre and Professor of Computer Science at Trinity College Dublin, said:
“Enterprises are recognising the rapidly emerging macro trend around the concept of human-centric technology to meet societal needs. The Human+ programme is seeking partnership across a range of organisations spanning industry, cultural organisations, government agencies and departments and NGOs/CSOs. We encourage organisations to collaborate with us to realise the benefits of human-centric technology informed by expertise from gender, culture, language, creativity and ethics to drive both business goals and societal impact. “
ENDS