I think the French title for this call is more informative “L’UNESCO et Mila s’associent pour lancer un appel à publications afin de mettre en lumière les faiblesses du développement de l’IA [l’intelligence artificiel].” Here’s my translation (in advance, apologies to all who find it clumsy), ‘UNESCO {United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization) and MILA (Montreal Institute for Learning Algorithms) are issuing a joint call for papers illuminating weaknesses in the development of artificial intelligence.

From UNESCO’s Call for Proposals to highlight blind spots in AI Development webpage (in English),

UNESCO in cooperation with Mila-Quebec Artificial Intelligence Institute [?], is launching a Call for Proposals to identify blind spots in AI Policy and Programme Development. The collective work will explore creative, novel and far-reaching approaches to tackling blind spots in AI.

All contributors are invited to answer the same question: what are the blind spots on which we must shed light in order for AI to benefit all?

Issues can address 1) blind spots in the development of AI as a technology 2) blind spots in the development of AI as a sector, and 3) blind spots in the development of public policies, global governance, and regulation for AI. There are no limits to the subjects to be addressed.  These blind spots could include issues ranging from science fiction and the future of AI, creative deep fakes and the future of misinformation, AI and the future of data driven humanitarian aid, indigenous knowledge and AI, and gender-based violence and sex robots.  Proposals can be in creative formats, and the call for proposals is open to individuals from all academic backgrounds and sectors.   Proposals from all stakeholder groups, particularly marginalized and underrepresented groups, are encouraged, as well as proposals from authors from the global south and innovative formats (artwork, cartoons, videos, etc).

Call for proposals are open until 2 May  2021.

Selected proposals will be confirmed by 25 May.

Final proposals, if in written format, should be between 5000-7000 words and should be written in a style that is accessible to non-AI specialists and received by 1 September 2021.

To ensure inclusivity and a diversity of voices, for accepted contributions outside of academia, authors may request financial support available on a needs-based basis up to 1000 usd.

I really appreciate the breadth of the call with a range of blind spots such as “science fiction and the future of AI, creative deep fakes and the future of misinformation, AI and the future of data driven humanitarian aid, indigenous knowledge and AI, and gender-based violence and sex robots” and, presumably, anything the convenors had not considered.

As well, they haven’t confined themselves to the ‘same old, same old’ contributors, “all stakeholder groups, particularly marginalized and underrepresented groups, are encouraged, as well as proposals from authors from the global south and innovative formats (artwork, cartoons, videos, etc).”

I’m glad to see a refreshing approach being taken to a call for proposals. I wish them good luck.

The Québec connection

Mila (Montreal Institute for Learning Algorithms), UNESCO’s co-host for this call, was founded in 1993 according to its About Mila page,

Founded in 1993 by Professor Yoshua Bengio of the Université de Montréal, Mila is a research institute in artificial intelligence that rallies over 500 researchers specializing in the field of machine learning. Based in Montreal, Mila’s mission is to be a global pole for scientific advances that inspire innovation and the development of AI for the benefit of all.

Since 2017, [emphasis mine] Mila is the result of a partnership between the Université de Montréal and McGill University, closely linked with Polytechnique Montréal and HEC Montréal. Today, Mila gathers in its offices a vibrant community of professors, students, industrial partners and startups working in AI, making the institute the world’s largest academic research center in machine learning.

Mila, a non-profit organization, is internationally recognized for its significant contributions to machine learning, especially in the areas of language modelling, machine translation, object recognition and generative models.

Unmentioned, the Pan-Canadian Artificial Intelligence (AI) Strategy was created and funded by the Canadian federal government in 2017. One of the beneficiaries was Mila. (Odd how 2017 was the year Mila found so many academic partners in its home province.) From the Pan-Canadian AI strategy webpage on the Invest Canada website (Note: Links have been removed),

The artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning revolution is well underway, and Canada is at its forefront. From top-ranked educational institutions and market-leading tech companies to world-renowned researchers, Canada’s AI ecosystems are leading global AI developments.

To continue to foster this growth and maintain its leadership position, Canada launched the $125M Pan-Canadian Artificial Intelligence Strategy in 2017—making it the first country to release a national AI strategy.

…

The Pan-Canadian AI Strategy is founded on a partnership between the Canadian Institute for Advanced Research (CIFAR) and the three centres of excellence: the Alberta Machine Intelligence Institute (AMII) in Edmonton, the Vector Institute in Toronto, and the Montreal Institute for Learning Algorithms (Mila) [all emphases mine] in Montreal. Together, they provide the support, resources, and talent for AI innovation and investment.

I don’t know where “Mila-Quebec Artificial Intelligence Institute” comes from. It’s not on their own website and I’ve never seen Mila called that anywhere other than on this UNESCO call.