Safe and Ethical AI (SEA) Platform Network · Linking Artificial Intelligence Principles (LAIP)

· Environment and ecosystem flourishing

17. Environmental and ecosystem flourishing should be recognized, protected and promoted through the life cycle of AI systems. Furthermore, environment and ecosystems are the existential necessity for humanity and other living beings to be able to enjoy the benefits of advances in AI. 18. All actors involved in the life cycle of AI systems must comply with applicable international law and domestic legislation, standards and practices, such as precaution, designed for environmental and ecosystem protection and restoration, and sustainable development. They should reduce the environmental impact of AI systems, including but not limited to its carbon footprint, to ensure the minimization of climate change and environmental risk factors, and prevent the unsustainable exploitation, use and transformation of natural resources contributing to the deterioration of the environment and the degradation of ecosystems.

Principle: The Recommendation on the Ethics of Artificial Intelligence, Nov 24, 2021

Published by The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO)

Related Principles

Human, social and environmental wellbeing

Throughout their lifecycle, AI systems should benefit individuals, society and the environment. This principle aims to clearly indicate from the outset that AI systems should be used for beneficial outcomes for individuals, society and the environment. AI system objectives should be clearly identified and justified. AI systems that help address areas of global concern should be encouraged, like the United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goals. Ideally, AI systems should be used to benefit all human beings, including future generations. AI systems designed for legitimate internal business purposes, like increasing efficiency, can have broader impacts on individual, social and environmental wellbeing. Those impacts, both positive and negative, should be accounted for throughout the AI system's lifecycle, including impacts outside the organisation.

Published by Department of Industry, Innovation and Science, Australian Government in AI Ethics Principles, Nov 7, 2019

Overall Vision

Like human beings, the life of all other living beings on Earth deserves respect. A well maintained biodiversity is essential for a living planet, and is the basis for the survival and development of humanity. Protecting biodiversity contributes to the viability of Earth, and promotes the harmonious coexistence and sustainable development of human beings and nature. From the perspective of global ecology and biodiversity, the development of Artificial Intelligence (AI) should shift away from anthropocentrism towards a more ecocentric approach. Human beings and all other living organisms on Earth are common inhabitants of this planet. AI should be used to promote the conservation of biodiversity, to facilitate sufficient habitat for all living organisms, and to ensure that all living organisms have complete ecological functions in the ecosystem in which they live. When using ecosystem services, ethics, public order, and morality should be observed, and living organisms should not be subjected to unnecessary suffering. Endangered organisms with important ecological, scientific, or social value or with close emotional connections with humans should be particularly protected. In order to promote the harmonious development of technology and ecology, especially to promote Biodiversity Conservation, with full considerations of international consensus such as the Convention on Biological Diversity, the UNESCO Recommendation on the Ethics of Artificial Intelligence, and the UNESCO Declaration of Ethical Principles in relation to Climate Change, the following principles are proposed for the development and application of AI for Biodiversity Conservation:

Published by International Research Center for AI Ethics and Governance, Instituteof Automation, Chinese Academy of Sciences，World Animal Protection Beijing Representative Office and other 7 entities in Principles on Artificial Intelligence for Biodiversity Conservation, August 25, 2022

· For human and ecology good

AI technology and its applications should not only serve for the development of human society, but should contribute to the symbiosis of humankind, ecological systems and the environment. Hence they should also generally be beneficial to the control of climate change and the improvement of the ecological environment, and should be used as an enabling technology to support the realization of the overall goals of global climate action and the climate agenda, and contribute to the realization of carbon peaking and carbon neutrality goals.

Published by International Research Center for AI Ethics and Governance, Instituteof Automation, Chinese Academy of Sciences and other 10 entities in Principles on AI for Climate Action, April 26, 2022

· 1. THE KEY PRIORITY OF AI TECHNOLOGIES DEVELOPMENT IS PROTECTION OF THE INTERESTS AND RIGHTS OF HUMAN BEINGS AT LARGE AND EVERY PERSON IN PARTICULAR

1.1. Human centered and humanistic approach. Human rights and freedoms and the human as such must be treated as the greatest value in the process of AI technologies development. AI technologies developed by Actors should promote or not hinder the full realization of all human capabilities to achieve harmony in social, economic and spiritual spheres, as well as the highest self fulfillment of human beings. AI Actors should regard core values such as the preservation and development of human cognitive abilities and creative potential; the preservation of moral, spiritual and cultural values; the promotion of cultural and linguistic diversity and identity; and the preservation of traditions and the foundations of nations, peoples, ethnic and social groups. A human centered and humanistic approach is the basic ethical principle and central criterion for assessing the ethical behavior of AI Actors listed in Section 2 of this Code. 1.2. Recognition of autonomy and free will of human. AI Actors should take necessary measures to preserve the autonomy and free will of human in the process of decision making, their right to choose, as well as preserve human intellectual abilities in general as an intrinsic value and a system forming factor of modern civilization. AI Actors should forecast possible negative consequences for the development of human cognitive abilities at the earliest stages of AI systems creation and refrain from the development of AI systems that purposefully cause such consequences. 1.3. Compliance with the law. AI Actors must know and comply with the provisions of the national legislation in all areas of their activities and at all stages of creation, integration and use of AI technologies, i.a. in the sphere of legal responsibility of AI Actors. 1.4. Non discrimination. To ensure fairness and non discrimination, AI Actors should take measures to verify that the algorithms, datasets and processing methods for machine learning that are used to group and or classify data that concern individuals or groups do not entail intentional discrimination. AI Actors are encouraged to create and apply methods and software solutions that identify and prevent discrimination manifestations based on race, nationality, gender, political views, religious beliefs, age, social and economic status, or information about private life (at the same time, the rules of functioning or application of AI systems for different groups of users wherein such factors are taken into account for user segmentation, which are explicitly declared by an AI Actor, cannot be defined as discrimination). 1.5. Assessment of risks and humanitarian impact. AI Actors are encouraged to: • assess the potential risks of the use of an AI system, including social consequences for individuals, society and the state, as well as the humanitarian impact of an AI system on human rights and freedoms at different stages of its life cycle, i.a. during the formation and use of datasets; • monitor the manifestations of such risks in the long term; • take into account the complexity of AI systems’ actions, including interconnection and interdependence of processes in the AI systems’ life cycle, during risk assessment. In special cases concerning critical applications of an AI system it is encouraged that risk assessment be conducted with the involvement of a neutral third party or authorized official body given that it does not harm the performance and information security of the AI system and ensures the protection of the intellectual property and trade secrets of the developer.

Published by AI Alliance Russia in AI Ethics Code (revised version), Oct 21, 2022 (unconfirmed)

· Plan and Design:

1 AI systems have a significant impact on communities and the ecosystems that they live in; hence AI System Owners should have a high sense of awareness that these technologies may have disruptive and transformative effects on society and the environment. The design of AI systems should be approached in an ethical and sensitive manner in line with the values of prevention of harm to both human beings and the environment. 2 When planning and designing AI systems, due consideration should be given to preventing and helping address social and environmental issues in a way that will ensure sustainable social and ecological responsibility.

Published by SDAIA in AI Ethics Principles, Sept 14, 2022