Responsible Computing Challenge

What does the term Responsible Computing mean to you? 

Computers have dramatically changed how humans live because of their wide-reaching applications. However, computers also come with a lot of unintended consequences like risks of data leakage, inappropriate usage (think TikTok), environmental concerns, and to some extent, existential threats (Think dystopian concepts like rogue AI and robot uprising). 

Last week I had a privileged chance to discuss the concept of Responsible Computing and how it can be infused into the university syllabus. I joined stakeholders from academia, industry players, private enterprises, and government institutions for a roundtable discussion aimed at gathering feedback on how to infuse RC into the university curriculum, especially for students taking computer science, IT, Software Engineering, and other IT-related programs. 

The Responsible Computing Challenge is a concerted effort bringing industry leaders such as Omidyar Network, Mozilla, Schmidt Futures, Craig Newmark Philanthropies, Mellon Foundation, and USAID. The aim is to equip graduating technology students to adopt holistic thinking on matters of design of computer applications and the use of computer resources in ways that promote societal ethical norms and create responsible global citizens who use computers for the greater good while also remaining mindful of the nexus between computing technologies and the environmental, sustainability, governance issues. 

I approached this discussion by looking at the following facets of RC: 
  • Efficient use of computing resources; Think responsible data centers and what they can do to reduce their carbon footprints by adopting clean energy sources like solar. 
  • Computer wastes and how to handle them. Think landfills and how to dispose of e-waste, including computer parts & recycling. 
  • Efficient code: How can we bring responsibility to the level of individual developers. How can we embed RC into our responsible design principles and architecture patterns? How can we infuse “carbon impact” awareness and think about each line of code we write.
  • Think quality of design and code quality. How easy is it to maintain your code? If your code or design requires rework; what amount of carbon footprint does that translate into? Think of vulnerabilities; the type of tools, open-source vs. proprietary software. How reusable are your code snippets or microservices? Why should a developer care about efficient code beyond his/her professional pride for a job well done? How do we tie the concepts of “well-architected” and “good engineering practices” to the greater good of ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance)?
  • Think of data handling and how developers get exposed to a lot of sensitive data; mostly Personal Identifiable Information (PII). The question is how do we impress on everyone to be more responsible in the way they handle data? What are the ethical, legal, and social responsibilities of those who handle PII? 
  • Think of cyber threats and how rampant they have become lately. How do we train engineers to always be mindful of threats and vulnerabilities of their apps and software? Think bug bounties, and how we do “responsible disclosures.” Think white-hat hackers versus black-hat hackers? How do we encourage engineers to experiment without crossing the line, or developing nefarious intents? 
  • Think of net neutrality and the responsibility it bestows upon players in the industry to ensure data on the internet is treated equally by ISPs, government agencies, and regulators. RC ensures zero discrimination in terms of content, user profile, application, or type of device. Think policies such as blocking or filtering online content (discussion on TikTok & other social media); think preferential internet speeds based on who the users may be; etc. 
  • Think of increased digital surveillance, and recommendation algorithms that amplify misinformation. How can we avoid embedding existing inequities and amplify them by computing technologies so much so that we harm the most vulnerable?
  • In this roundtable discussion, we also got a chance to review the Ethical Software Assessment Tool (ESAT) developed by Dedan Kimathi University of Technology students. This tool seeks to score software applications based on a wide range of metrics that are widely categorized into three domains: Autonomy, Harm & Benefit, and Justice. To get a good score on the ELSAT tool, a software application must score favorably on matters such as human control and oversight, transparency (think Terms & Conditions, and how critical information often gets buried in the T&C pages), consent, safety & wellbeing, non-discrimination (think computer/software usability and assistive technologies), and efficiency, among other things.

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