Wellington Kōrero
A conversation on culture and identity in an uncertain digital world
Each year the Embassy of Ireland in Wellington brings together voices from Ireland, New Zealand and the Pacific on a shared theme that reflects the values, challenges and opportunities that connect us. The Embassy’s annual flagship dialogue event provides a space for new thinking and collaboration on areas of common interest.
This year, the topic was one of the most important questions of our time: how do we ensure that the technologies shaping our future reflect the identity, culture and language of the communities they serve?
It’s important people remember that technology isn’t neutral. Technology is built based on the biases of the people who build it. That’s why digital sovereignty, indigenous sovereignty, sovereignty of our data, sovereignty of our technology is so important. We need to improve the technology to encompass who we are as a people.
With a shared connection to language, culture and heritage, this question resonates strongly in New Zealand and the Pacific, just as it does in Ireland.
With artificial intelligence and digital systems becoming increasingly embedded in everyday life, the Embassy brought together three expert panels of Māori, Pasifika and Irish voices to examine how rapid advances in technology are changing the way we think about identity and culture.
It’s wonderful to be able to have these conversations. I think there’s so much work being done in the space of ensuring that our data is protected in a way that is consistent with an indigenous perspective. I am just really hopeful we will continue to do this mahi [work] in the space moving forward.
The participants explored what is meant by data sovereignty, how Indigenous perspectives can enhance the design of digital systems and how cultural knowledge should be governed in the age of artificial intelligence.
New Zealand’s work on Māori data sovereignty offers lessons on the role of Indigenous perspectives in digital governance, while Ireland’s experience in protecting and promoting the Irish language and heritage offers a valuable point of connection.
Both countries share an interest in ensuring that technology is developed in ways that are grounded in human experience and values.