We are pleased to invite proposals for student presentations and posters at the Ethical Tech for a Global Future (ETGF) Symposium, to be held at the University of Waterloo’s Davis Centre on Thursday, October 2, 2025. If you have completed or are currently working on a project related to the ethical dimensions of tech development, issues surrounding responsible innovation, or the implications of emerging technology for social justice, please submit a proposal for consideration by Wednesday, September 17!
Why should you participate?
The University of Waterloo is a community of innovators and has been recognized as the most innovative University in Canada. Our institution takes pride and responsibility in its status as a global leader in cultivating technology-oriented innovation. As part of its recently launched Global Futures program, the university explicitly commits to “addressing the world’s most pressing challenges.” Many of those challenges are rooted in technological change and disruption.
The ETGF symposium invites the University of Waterloo community, along with stakeholders in the surrounding regions, to come together and discuss how to “ensure a safe and human-centered digital future.” During the symposium, participants will have the opportunity to:
- Learn from renowned scholars and professionals working in diverse fields who embed values related to ethics, justice, and responsibility in their approach to technological innovation;
- Interact with current UWaterloo students as they share their own ideas about how values- and justice-oriented technological innovation can make meaningful impact on society;
- Contribute to a collaborative network of creative, critical, and diverse perspectives working towards equitable and just approaches to technology in current society.
Keynote Speaker
Dr. Maurita T. Harris (Wilfrid Laurier University, Director of the Well-Tech Research & Design Laboratory) will deliver the symposium’s keynote address. ETGF is funded by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC) in partnership with the University of Waterloo’s Black Faculty Collective/Black Studies and the Critical Media Lab (CML).
Who can participate and what can you present?
Undergraduate and graduate students from any faculty (Engineering, Arts, Science, Math, Health) are encouraged to submit their work for consideration.
Topics of interest include but are not limited to:
- Ethical Design in AI and Digital Technologies
- Ethics in the University Classroom and Beyond
- AI Literacy and Social Equity
- Industry Perspectives on Value-Centred Innovation
- Interdisciplinary Approaches to Technology Ethics
- Ethics, Regulation, and Policy for Emerging Technologies
Presentations will be 3-5 minutes in length, followed by a Q&A period. Visual aids (i.e. slide decks) are welcome but not required.
Posters will be on display throughout the day, with designated “poster presentation” times for conversation and networking with symposium attendees.
Please note that ETGF student presentation and poster sessions will be held IN-PERSON.
Submission Instructions & Deadlines
Proposals for both presentations and posters should be submitted online:
The following information is required:
- Full name
- UWaterloo email address
- Student status (undergrad/grad), faculty, and program
- Whether you are proposing a presentation or a poster
- Times you are available
- Project title
- [Uploaded as a PDF] A250-300-word abstract that summarizes the presentation or poster’s main topic, idea, argument, or research question (relevance to the symposium should be clear); methodologies/theories used; and relationship to existing scholarship in the field. PDF formatting requirements: 11-point font, Arial, single-spaced, minimum 1” margins; use “[AUTHORLASTNAME]-ETGF.pdf” as the file name.
You may propose up to ONE presentation and ONE poster as a single or first author (you can be listed as a second author on multiple submissions).
The submission deadline is Wednesday, September 17th, 2025.
Evaluation Criteria
Submissions will be reviewed by the organizing committee based on the following criteria:
- Relevance to symposium theme/subthemes
- Quality (e.g., of arguments, methodology, etc.)
- Significance of conclusions to society and to scholarship
- Application of academic knowledge to real-world contexts
- Originality of argument
- Clarity (e.g., organization, writing)
Notifications will be sent by Wednesday, September 24th, 2025.
Awards & Publication Opportunities
All presenters will receive certificates of recognition. Awards will be presented for “Best Presentation” and “Best Poster” at the Undergraduate and Graduate levels.
Student contributors to the ETGF Symposium may be invited to expand and develop their presentations or posters for publication in the IEEE Technology and Society Magazine.
Questions?
For more information, please contact ETGF student session organizers Jacqueline Cardoso and Kujang Nataya at: ETGFquestions@gmail.com