International Women’s Day Special Event on March 6th: Inclusion Through Innovation: Can AI bridge the gender gap in society? – Talk, Q&A and Reception

The College Women’s Association of Japan (CWAJ) will celebrate International Women’s Day 2025 with a public event: Inclusion through Innovation. Leading researchers will discuss AI’s potential to hinder and to promote gender equality in society. The first talk on gendered innovations will present the failure of scientific research historically to serve women and minority groups. The second will highlight the potential of AI to identify and correct gender biases in hiring processes. The third will discuss the broader implications of AI on social inequality, noting how data biases could worsen disparities and proposing ways to make AI more inclusive and equitable for all. An interactive Q&A discussion will be moderated by Mari Christine. The evening will conclude with a networking reception.

The program will be held in Japanese. The speakers at the event are:

 Masako Ishii-Kuntz, Ph.D.: Trustee and Vice President of Ochanomizu University in charge of research, international relations and gender equality, and Director of the Institute for Gendered Innovations.

Izumi Nitta: Senior Research Manager at the Artificial Intelligence Laboratory of Fujitsu Limited, and Visiting Associate Professor of Ochanomizu University.

Yuko Itatsu, Ph.D.: Professor at the Graduate School of Interdisciplinary Information Studies at the University of Tokyo, and Director of the B’AI Global Forum, a research and education project on the social impact of AI, CWAJ Study Abroad Scholar 2000.

 Moderator: Mari Christine: Former UN habitat goodwill ambassador, intercultural promoter, CWAJ member

International Women’s Day honors the social, economic, cultural, and political achievements of women. On this day, groups and organizations across the world will advocate for policies and resources to support gender equality. This year, the United Nations is calling for the empowerment of the next generation of women as catalysts for change. CWAJ is an organization that has worked for the advancement of women for 75 years. CWAJ member and lead organizer of this event, Marijke Munsiff, explained the motivation: “Together, we must continue to take action that promotes gender equality and to discover ways to use technological innovation to create an inclusive and equitable society for all.”