Hero Awards and Afghan Women Rising Build AI Solution Engine for UN Sustainable Development Goals

The Hero Awards and Afghan Women Rising are developing the world's largest "solution engine" for the UN's 17 Sustainable Development Goals, as announced during the Geneva plenary session. According to CIO John Toomey, each of the UN's 169 targets beneath the larger goals is being transformed into a prompt for AI bots, initially using OpenAI's GPTs, Gemini's Gems, and Claude Artifacts, and later evolving into full-fledged AI assistants capable of continuous self-updating and evolving actionable workflows to achieve progress toward the Goals.

Much of the work is currently performed by members of Afghan Women Rising—young women in Afghanistan denied formal education because the Taliban-led government has outlawed their schooling. They build the bots online and then hold in-person discussions to refine prompts and incorporate the human element. "Having these girls design the prompts allows them to sidestep the ban against schooling," says Program Director Amy Chang. "They gain valuable experience building projects that will contribute to sustainability both in and outside of their own country for a long time, and prepare themselves for a time when their talents will be vital for the country's future."

The girls have drawn inspiration from the writings of J. Kutcher, particularly her use of garden plant growth as a metaphor for the spiritual, emotional, and intellectual development of young women. When a protocol is completed, its creator becomes eligible for a Hero Award, provided it suggests previously unknown strategies for advancing the UN targets. Successful efforts are featured on the Hero Awards website and in press releases.

Since the program's announcement six months ago, individuals from other organizations in the Global South have requested participation and will be included in future iterations. These groups include: PARI (People's Archive of Rural India), dedicated to underserved populations in rural India; Siku.org, a nonprofit serving First Nations in the Canadian Arctic and Greenland; Cybersmartafrica.org, a network of thousands of teachers and students in Senegal preserving local cultures and improving digital literacy; Terrastories, an open-source application for South American and Amazonian indigenous communities to map and share oral histories; and Winyama, an Australian indigenous group using cultural mapping to train elders to document Dreamtime stories, songlines, historical land use, and biological data.

The June Hero Award winners are Tara Jensen, Maria Ortiz, Herman Matsui, and Wilhelmina Searles. For more information on the UN's Sustainable Development Goals and targets, visit the UN SDG website. Nominations and inquiries can be directed to [email protected].