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Caribbean Experts Discuss Ethical Recommendations for Neurotechnology
Neurotechnology leads scientific and medical innovation, offering potential to revolutionize treatments for neurological disorders, enhance cognitive abilities, and deepen our understanding of consciousness. Progress in this field could integrate neurotechnology into education, labor, and other sectors. However, these advancements raise ethical concerns such as privacy, social inequalities, and potential misuse of technology, threatening individual autonomy and control, and ultimately compromising human dignity and freedom. Addressing these ethical issues is crucial to leverage neurotechnology's benefits while mitigating risks.
Accordingly, UNESCO is dedicated to developing a global normative framework on neurotechnology ethics. Following a decision at the General Conference in November 2023, UNESCO initiated a regional Recommendation. The first draft was created by an Ad Hoc Expert Group (AHEG) after their April 2024 meeting in Paris.
On July 12, 2024, the University of the West Indies (UWI) St. Augustine Campus, Faculty of Medical Sciences, hosted the Caribbean Sub-regional Consultation on the draft Recommendation on the Ethics of Neurotechnology. The session was chaired by Professor Hariharan Seetharaman, Dean of the Faculty of Medical Sciences at UWI, and Dr. Derrick Aarons, a bioethicist and founding president of the Caribbean arm of the Bioethics Society, with support from the UNESCO Office for the Caribbean.
This Regional Consultation was vital for amplifying Caribbean voices to ensure that neurotechnology advancements, often developed outside the region, protect human rights and benefit everyone.
The consultation gathered around 30 experts and stakeholders from the English and Dutch-speaking Caribbean Small Island Developing States (SIDS). Participants included representatives from national institutions, civil society, the public and private sectors, ethicists, healthcare professionals, academia, economists, and youth representatives.
Anna Paolini, Director and Representative for the UNESCO Office for the Caribbean highlighted the importance of proper usage, equitable distribution, and mitigating potential risks of neurotechnology. She also emphasized the pivotal role of Caribbean nations in leveraging neurotechnology for sustainable development.
“Neurotechnology advancements have the potential to benefit not just the medical community, but all of humanity. It is imperative to traverse this landscape ethically and inclusively, ensuring equitable distribution of its advantages while carefully mitigating its risks. Collective action, including from the Caribbean region is essential for using this powerful tool for a balanced and sustainable development.”
Dafna Feinholz, Director of the AI Division of Research, Ethics, and Inclusion at UNESCO, presented an overview of neurotechnology, its applications, and UNESCO’s role in addressing related issues.
Furthermore, Dr. Pedro Maldonado Arbogast, a neuroscience professor at the University of Chile and UNESCO’s Ad Hoc Expert Group (AHEG) member, presented the draft Recommendation on the Ethics of Neurotechnology. He outlined its structure and emphasized core values like human dignity, human rights, diversity, and inclusivity. He also highlighted ethical principles such as self-determination, freedom of thought, trustworthiness, fairness, and non-discrimination.
While neurotechnology and artificial intelligence are closely related, it's important to distinguish between them. Although many countries in our region may not develop neurotechnology, they will still experience its impact. This meeting allows us to voice our perspectives and contribute to the recommendations
Participants actively discussed definitions, scope, values, principles, and policy recommendations. They stressed addressing issues for groups in situations of vulnerability such as neurodiverse individuals, the incarcerated, and those with disabilities. There was a call for non-exploitative research in African and Caribbean countries, regular audits, and transparent research ethics. These aim to foster a more inclusive, ethical, and comprehensive approach to neurotechnology.
This virtual Consultation for the Caribbean sub-region is part of a broader series of multi-stakeholder discussions across the globe. The AHEG will consider the wide range of perspectives gathered during the regional consultations for enhancing the draft Recommendation. The intergovernmental phase will occur in spring 2025, with the final version set to be presented at UNESCO's 43rd General Conference in November 2025.
