Passion Talks 2022 will take place in a virtual interactive space on November 5th, 9-11 AM PST. This will be an opportunity to present alongside other amazing people at a Poster Session organized around the topics and peer groups we are passionate about. We are excited to offer this unique global experience in sharing and receiving collaboration opportunities and encouragement to one another through in-depth and meaningful discourse. To sign-up, please fill out this form by August 15th: bit.ly/passiontalks22.
If you still aren’t sure about submitting a talk, come check out a preview of the event at our Open House on August 20th (9-10 AM PST) before you decide: bit.ly/pt2022oh. A two-week extension for talks will be granted to anyone who signs up for the Open House.
Come experience a preview sample of the November Passion Talks 22 conference on August 20th. Meet the Program Committee and Session Chairs and get an orientation on how we intend to shape spaces together.
We are excited about announcing some of our first Passion Talks 2022 sessions below:
SESSION: Health
As part of this year’s overall conference theme “Shaping Spaces,”presentations on any health topic are welcome! This year we are making a specific call for topics on Mental Health & Addiction as communities are facing rising rates of mental illness and addictions following the COVID-19 pandemic. Illicit drug overdoses now surpass 100,000 deaths annually. Alcohol-related deaths have risen by 25%. We also see communities of color disproportionately affected by alarming overdose rates, complicated by no/limited access to preventative treatment and recovery services.
We anticipate new hope-filled perspectives and impactful insights through our Health Session at Passion Talks, as healthcare could benefit from cross-sector collaborations for effective innovation. Unlike other conferences, we aim to foster diverse cross-disciplinary engagement to inspire conversations and collaborations across silos commonly found as barriers in healthcare.
SESSION: Building a Future with Artificial Intelligence
We are hosting a Christians in Technology & AI workshop that is focused on general topics relating to bringing a Christian perspective to recent innovations in technology and AI. This is the inaugural year of this workshop and we will focus on posters to foster exciting discourse about the intersection of AI and faith. To bring together a diversity of perspectives and ideas, we invite submissions presenting research on topics including but not limited to the following:
- Ethical AI (Data Ethics, Ethical Algorithm Design)
- Explainable AI and AI Safety
- ML Fairness and Bias in Language Models
- Responsible AI and AI for Social Good
- Bible translation and faith-based AI applications
We acknowledge that Tech and AI are rapidly evolving fields, and so we welcome interdisciplinary submissions that do not fit neatly into existing categories, as well as work that addresses the social impact of machine learning.
SESSION: Faith & Artificial Intelligence
We are hosting a Christian in Technology & AI workshop on the topic of “Faith & AI”. With AI advancing in rapid speed, the implications of AI to Christian faith and its practices have not been catching up. To bring together a diversity of perspectives and ideas, we invite submissions presenting research on topics including but not limited to the following:
- The trajectory of AI: Is it a path to autonomy, or is it a tool subdued by man to serve the common good of society?
- What are the ethical frameworks that need to put in place to prevent the potential harm and abuse of AI?
- The potential theological disruptions as a result of AI. For example:
- Can robots pray?
- Does God answer robot’s prayer?
- Can singleton be superior than human?
- What is human?
- Can AI create a digital version of man?
- What might be the interaction of AI, humanity, and the Holy Spirit as the church seeks guidance in the future?
- Why is AI a great door to talk about the Gospel?
- Can machine have emotions and self-consciousness?
SESSION: Arts x Resistance
Artists in Community have experienced harmful practices within the entertainment industry, LO’s focus is creating new practices that repair the harm of what has come before. The content that is fostered within LO speaks to the injustices many people have experienced and gives them a platform to be seen and appreciated.
SESSION: Blockchains for a Better World
The theme of ‘Shaping Spaces’ for Passion Talks 2022 focuses on the question: “How do we create impactful spaces wherein we can live out our passions?”
For our poster session we’re asking members of the global Christians in Crypto & Blockchain (CiCB) network to share their vision for the industry. Our members will tell data-driven stories of how specific uses of Web3 technologies have the potential to positively transform our world while mitigating negative externalities. We invite submissions to present personal research on but not limited to the following topics:
- DeFi
- Identity Management
- Security, Privacy, and Encryption
- Facilitating Smart Contracts
- Supply Chain Analysis
- Building excellent protocols
- NFT Marketplaces
- Blockchain facilitating Gospel witness
SESSION: Innovation
This year’s Innovation theme is towards shaping impactful spaces through adapting new solutions and ideas. For the past year, we’ve seen substantial changes in our outdated institutions, traditions, and practices. As innovators we hold strong commitments towards trying new things through the spaces in which we collaborate and impact. 2022 is a year where there will be revitalized inspiration for liberating the old and realizing the new. We look forward to thoughtfully and prayerfully inventing the future together.
Passion Talks International 