Keynote Speakers
Mhairi Aitken
Ours Collective
Whose evaluation is it anyway? Centering community voice, youth perspectives, and human rights for responsible use of AI?
Dr Mhairi Aitken is an internationally recognised expert in AI ethics and responsible innovation, with a focus on participatory research and inclusive practice. She leads groundbreaking research on child-centred AI, and in 2025 she organised the world’s first Children’s AI Summit. Mhairi is a Co-Founder and Director of Our AI Collective and a Visiting Senior Lecturer at the Digital Environment Research Institute, Queen Mary University of London. Previously, between 2020 and 2026 Mhairi was Senior Ethics Fellow at The Alan Turing Institute (the UK’s national institute for AI and data science), where she led a groundbreaking programme of research on Children and AI and worked across a range of topics including public voices in AI, data justice, ethics of Generative AI and emerging AI policy and regulation. Mhairi co-developed the Human Rights, Democracy and the Rule of Law Impact Assessment (HUDERIA) tool that was formally adopted by the Council of Europe in 2024. Mhairi is passionate about public engagement with AI, including through performing shows about her research at festivals and in stand-up comedy clubs, she is a frequent contributor to media discussions around AI and data, and was included in the international list of “100 Brilliant Women in AI Ethics”.
Elena Korosteleva
University of Warwick
Democracy Support in an Age of Complexity: Achieving Sustainable Outcomes and the Future Role of Europe and Responsive Evaluation
Elena Korosteleva is Professor of International Politics and Director of the Institute for Global Sustainable Development (IGSD) at the University of Warwick. In 2024 Elena was appointed Chair for the Sustainability Spotlight, Warwick-wide interdisciplinary research network to address sustainability challenges collectively; and was elected to serve on the Scientific Council for COP29. Elena is also a Visiting Professor at the University of Oxford, and Jean Monnet Chair, which she was awarded twice by the European Commission in recognition of her research and teaching excellence.
Professor Korosteleva's research is situated on the innovative intersection of Complex IR, Politics and Governance Studies with a focus on resilience and democracy. Her GCRF UKRI COMPASS+ (2017-23, PI, £4+mln) project received higher commendation for the best International Collaboration of 2021 by the Times Higher Education (THE), despite the COVID19 challenges; and in 2026 Elena received a research award from the University of Warwick for her research culture leadership. Elena is a founder of four cross-disciplinary research Centres on European, Eurasian and Global Studies, including a more recent award-winning ECR Sustainability Training School at Warwick. Elena works closely with His MG (FCDO in particular), Parliament, EU institutions and regional national governments. She is the author of over 100 publications, including my recent OUP single-authored book ‘Complexity and Community in IR, Nurturing Resilience in Central Eurasia’ (2025, Open Access).
Elena Korosteleva also contributed her paper 'Democracy Support in an Age of Complexity: a Central Asian Perspective', as part of the forum Global Perspectives on Democracy Support in Light of the Wars in Gaza and Ukraine (May 2025, pp.), published in International Studies Perspectives.
David Mair
European Commission Joint Research Centre
Democracy and Evidence: a complicated relationship
David joined the European Commission in 1995 and the Joint Research Centre (the Commission's science and knowledge service) in 2011. He is currently Head of Unit responsible for the JRC’s work on democracy, public governance and public administration ("JRC.S.2 Science for Democracy, Public Governance and Administration")
https://knowledge4policy.ec.europa.eu/evidence-informed-policy-making_en
https://cop-demos.jrc.ec.europa.eu/
https://knowledge4policy.ec.europa.eu/organisational-transformation_en
Between 2011 and 2016 he was Head of Unit responsible for the JRC work programme, science advice to policy and foresight. From April 2015 to December 2015 he was Acting Director.
From 1998 to 2011 he worked in DG Health and Consumers on consumer policy strategy, regulatory enforcement and research, data and statistics, as Head of Unit between 2007 to 2011 for consumer market monitoring and analysis, Consumer Markets Scoreboard and work on consumer behaviour. Before that he worked for DG Taxation, the UK Treasury, UBS and the British Army. He studied History at Cambridge University.
Social Media:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/david-mair-b2489b2aa/
@davidmair4.bsky.social