Rethinking 'the Human' in AICEFR A2
16 Apr 2026
Adapted from Guest Contributor, Global Voices • CC BY 3.0
Photo by Steve A Johnson, Unsplash
Xonorika Kira says the phrase “centre the human” can hide a narrow idea of what counts as human. That idea has often dismissed animal, ecological, ancestral and spiritual ways of knowing and left out many people and communities.
She calls for a wider view of intelligence that includes beings, systems and machines. Her practical ideas include creating small, situated datasets based on relationships and consent, and building smaller, slower models and interfaces that focus on community needs rather than endless scale.
Difficult words
- centre — to put something in the most important position
- dismiss — to decide something is not important or truedismissed
- ancestral — related to a person's family from the past
- spiritual — connected with religious or inner feelings
- dataset — a collection of information for study or usedatasets
- consent — permission given by someone for something
Tip: hover, focus or tap highlighted words in the article to see quick definitions while you read or listen.
Discussion questions
- Do you agree that intelligence should include animals, systems and machines? Why?
- Would small, local datasets be better for your community? Why or why not?
- Give one example of a community need that a large company might not notice.
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