Fighting For Gender Equity in the World of Artificial Intelligence

Meet Daily Point of Light Award honoree Anika Dugal. Read her story, and nominate an outstanding volunteer or family as a Daily Point of Light.

When ChatGPT debuted during her high school years, Anika Dugal knew the world was changing.

While it could achieve great things, Anika recognized the alarming gender disparities embedded in artificial intelligence. That includes everything from the spread of harmful deepfakes to the way algorithms can discriminate.

“As I started to look more into artificial intelligence and its implications, I was stunned to learn about the gender and racial disparities inside artificial intelligence systems,” Anika explains. “I was learning about how these algorithms can have a lot of ingrained biases, especially toward women of color. Also, in terms of who’s designing these programs, we don’t have very representative groups of developers working on these.”

Anika realized that the best way to combat these inequities would be to amplify the voices of young people and teach them to address the potential ways AI can cause harm. Already very involved with policy advocacy during high school, Anika chose to take her work to the next level. During her junior year, she founded Girls for Algorithmic Justice to advance gender equity in artificial intelligence policy.

Now a first-year student at Duke University studying computer science and public policy, Anika continues her mission to change the system. Anika manages volunteers and facilitates weekly meetings with the executive board, ensuring all participants have the support they need. She is developing another branch called Women for Algorithmic Justice, which is more oriented towards mobilizing college students. She’s even looking into working with professional corporations to try to bring that service aspect into the private sector. Clearly, her mission is successful: Girls for Algorithmic Justice now has over 200 volunteers in 32 states, 18 countries and 12 global chapters.

No matter how big GFAJ grows, Anika’s desire to change the system will always stem from the grassroots level. It’s there she finds the power of young people to mobilize and create a better world.

“I’ve learned that there is a lot of power in youth volunteer work,” says Anika.

Stephanie Choi, chief brand officer for GFAJ and a junior at Canyon Crest Academy, was encouraged by Anika to get involved with the organization. Upon joining, she found a sense of community that was unparalleled.

“I think Anika is a very empowering visionary in this field,” says Choi. “Apart from the day-to-day stuff, we also have discussions where we talk about our mission and how we’re doing personally in challenging circumstances. I think that’s what makes her such a great leader.”

One of Anika’s greatest goals is to educate people about the racial and gender biases in technology and to emphasize the huge risks it can pose. This is particularly important since there aren’t a lot of regulations and policies in place.

As people like Anika work to change these policies, she’ll continue to work with young people to create change. In fact, Anika says the most rewarding part of her work is watching students step up into leadership roles, take a strong stance on artificial intelligence policy, and become very powerful advocates. Her ability to see the capabilities that young people possess is a testament to the fact that any person can make the world a better place, no matter their situation.

Do you want to make a difference in your community like Anika? Find local volunteer opportunities.