A look back at the “Imaginary Territories” workshop

On March 27th, Montreal Digital Spring visited the NAD-UQAC School to host Imaginary territories, a training workshop combining cultural heritage, technology, and artificial intelligence. 

Thanks to the support of IVADO, young people from diverse backgrounds (philosophy, digital arts, design, and film) were able to collectively reflect on cultural representations in digital environments. In direct dialogue with two Indigenous ambassadors from the Mamo/Mamu project, the young participants explored digital technology as a tool for cultural empowerment and socially engaged creation. They also reflected on the profound consequences of the exclusion of indigenous cultures in databases, a reality that compromises the fairness of artificial intelligence systems. The exchange also highlighted the crucial importance of data sovereignty, an essential pillar of First Peoples’ digital self-determination.

The workshop, consisting of a participatory lecture and a practical phase, gave rise to spontaneous and sensitive exchanges on algorithmic biases, ethical issues, access to technologies and the role of AI in cultural preservation. In the practical phase, with hands on the keyboard, everyone was able to create their own “Imaginary territories” using a generative AI tool, stimulating critical reflection and creativity.

The team warmly thanks all participants for their commitment, as well as IVADO and École NAD-UQAC for their invaluable collaboration. These moments of collective learning are a reminder of how essential it is to anchor emerging technologies in human and cultural realities.

A training program supported by IVADO, as part of the Mamo/Mamu project and the Jeunesse QC 2030 program, supported by the Secrétariat à la jeunesse du Québec and presented by Hydro-Québec.