Update from Global Grant Scholar: Evani Radiya-Dixit

My name is Evani Radiya-Dixit, and I had the incredible opportunity to conduct research at the University of Cambridge from 2021 to 2022 with the support of the Rotary Global Grant Scholarship. At Cambridge, I examined the risks and harms of police use of facial recognition surveillance in the UK. Specifically, I developed an audit to assess the ethics and legality of police use of facial recognition technology, and then applied this audit to three British police deployments of the technology. This experience has led me to my current work on the societal impact of technology.

Following my research at Cambridge, I have been pursuing a master’s degree in Sociology at Stanford University. Here, I have been focusing on the impact of surveillance technology on society, especially on communities of color and other marginalized groups. In April of this year, I organized a panel on this topic, where I brought together activists and researchers whose work I had read in the UK. This work drew on the engagements that I had with activists, civil society groups, and researchers in the UK. In August, I published a brief discussing takeaways from the panel with the Stanford Center for Comparative Studies in Race and Ethnicity.
 
At Stanford, I was also a teaching assistant for a course on tech ethics and policy. Additionally, I have taken courses on social science methods, the sociology of science, and the role of race in education. Over the upcoming months, I will continue to take classes that build on the learnings and experiences that I had through the Rotary 

Evani’s Scholarship Year

Nevada City Rotary was delighted to extend a warm welcome to Rotary Global Scholar, Evani Radiya-Dixit and her parents on Thursday August 25.  Evani presented an inspiring overview of her year in Cambridge conducting research at the Minderoo Centre for Technology and Democracy at the University of Cambridge as a Rotary Global Scholar.  Her focus was the ethical use of facial recognition technologies. 
 
Evani reaffirmed that her research aligns with Rotary's work in peacebuilding and conflict prevention by revealing the risks and harms of facial recognition and by informing tech policy in a manner that mitigates discrimination and promotes peace.
 
Pictured with Evani and her parents are District Grants chair Bill Boon and the Nevada City Rotary Global Scholarship Committee Co-President Carolyn Feuille, Treasure/PP Tom Ryan and PP Tom Milam.  
Evani was sponsored by The Rotary Foundation, District 5190, Nevada City Rotary and Grass Valley Rotary. She was hosted in the UK by Cambridge Sawston Rotary Club.
 
Bill Boon and Tom Ryan oversee Carolyn Feuille as she attempts the final approval to close out and release Evani’s Global Scholarship Grant report to Rotary International.  A big thank you to Tom, Bill and all for the behind the scenes efforts to manage and complete our Rotary Global Grant!
 
We congratulate and salute Evani for her critical leading edge facial recognition research and ethical policy development work.