Shanghai forum explores knowledge governance and linguistic justice in Global South

Academics from around the world gathered in Shanghai last week to discuss intercultural research, knowledge co-construction, and language governance through Global South perspectives.

The Knowledge Co-Construction and Dissemination in the Global South International Forum & the 11th Forum for Emerging Scholars in Language Studies, held from July 11-12 at Shanghai University of Finance and Economics, brought together scholars from countries including China, Finland, Australia, Germany, Vietnam, Malaysia, and the United States, and featured 12 keynote speeches addressing critical challenges facing Global South knowledge systems.

Professor Sender Dovchin of Australia's Curtin University discussed the linguistic discrimination rooted in colonial history, language ideologies, and institutional structures, and called for greater linguistic justice to address these persistent inequalities.

Fred Dervin, a professor at the University of Helsinki and fellow of the Finnish Academy of Science and Letters, warned that artificial intelligence risks perpetuating existing biases, describing AI as both a mirror reflecting prejudices and a potential tool for cross-cultural dialogue.