The Centre for International Law (CIL), National University of Singapore, is co-organising a joint research seminar on AI Governance for Sustainable Development with the Centre for Sustainable Development Law and Policy (CSDLP), Durham Law School, on 29 July 2026. The event is being held in association with the UNESCO Chair on Artificial Intelligence Law and Sustainability.

Dr Jon Truby, UNESCO Chair on Artificial Intelligence Law and Sustainability and Visiting Research Associate Professor at CIL, will deliver the keynote address. The seminar brings together CIL's work on artificial intelligence, public international law and institutional accountability with CSDLP's work on climate governance, environmental responsibility and sustainable development. It also connects with the UNESCO Chair's programme on accountable AI governance, the environmental effects of AI, international legal cooperation and capacity building.

AI governance is often discussed through the lenses of technological development, risk management and digital competitiveness. The rapid growth of AI infrastructure also raises wider legal and policy questions. These include the energy and water demands of data centres, the environmental cost of compute, the distribution of technological benefits and burdens and the responsibility of public and private actors when AI systems cause social or environmental harm.

Many of these questions cross national borders while domestic rules remain fragmented or incomplete. The seminar will therefore examine how international law, technology regulation and public institutions can provide more consistent responses. It will also consider how AI governance can support the UN Sustainable Development Goals without treating sustainability as separate from questions of accountability, rights and access to remedies.