On 12 December 2023, an international conversation laboratory, “Media literacy and cognitive aspects in the age of artificial intelligence” was held in Valmiera, organised by Vidzeme University of Applied Sciences in cooperation with the Latvian National Commission for UNESCO and with support from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Latvia. In the conversation laboratory, it was explained how the perception of disinformation is affected by artificial intelligence and how the cognitive aspects of media literacy are affected from a psychological point of view. The workshop was held to raise awareness among the general public of cognitive processes related to media literacy and of how artificial intelligence and modern technologies affect the creation and consumption of media content.
This was the first interdisciplinary event for such sectors in Latvia, bringing together experts and practitioners in the field of neurocognitive and communication research from Latvia, Sweden, the United Kingdom, Estonia, Lithuania, and Morocco.
At the opening of the event, those present were also addressed by the Ambassador-at-Large, Director of the UNSC Task Force, Andrejs Pildegovičs. He underlined that media literacy was a topical and important issue at the United Nations structures as well. Latvia, while running as a candidate in the 2025 elections to the United Nations Security Council for the term of 2026–2027, is actively involved in the formulation of the United Nations information policy and devotes particular attention to combating disinformation, improving media literacy, security of journalists, and freedom of the media.
“We hope that a conversation laboratory of this kind will build up Latvia’s experience and expertise in these areas, and we will be able to put it to good use if elected,” Andrejs Pildegovičs noted.
UNESCO’s Chair of Media and Information Literacy and Science Literacy, which has been in operation at Vidzeme University of Applied Sciences since 2022, was also officially inaugurated at the end of the negotiating laboratory event.
The target audience of the event were professionals and everyone interested in the collection and processing of information.
Follow the conversation laboratory here