IEEE Robotics & Automation Magazine - March 2022 - 97

could also be encouraged to improve the
real image of robots in cultural works.
Governance
As discussed in the " Governance
Frameworks for Robotics and the
SDGs " section, for governance frameworks
to work, it is important to establish
common measures of traceability
and transparency across organizations.
Conclusions
In this workshop, the role of robotics in
the achievement of the SDGs was discussed
on several levels, producing precious
content to be discussed in the
robotics community. Robotics present
many opportunities to enable the SDGs
in health care, infrastructures, disaster
response, ecosystem monitoring,
responsible production and consumption,
and even gender equality. They
can also have undesired effects, which
could overshadow positive impacts:
transformations of the job market, environmental
impact, ethical issues, handling
of data, safety, and impact on
norms and values.
The lack of awareness-about robotics
for decision makers, and about the
SDGs for the robotics community-is
an obstacle to capitalizing on these
opportunities. Additionally, a shift in
the problem-solving approach, introducing
human-centered, interdisciplinary
systemic thinking, is necessary to ensure
the long-term relevance of robotic
interventions with respect to the SDGs.
Potential governance frameworks
may support the development and
deployment of robotics toward the
SDGs and help prevent the inhibitor
impacts of robots. They need to consider
the shared responsibility of main
actors along the full lifecycle of the technology
through common transparency
and traceability measures. To develop
such frameworks, it is important to
establish a common language among
policymakers, technology leaders, and
the general public.
The education of children and the
general public can help toward improving
the representation of robotics in
society, while introducing sustainability
in robotics education programs,
enforcing sustainability assessments,
and organizing other workshops and
initiatives should raise SDG awareness
in the robotics community.
To continue this work, a more thorough
survey should be made to identify
enabling and inhibiting the potentials of
robotics. Such a document could better
inspire robotics practitioners in creating
SDG-enabling technology, while defining
the risks that should be prevented
by a governance framework. Additionally,
more interdisciplinary workshops
on this topic or its subthemes would
allow a deeper understanding of the
role of robotics in achieving the SDGs
while raising awareness in the robotics
community. The organizers of the IROS
2021 workshop on robotics and the
SDGs therefore plan to organize further
workshops in major robotics conferences
in 2022, such as the euRobotics
aisbl's European Robotics Forum and
IROS 2022.
Acknowledgment
Vincent Mai is the corresponding
author.
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