Civic Art Lab 2026 | Entanglements: AI, Sustainability, Design

Our 12th annual Civic Art Lab examines the rapidly developing intersections between artificial intelligence (AI) and sustainability, art, and design. While AI technologies consume significant energy and material resources, they also offer new possibilities for addressing complex environmental and social challenges. These dynamics reveal a complex web of entanglements between technological innovation, ecological systems, human communities, labor and governance.

2026 Lab Schedule

12 pm Welcome, Laura Scherling and Jeff Kasper

12:15 pm: Youth for Privacy (workshop)

1:00 pm: Lunch and Analogue STAT (workshop) by Yasmeen Abdallah

2-4:30 pm Presentations (20 minute per presentation)

C.J. Reilly, Ground Truth: Connecting Student Forest Research, GIS, and AI for Community Stewardship

Zhenzhen Qi, Multiplicity AI: What can LLMs learn from multiplayer video games

Chantel Ross, Who Owns The Farm

Michelle Cortese, Wearable AI & Human Agency

Lauren Mushro, Down with the Em Dash: Linguistic Monoculture and DIY Press

Nishra Ranpura, All Models are Mortal

Sidra Rizvi, From Click to Waste: How SHEIN’s Deceptive Design Fuels Overconsumption

4:30 pm: Analog AI Triptych: A Foundations Project (workshop) by Michael Medeiros

5:15 pm: Happy Hour at Harlem Hops

Civic Art Lab is a hosted by GreenspaceNYC (www.greenspacenyc.org). Proposals may consider didactic or interactive elements that encourage remote participation as well as face-to-face interaction, in order to spur ideas over the multi-day course of the lab. This may include participatory art, time-based media, performance, group dialogue, interactive elements, games, or learning materials, in addition to more traditional programs such as talks and panel discussions.

Co-Directors & Founders / GREENSPACENYC + Civic Art Lab: Laura Scherling, Jeff Kasper

Questions? Contact: Laura, lss2165@tc.columbia.edu