by World Federation of Engineering Organizations (WFEO)
The World Federation of Engineering Organizations (WFEO), representing over 30 million engineers worldwide, recognizes the transformative power of artificial intelligence (AI) as a force multiplier for human ingenuity. In this era of unprecedented intelligence amplification and exponential technological growth, we issue this resolution and call to action.
Whereas:
The United Nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, with its 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), remains humanity’s shared blueprint for a prosperous, equitable, and resilient future for this generation and the generations to come. The process must accelerate dramatically in the remaining years to 2030 if we are to claim progress on the goals and targets and make good on the principle to leave no one behind.
AI-enabled companies, including those at the forefront of pure AI development, AI-facilitated services, AI-embedded systems, and AI integrated into physical systems and infrastructure, are experiencing rapid, exponential advancements in capability, efficiency, and scale.
Innovation and breakthroughs are capable of creating market driven models that will be adopted and spread throughout society because they are cheaper, more affordable, and abundant, even for poor communities.
This transformation is emanating from the creativity and exponential growth of intelligence created by private companies, not subsidies or mandates. The main driver for this call for AI commitment to the SDGs is the reputational interest of AI companies, whose relationship with governments and the public will be enhanced by a positive narrative that seeks to cure cancer, end poverty, provide clean water and nutritious food for all, and deliver a higher quality of life through sustainable and resilient energy, housing, buildings, education, and infrastructure to every community and country.
Engineers across all disciplines play a pivotal and indispensable role as the leading profession accelerating the AI revolution and its consequential intelligence amplification.
Engineers are designing advanced algorithms and Large Language Models, constructing and optimizing massive data centres in communities across the land, and planning for ones to be built in space, building sustainable energy facilities and intelligent power grids to meet surging computational demands, and developing secure and efficient computer hardware and software ecosystems.
Engineers are leading the integration of AI into physical systems for real world impact, including the ongoing transformation of the construction business toward AI enabled and AI embedded autonomy for safer, faster, more sustainable, cost effective project delivery and systems resilience.
The engineering profession has an ethical responsibility to society, as leaders in the AI transformation and intelligence amplification from now through the post 2030 horizon, bridging theoretical intelligence with practical, scalable deployment to implement safe and sustainable progress.
Now Be It Resolved:
WFEO calls upon the world’s leading 50 to 100 AI related companies, those experiencing the profound benefits of intelligence amplification, to voluntarily and publicly commit to accelerating progress towards the 2030 SDGs. Each participating company is encouraged to select and commit to one or more SDGs where its expertise can deliver the greatest impact, mobilizing commitments across all 17 SDGs so that the exponential growth of AI intelligence benefits every goal without exception.
WFEO urges the establishment of a dedicated UN Leaderboard, housed under relevant UN mechanisms such as the High level Political Forum on Sustainable Development (HLPF), to publicly track and showcase participating companies’ voluntary advances, contributions, and impacts on SDG progress.
WFEO and engineers in all their organizations and fields offer the hand of partnership to the AI companies. This partnership will mobilize the world’s foremost AI innovators and the global engineering community to co create scalable, market responsive solutions that propel all SDGs to successful conclusion by 2030, and lay the foundation for resilient, intelligent progress through 2050 and beyond.
WFEO calls for the AI companies to select non AI implementing partners who are already engaged in specific SDG implementation projects, enabling market selection of the most effective, least expensive, affordable, high quality, and abundant solutions.
WFEO commits to AI for Good alignment in future sustainable development agendas, sustaining and evolving this initiative beyond 2030, actively participating in post 2030 global discussions already underway under the Pact for the Future framework, and leveraging WFEO’s established roles, including membership in the HLPF Major Groups and Other Stakeholders (MGoS), consultative status with UN ECOSOC, and close collaboration with the International Science Council (ISC).
WFEO will continue to lead the engineering profession in adapting to these transformative shifts through comprehensive education, lifelong training, and capacity building programs, preparing engineers to thrive amid permanent intelligence amplification and AI driven exponential growth through 2050 and beyond.
WFEO must intersect at the highest levels with governments, intergovernmental organizations, international financial institutions, and private sector entities to fulfill its essential role of educating decision makers on evidence based, forward looking pathways that harness AI for sustainable, inclusive prosperity.
WFEO calls upon its National and Affiliated Members, its International Members, and its Associates to champion and disseminate this call to action, ensuring that the voice of 30 million engineers echoes powerfully at the top reaches of national governments, international financial institutions, boardrooms, laboratories, and international forums alike.
Channeling AI for Good:
Together, let us prioritize a collaborative, human centred approach where AI augments rather than replaces human agency, human decision making, and human labour.
Together, let us envision a world where exponential AI intelligence growth is purposefully and responsibly channeled as humanity’s greatest accelerator toward universal prosperity, planetary health, and equity, achieved through voluntary leadership, engineering excellence, and inclusive partnerships that deliver abundance and affordability to all.
Together, let the leaders of the AI transformation rise to this moment, partner boldly with engineers and implementing companies and SDG practitioners, and demonstrate that the historic amplification of intelligence through the AI transformation can serve humanity, protect the planetary systems, and build a sustainable future shared by all.