Helena A. Haxvig
(She/They)
Third-year PhD student at the University of Trento (Italy), Department of Information Engineering and Computer Science. With a background in Techno-Anthropology, they specialize in human-technology relations, focusing on Participatory Design and sustainable AI. Their research is grounded in feminist and queer Human-Computer Interaction (HCI), critically examining the ethical and societal implications of biased (AI) systems.
“Zeros and ones, if we are not careful, could deepen the divides between haves and have-nots, between the deserving and the undeserving – rusty value judgments embedded in shiny new systems.”
– Ruha Benjamin, Race After Technology: Abolitionist Tools for the New Jim Code
Image by Liber Menendéz
Curriculum Vitae
Nov.2022-> (University of Trento)
Since 2022 I have been a PhD student at the Department of Information Engineering and Computer Science focusing on Artificial Intelligence and Participatory Design. My focus lies mainly on gender bias in Large Language Models (LLMs) explored through the generation of Synthetic Personas. Furthermore, I explore how we might co-design and use said Synthetic Personas as tools to question the bias in other technologies, moving towards better inclusive design.
Additionally I work as a teaching assistant for a course on Participatory Design for Master’s students in HCI.
Aug.2021-Oct.2022 (Aalborg University)
I was partially employed at the Department of Sustainability and Planning, taking part in the teaching of the Bachelor and Master’s degree in Techno-Anthropology. The second part was with the cross-department research centre on Sustainable and Digital Transformations TECH4SDT), where we were developing new approaches to research and innovation.
Additionally, I took part in an Erasmus+ project under the project title “The Post-Human Architect: A Methodology for Educating to Sustainable Social Innovation in Decentralized Areas”.
Sep.2015-May.2021 (Aalborg University)
I completed my Bachelor and Master’s degree in Techno-Anthropology at Aalborg University. Here I started my journey of understanding and shaping the interaction between human and technology as well as between technical experts and users of technology. Additionally, I learned to navigate in and work with complex socio-technical problems with multiple actors as well as combining technological change with empirical studies.
Image by Liber Menendéz
Me, personally.
I am 29 and from Denmark. I grew up north of Copenhagen but lived in Aalborg 7 years, first to study and afterwards to work at Aalborg University. In the fall of 2022 I moved to Trento in Italy to start my PhD journey.
Besides spending my free time with a good book, in nature, or with animals, I also enjoy being creative in almost any shape or form, but I am partial to painting in abstract and crocheting.
