Presented by OISE's Sustainability & Climate Action Network
AI and the Living World: Toward Ecological and Transformative AI Literacy
SCAN Webinar
Artificial intelligence is reshaping education at a remarkable pace - but what does its rise mean for the planet? In this interactive webinar, OISE alum Dr. Maria Vamvalis introduces the often-invisible ecological footprint of AI, from energy consumption and carbon emissions to water use and resource extraction, and explores what this means for educators committed to sustainability. Drawing on research in climate justice pedagogy, she'll also briefly introduce transformative thinking habits that can help learners move beyond passive consumption of technology toward critical, relational, and regenerative engagement with it. This session invites you to slow down, think critically, and reimagine what responsible learning with technology can look like for both people and the planet. Please register in advance.
About the Speaker
Dr. Maria Vamvalis
Dr. Maria Vamvalis is an award-winning educator, researcher, and systems thinker with over 20 years of experience at the intersection of climate justice, transformative learning, and regenerative systems change. She serves as Director at The Critical Thinking Consortium (TC²), where she works with educators and school leaders across Canada to embed critical inquiry, equity, and transformative thinking habits into education. Her doctoral research at OISE (University of Toronto) explored climate justice pedagogies that nurture learner agency, well-being, and collective action.
