Artificial intelligence (AI) is rapidly reshaping ‘the ecology of knowledge in the AI Era’, especially in terms of how knowledge is created, accessed, interpreted, shared and applied across individuals, organisations and societies (Nguyen et al., 2025a). The unprecedented volume and velocity of AI-generated data, information and knowledge offer significant opportunities for learning, innovation and decision-making (Nguyen et al., 2025a). At the same time, they create new challenges for human cognition, professional identity, organisational resilience, environmental sustainability and societal wellbeing (Malik et al., 2022; Nguyen & Malik, 2022).
As individuals increasingly interact with AI-generated and AI-mediated knowledge, concerns are emerging around cognitive overload, information quality, critical thinking and the capacity to distinguish, interpret and meaningfully use knowledge (Malik et al., 2022). AI may augment human expertise and judgement, but excessive dependence on automated systems can also affect professional agency, decision-making autonomy, skill development and individuals’ perceptions of their own expertise (Nguyen et al., 2025b). Understanding how people can preserve and reconfigure their agency, identity and capabilities within increasingly AI-mediated knowledge environments is therefore becoming an important research priority. At the organisational level, responsible AI adoption requires more than technological capability. Organisations must establish governance structures, ethical guardrails and human-centred practices that enable AI to enhance productivity and innovation while protecting employee wellbeing, knowledge integrity, inclusion and organisational resilience. Questions surrounding accountability, transparency, intellectual property, data governance and the validity of AI-generated knowledge are increasingly central to organisational decision-making.
The rapid expansion of AI also has broader societal and environmental consequences. The growth of AI infrastructure and data centres raises important questions around energy consumption, water use, resource demands and environmental sustainability. At the same time, AI technologies may be exploited by malicious or rogue actors to manipulate information, generate deceptive content, appropriate data and knowledge, or disrupt social, institutional and political systems. These developments highlight the need to consider AI responsibility not simply at the individual or organisational level, but as part of a wider socioeconomic and ecological system. This track invites interdisciplinary research examining how AI can be developed, governed and used responsibly to strengthen individual, organisational and societal wellbeing and resilience. We welcome conceptual, empirical and methodological contributions, as well as case studies and practice-based research, addressing the opportunities, tensions and unintended consequences emerging within the evolving ecology of knowledge in the AI era.
This track invites submissions related to the impact of the changing ecology of knowledge in the AI era related to its impacts on the following topics:
Human Agency, Wellbeing and Cognitive Resilience
Responsible AI Governance and Ethical Guardrails
Knowledge Integrity, Validity and Legality
AI for Good, Inclusion and Societal Wellbeing
Sustainable AI and Environmental Resilience
AI Misuse, Regulation and Societal Resilience
Organisational Resilience and Responsible Transformation
What capabilities enable organisations to adapt responsibly as AI technologies continue to evolve?
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