AI and Disability Rights: Rebuilding Ukraine

by Sofia Melnychuck

Sofia Melnychuck is a rising third-year undergraduate at Harvard University pursuing a double major in Slavic Literature & Languages and Applied Mathematics with a focus on AI and computational neuroscience. Her academic focus is on using quantitative methods to study cultural acts of resistance against the Soviet Union—primarily in Ukraine and the Baltic states.

Sofia Melnychuck is a rising third-year undergraduate at Harvard University pursuing a double major in Slavic Literature & Languages and Applied Mathematics with a focus on AI and computational neuroscience. Her academic focus is on using quantitative methods to study cultural acts of resistance against the Soviet Union—primarily in Ukraine and the Baltic states.

Just two months after Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, an estimated 2.7 million disabled people in Ukraine were at risk of having no access to such necessities as water, food, medications, and access to shelter (“Ukraine: 2.7”). With injured soldiers and an incalculable number of people now experiencing PTSD and other traumas, it is important that discussions of building up Ukraine frequently engage disabled voices and experiences. This not only emphasizes the immediate need to begin the rebuilding process, and brings visibility to the often-hidden challenges of disabled voices, but it also reinforces Ukraine’s commitment to implementing measures that fulfill the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD), which Ukraine ratified in 2009.

The scale of the navigational risks, from infrastructure and transportation that Russia has destroyed, magnifies the importance of accessible infrastructure.

I believe that a cautious use of artificial intelligence (AI) is a key tool that could be used to support a quick rebuilding of Ukraine, with a deliberate focus on supporting people with disabilities. Ukraine could develop an off-line service that uses publicly available, high-resolution satellite imagery to map the most accessible and efficient navigational routes, taking into account nearly real-time changes to landscapes, destruction, and any user disabilities. This would be made possible by a simple program equipped with AI, that could classify images with navigational hazards. After an initial release in those regions with substantial, easier-to-classify infrastructural damage, this program would likely then be able to provide information for landscapes throughout Ukraine even without damage, giving permanency to this program in supporting disabled Ukrainians find the most accessible routes. A substantial limitation to programs like this would be potential Russian interference and cyberattacks. However, this very real threat could be diminished by using only already publicly available imagery, ensuring the program is highly regulated, and designing it to work entirely offline without storing the user’s data or using any location GPS services. I think a careful investigation into this could be justified, given the potential benefits of services like this.

By developing potential programs like the one proposed here, Ukraine could both promote an immediate rebuilding process and see various benefits in the economy. The development of technology like this would stimulate Ukraine’s technology sector and increase the number of participants in the labor market. This would also position Ukraine as both a leader in AI regulations and necessary data privacy, as well as accessibility. In addition, developing actual and perceived safer infrastructure could encourage more internationally displaced Ukrainians to return to Ukraine. This and infrastructure initiatives would also encourage more disabled Ukrainians, Ukrainians with PTSD, and injured veterans to be fully integrated into the community and have their voices heard at the peace-building table.

I am deeply grateful to HUSI’s support in empowering me with more knowledge to be able to contribute meaningfully and directly both to the building up of the process and to disability rights in Ukraine. It was a joy and an honor to learn from my peers, from my professor, and from the tremendous programming of HUSI.