May 27 2025, 11:00 - 11:50 (AWST)
Digital is in Deakin University’s DNA. Recognising the transformative potential of genAI, the University established a progressive stance, encouraging its community to engage critically and ethically with this technology. In 2024, Deakin identified the need for a university-wide principles-based framework to guide the use of genAI across teaching, learning, research, and operations. A cross-portfolio project team, led by the University Librarian, was tasked by Deakin’s Generative AI Steering Group to lead a co-design and consultation process with the Deakin community.
The team delivered:
• Deakin GenAI Framework and guiding principles supporting ethical, critical, and responsible genAI use across teaching, learning, research, and business operations.
• Actionable insights on gaps, enablers, and risks to inform future planning.
The team ensured that multiple, sometimes competing, community voices were honoured while maintaining a distinctive Deakin-centric position. By centring the human in the framework's design and delivery, Deakin is now uniquely positioned in the sector, providing direction and flexibility for local and domain-specific action.
The project's success is attributed to the project team’s cross-functional collaboration, respect for each other’s perspectives and expertise, and the ability to rapidly build relationships and points of collaboration across the university, involving diverse stakeholders.
The outcomes of this project have:
• Influenced sector-wide best practice discussions with a novel emphasis on human-centered decision-making.
• Connected Deakin domain leaders through cross-institutional conversations and perspectives around genAI.
• Strengthened the work and position of the Deakin GenAI Steering Group by framing the Deakin-wide approach.
• Underpinned new initiatives across the institution at all levels, including the GenAI policy and governance, genAI platform trials, development of capability development material for students, academics, and professional staff, action planning within faculties, divisions, and teams, and interfacing Deakin’s position globally.
In this presentation we share the participatory approach taken to developing an holistic and institutional framing to transformative technology. The session will also actively engage the audience by incorporating methods that were harnessed in the project.
THETA acknowledges the Traditional Owners of the lands where we live, learn and work. We pay our respects to Elders past and present and celebrate the stories, culture and traditions of all First Nations people.