Luise Eder

In her doctoral research, Luise examines the role and dynamics of emerging transnational initiatives in AI governance, particularly their influence on national AI policies and regulatory frameworks in the Global South. The focus is on how these transnational actors engage with local regulatory environments and shape the broader discourse on AI governance at the global/local nexus. The study will explore common principles and guidelines underpinning global AI initiatives and how they are adopted, adapted, or resisted in local contexts. The research aims to understand the implications of these transnational influences for the development, implementation, and effectiveness of AI policies, as well as their broader socio-economic impacts in the Global South. This research draws on insights from transnational legal scholarship and uses qualitative methods including document analysis, stakeholder interviews, and participant observation. Alongside her research, Luise works as a Research Assistant for Prof. Jeremias Adams-Prassl. 

Before joining the DPhil Programme, Luise was a researcher with the Programme in Comparative Media Law and Policy at the Centre for Socio-Legal Studies. Her research focused on the governance of technologies like AI and social media by both public and private actors, with a particular interest in the role of transnational actors in the Global South. She examined initiatives such as development projects and advocacy efforts, studying their impact on local contexts. Her work included a research project analyzing the politics of AI policy-making, specifically the evolving landscape of national AI policies in sub-Saharan Africa, the influence of transnational actors, and comparisons to the 'Brussels effect' of policies like the GDPR and DSA. Additionally, she researched topics such as internet shutdowns and their perceptions in conflict-affected areas of Ethiopia, inequalities in social media content moderation, and Western rights-based advocacy campaigns aimed at maintaining internet access.

In addition to her research, she co-organised the Oxford Media Policy Summer Institute, which brought together policymakers, students, academics, NGOs and other stakeholders to discuss key issues in technology law and policy. Key topics at the Institute included AI for development and human rights, the growing use of AI in crisis anticipation, the role of technology in conflict, and the regulation of emerging technologies such as AI and social media.

Luise has also contributed to the ECR-funded ConflictNet project and other research initiatives, including the Death Penalty Research Unit at the Centre for Criminology. Luise holds a law degree with a specialisation in European, International and Human Rights Law from the Free University of Berlin, an MA in Anthropology of Development and Social Transformation from the University of Sussex, and an MSc in Social Anthropology from the University of Oxford. Outside of research, she has worked as a content editor for the Oxford Middle East Review and as a podcast host for the Oxford Anthropology Podcast. Before coming to Oxford, Luise worked as a research consultant at the human rights NGO ALEF in Beirut, assisting the team in monitoring and archiving human rights violations in Lebanon.