[2026 Sustainability Learning Week – Evening Lecture] “Answers Are Easy to Find in the Age of AI, But What About Judgment? Investigating and Taking Action on Public Issues Through Environmental Data”

China Medical University’s (CMU) Office of Social Responsibility and Sustainability held an evening lecture as part of its Sustainability Learning Week on Tuesday, November 3, 2026, from 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. at the Stanford Conference Room on the second floor of the Excellence Building at the Shui-Nan Campus, with simultaneous online participation via Google Meet. The event invited Hung-Wen Tseng, Deputy Secretary-General of the Green Citizens’ Action Alliance, to deliver a keynote lecture titled “Answers Are Easy to Find in the Age of AI, But What About Judgment? Investigating and Taking Action on Public Issues Through Environmental Data.” Professor Min-Kun Lin served as the moderator and opened the session. The lecture attracted a large number of students, with the venue filled to capacity.

Deputy Secretary-General Tseng began by engaging students through simple questions about how they typically use AI in their daily lives and studies. She also shared challenges encountered by her colleagues, pointing out that the widespread availability of AI tools may lead people to become overly dependent on them, potentially weakening their ability to think independently, generate ideas, and actively participate in discussions. When obtaining answers becomes increasingly effortless, how can we distinguish reliable information from misinformation and establish appropriate criteria for information screening and evaluation? Drawing on her own research journey and practical experience, Tseng explained that while AI offers convenience and assistance, identifying research questions and developing research hypotheses still require individual observation, independent thinking, and initiative. During the lecture, she also presented a case involving controversy surrounding a corporate sustainability award to demonstrate how to approach complex issues systematically: beginning with identifying problems, establishing a framework for evaluating information, collecting and organizing supporting evidence, and ultimately developing concrete analyses and recommendations for improvement. This case illustrated the complete process of moving from information investigation to meaningful action on public issues.

At the conclusion of the lecture, Tseng encouraged students to maintain their sense of social responsibility and develop the ability to think critically and verify the accuracy of information. Although the introduction of AI tools provides more convenient ways to collect information, subsequent analysis, argumentation, and decision-making still depend on users’ accumulated experience and independent judgment. Learning how to make effective use of technological tools while remaining accountable for the information they obtain and share is an essential competency that students in the AI era need to cultivate.