UH Hilo alumna and mentors explore AI products to address issues facing Japan’s aging population
Alumna Alise Jackson says she participated in the online AI program because of her interest in the intersection of AI and physical therapy.
By Susan Enright.
A University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo alumna and two of her UH Hilo mentors participated in an online program that explored using artificial intelligence to create products for the elderly in Japan.
Alise Jackson, who graduated with a bachelor of arts in kinesiology and exercise sciences in fall 2023, joined mentors Ozan Atalag, chair of the KES department, and Todd Shumway, director of the university’s Center for Global Education and Exchange, in the four-week program held virtually in February and March.
Jackson hopes to become a doctor of physical therapy one day. While at UH Hilo, she was student director in the Laboratory for Therapeutic Sciences and was the very first teaching assistant in the KES department. She has worked in clinic, hospital, emergency, and home health settings, all while being a mom of two toddlers.
Jackson says she participated in the “AI x Aging Society Metaverse Program” because of her interest in the intersection of AI and physical therapy. Over the course of four intensive weeks, 43 students from Japan and the United States gathered in a digital space to address some of the most pressing challenges facing society today.
“Through this experience I learned to be more open-minded when it comes to resources and less fearful of AI,” she says.
The program included students from three Japan universities and the University of Northern Colorado. Students were placed in groups with their counterparts from the other universities and tasked with creating a product using AI technology to address issues facing a rapidly aging population in Japan. More than one in 10 people in Japan are now aged 80 or older, and the country consistently rates as having the world’s oldest population.
One AI product the students worked on assisted the elderly with health and exercise monitoring and helped ease mental health issues faced by those living alone. Another was a cooking assistant who could monitor diet and provide recipes and cooking guidance.
Several groups also proposed applications to facilitate communication with medical and counseling professionals.
“Being able to represent Hawaiʻi was rewarding alone, but also learning to use a new resource that I was hesitant to try before was also an eye-opening and rewarding experience,” says Jackson. “I would recommend anyone join if they have the opportunity to do so.”
Shumway says the intensive AI course was a unique opportunity for cross-cultural communication.
“Due to the requirement for the students to collaborate on a virtual product and then present it publicly, the students had to be creative and persistent in their attempts to bridge language and cultural barriers with their partners,” says Shumway.
“The enthusiasm of the groups was obvious as they were not only learning valuable skills for product development, but also sharing the creative task of coming up with an interesting and useful product,” he says.
Organized through Kansai University’s Japan hub for Innovative Global Education and the online education company Ludas Labs, students and faculty from Kansai University’s partner universities were invited to participate. The mixed groups included students from Kansai University, Chiba University, Osaka Metropolitan University in Japan, and from the University of Northern Colorado and UH Hilo in the U.S. The digital congress was hosted in the virtual immersive world of Virbela software.
See media release.
Story by Susan Enright, a public information specialist for the Office of the Chancellor and editor of UH Hilo Stories. She received her bachelor of arts in English and certificate in women’s studies from UH Hilo.
