Call for Volunteers: Artificial Intelligence (AI) Working Group of Professional Practice Committee

The Professional Practice Committee (PPC) is inviting volunteers to join an ad hoc AI Working Group that will develop a guidance document on the use of artificial intelligence in geoscience practice. To find out more about the PPC, please read its Terms of Reference here.

Purpose of a Guidance Document

PGO’s mandate is public protection. As AI tools are already widely used in geoscience, registrants remain fully responsible for the work they seal or supervise. This guidance document will support professionals in understanding how obligations of competence, supervision, accountability, and ethical responsibility apply when AI is part of their work.

Focus of the Working Group

Volunteers will plan and develop a guidance document that will:

•  Clarify how regulatory obligations apply when AI tools are used in geoscience practice.
•  Identify key risks such as bias, reproducibility, confidentiality, and overreliance.
•  Suggest approaches for oversight, verification, and disclosure.
•  Provide practical examples and tools to help registrants document assumptions, limitations, and AI involvement.
•  Be informed by resources developed by established bodies, recognizing that while PGO’s Act and regulations do not specifically reference AI, existing professional obligations remain fully applicable in its use in one’s practice.

Who We Are Looking For

We welcome a balance of diverse perspectives, including:

•  Professional Geoscientists in good standing, representing diverse areas of practice, with or without AI experience, and with a strong understanding of PGO’s public protection mandate.
•  Geoscientists-in-Training and early-career professionals interested in regulatory issues.
•  Practitioners or academics with knowledge of ethics, data science, governance, or regulation.

AI expertise is valuable, but of greater importance is a clear understanding of professional obligations, accountability for one’s work, and the duty to protect the public interest in the context of AI use.

Commitment & How to Apply

This is an ad hoc group. Meetings will be held virtually several times over the coming months, with some review work between meetings (about 5–6 hours/month). Hours incurred by P.Geo.s count as CPD hours.

To apply, please complete the online expression of interest and include your LinkedIn address by November 7, 2025.

For more information on volunteering with PGO, please visit this page - https://www.pgo.ca/volunteeropportunities or send an email to info@pgo.ca. 

Please note that we may receive more applications than the number of positions available. Only applicants who meet the stated qualifications and are selected for consideration will be contacted. We sincerely appreciate every expression of interest and your dedication to upholding regulatory standards.