'We are protecting God's creation': activist nuns challenging Big Tech companies

"As treasurer of the congregation, I am responsible for representing our interests [...] when we demand that these companies act in favor of the common good", says Francois. In one recent case, they tried to convince the board of directors of technology giant Palantir (a data analysis company that acts, for example, as a technological intermediary between Silicon Valley and the US government) to respond to their concerns. The nuns believed that the company's artificial intelligence (AI) software was being used by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and other public agencies to "track and identify immigrants for detention and deportation." The encyclical Magnifica Humanitas (or, "Magnificent Humanity", in the translation from Latin to Portuguese), by Pope Leo the 14th, deals with the challenges posed by the advancement of artificial intelligence AFP via Getty Images According to them, this could represent a violation of human rights. More specifically, the religious women wanted Palantir to conduct a Human Rights Impact Assessment (HRIA) to analyze how its products and services are used and reduce possible negative impacts. To do this, they resorted to the so-called shareholder resolution (proposal presented by shareholders for deliberation at a meeting), a mechanism that allows shareholders to submit proposals for voting at the company's annual general meeting. The proposal received only 13% of the votes, but Sister Francois considers the result a victory, arguing that the company's founders control 49.9% of the voting shares. "Of the [total] votes cast by shareholders who are not part of the controlling group, 56% voted in favor of the sisters' proposal," he states. "The fact that so many shareholders agreed with us says a lot." The BBC reached out to Palantir for comment, but the company did not respond. But in an earlier statement to shareholders, the company said the nuns' initiative was based on "misconceptions and misinformation about Palantir's work." The company also said it is not a data company, does not sell personal data or offer data mining services. ICE operations have divided communities in different parts of the country. In the image, protest in the State of Maine after a man was shot by agency agents in July Getty Images via BBC The vote took place less than two weeks after Pope Leo the 14th released, in May, his first major encyclical — Magnifica Humanitas or "Magnificent Humanity", in the translation from Latin to Portuguese —, in which he warned that AI needs to be "disarmed" so as not to "dominate humanity". The pontiff argued that AI must be placed at the service of the "common good" and that human dignity must be preserved. The coincidence of dates was random, but it served as a stimulus for Sister Francois. "I have read this encyclical many, many times. It reinforces everything that is behind [our] work", he states. The nuns' ownership stake in Palantir allowed them to formally raise concerns about the company's practices NurPhoto via Getty Images Palantir is not the only company that has received — or been threatened with receiving — shareholder proposals presented by the nuns as a way of pressuring boards of directors to address issues they consider to be of a moral nature. The nuns also confronted Citigroup, one of the largest banking institutions in the world, over its financing of fossil fuel projects in the Amazon. Concerned about the impacts on indigenous communities in the region, they asked the bank to publish a report on the topic. In April 2024, Citigroup complied with the request. Asked about the effectiveness of this type of initiative, as many of these proposals do not gain support from the majority of shareholders, Sister Francois responds that this depends on how success is defined. "Our first proposal was presented by the congregation in 1976 to a company you may be familiar with: Colgate-Palmolive. The topic was sexism in advertising and [the way women were portrayed]." Shareholders called on the company to take measures to combat gender discrimination. Colgate-Palmolive opposed the proposal, claiming it was unnecessary, and the measure was ultimately rejected. Still, almost half a century later, Sister Francois says she is not disappointed with the result. "Has sexism disappeared from advertising? No. Is the situation different from what existed in the 1970s? Yes." "For the sisters, and for most investors guided by religious values ??and principles, success lies in putting these issues on the agenda and getting them to the board of directors to be debated." Sister Francois believes that publicly questioning the conduct of large companies could be enough to