The magic of prototyping
In conversation with design thinking Professor and agile shop Director of Staff Maggie Lewis, I go off on prototyping and why we all should be doing it. Three words: learn by doing. https://youtu.be/pIACh6cPI5o
Portfolio Highlights, 2010-2019
Click the red links in the slide below for more detail on the projects, process and outcomes of each.
How I use speculative games to test design-driven innovation
This article first appeared in Prototypr, Jan 2019 Innovation requires engagement in the problems of reality as well as a willingness to imagine the delights and pitfalls of possible futures. As makers and designers, we’re not usually up against a lack of problems to solve: we’re up against limits on…
Secure your facebook data
The tragic thing about the Cambridge Analytica data is that it was collected in part because people said "Yes" to a Facebook app without getting informed. Given the recent dragging Facebook is getting for being a pipeline to share people's data, I thought this instance of IT Tech Tips could focus on: Things you can do…
Civic participation, digital infrastructure, and why the US is behind
The one simple thing that US digital infrastructure can’t do to encourage civic participation: Share UIDs Those who know me appreciate that I like to get to the bottom of things if I think it'll help solve a problem. There's a reason - logical or otherwise - why things are the…
Using Open Data to Understand Needs: PBNYC Case Study
If you've never worked with data, you might think that finding an open data set available through a trusted city provider would be the end of your journey. And then, you'd open the data set, try to use it in your favorite visualization tool, and realize you had a long…
A data stewardship approach to security audits
While the concept of a security "audit" can turn off some folks, I like to bring in data stewardship as a care practice to ground us in why digital security matters -- and how audits can become a normal and non-creepy part of your technology practices. Data stewardship is a…
SXSW 2018: From Publishing City Data to Solving Problems
I was on a panel March 2018 at SXSW, talking about my work with open data, sharing this stage with the smart: ADRIENNE SCHMOEKER, New York City Mayor’s Office of Data and Analytics MARY TOBIN, Brownsville Partnership ZACK BRISSON, Reboot Sharing stories from the front lines of data impact, we…
Tech and Revolution meeting in NYC, Nov 13
Please join myself, Radical Action Design, Progressive Technology Project, May First / People Link and other progressive and social justice movement technologists for a special Technology and Revolution mini-convergence, the 20th convergence of this kind this year, at ThoughtWorks - Monday, November 13 from 6- 9 pm in NYC. Tools have an important role in our movement -…
Creating an open data set of participatory budgeting
Part of my work in early 2017 was to methodically go through the digital assets of the Participatory Budgeting Project and decide which to prioritize to update. Given that the Case Studies web page is consistently in the top five visited pages on the site, and that the demand for a…