9. How can we take Data Action... for good? Chatting with Sarah Williams at MIT.

How Tech Becomes Law

How do we take action with data and ensure it’s used for good? Sarah Williams, Professor at MIT, joins us to discuss her work using data to evoke change. Sarah discusses her various projects, such as the Digital Matatus and Million Dollar Blocks, and how she both came across in designing them and also in constraining them to ensure they have the intended impact. She also discusses her framework to make smarter and more careful decisions with data, highlighting each principle with examples. Finally, Sarah talks about her path to combining data with design, maps with policy, and the twists and turns her career took to get her where she is.

Guest bio:

Sarah Williams is an Associate Professor of Technology and Urban Planning at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) where she is also Director of the Civic Data Design Lab and the Leventhal Center for Advanced Urbanism. She combines her training in computation and design to create communication strategies that expose urban policy issues to broad audiences and create civic change. She calls the process Data Action, which is also the name of her recent book published by MIT Press.

Williams is co-founder and developer of Envelope, a web-based software product that visualizes and allows users to modify zoning in New York City. Before coming to MIT, Williams was Co-Director of the Spatial Information Design Lab at Columbia University’s Graduate School of Architecture Planning and Preservation (GSAPP).

About the podcast:

How Tech Becomes Law is a weekly public interest tech podcast about technology, public policy, and career advice. We are your co-hosts, Jinyan Zang and Dhruv Gupta. Each episode uncovers insights from leaders in government, business, journalism, and academia to highlight how technology can be built in the public interest. Interviewees discuss how technology can move society forward, what role they play in shaping this, and how students and young professionals can impact the path forward.

We are supported by the Public Interest Tech Lab. Listen to us on your podcast platform of choice. You can find us online at howtechbecomeslaw.org and on social media channels @techbecomeslaw.