FUTURE OF EVIDENCE WITH BREAKOUT
Evidence ushers change—our challenge is to ensure the change is what we want and need. In the era of big tech, fake news, and extreme political polarization, we explored the Future of Evidence with Breakout.
This was a three-month topic as part of a year-long program sponsored by The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. Each month, a different impact entrepreneur was chosen as a grantee to receive design facilitation support for their business in an open forum with other members of the community. Each month, Murmur Ring facilitated a salon and workshop to explore the complex terrain of data, truth, knowledge, and action applied to the grantee's organization.
This program was facilitated by Murmur Ring CEO Ashley Lukasik and partner Steven White of Seven Studio.
Illustrations throughout were created by Ariel Goldrel in response to the Future of Evidence salons.
Read Can Soulfully Crafted Tech build the Community we deserve? with Ashley, Steven, and grantee Davion Ziere to learn more and be inspired.
Finding Truth in the Era of Misinformation
Whitney McGuire is the Founder of Sustainable Brooklyn and The Greenish Book Project, a new initiative to make public and commercial spaces safe for BIPOC and other marginalized communities - a timely topic in light of the relentless and escalating slaughtering of Black Americans by law enforcement. Whitney is dismantling the system from the inside out as an attorney, entrepreneur, and activist. Our exploration with Whitney focused on a post-legal future, examining safety and surveillance. Tazin Khan joined the salon to discuss privacy and security and the agenda for equity behind her organization, Cyber Collective.
As unsustainable systems break down, we can endure the transition and not repeat the mistakes that got us there in the first place.
Whitney McGuire
We have selective amnesia since the Industrial Revolution. My thoughts about the future always start with the past. We have many examples of a past that didn't include capitalism. When I think about what we need to to do to get out of the mess we're in, I find comfort in past examples of commerce and trading within the African diaspora.
Whitney McGuire
Technology Shaping Tomorrow
Davion Ziere is on a quest to scale an approach to building compassionate business and "pioneering soulfully crafted technology." His company, Origyn, promotes the visualization of spending to feed more resources back into communities that its subscribers care about, such as BIPOC, LGBTQIA, women-run or local businesses. The salon also featured Karla Ballard, founder of Ying, who shares a vision for economic equity through new possibilities made technologically available such as cryptocurrency. Much of our exploration revolved around how we could build sustainable systems in a moneyless future.
Our thesis is that anything our communities need, our communities can be and can provide.
//
Compassion is to go together, to suffer together. Passion is like a suffering. It's an endurance that provides us with a clear direction.
Davion Ziere
History matters. Context matters. Technology will have germinated out of sacrifice.
Karla Ballard
What makes our communities feel safe?
Kiasha Huling, Executive Director of UC Green presented on the subtopic of building community safety. UC Green plants trees and urban gardens with communities across West Philadelphia. We explored the “future of evidence” as it pertains to their mission to ensure tree canopies exist equitably everywhere residents live. The salon also featured Tamara Arnold of Baltimore Corps, an organization building and empowering a network of talent to accelerate social change across Baltimore.
Some people would consider beautification what I view as a necessary component of health and well-being.
Kiasha Huling
GRANTEES & SPEAKERS
KIASHA HULING, UC GREEN
TAMARA ARNOLD, BALTIMORE CORPS
DAVION ZIERE, ORIGYN
KARLA BALLARD, YING
WHITNEY MCGUIRE, SUSTAINABLE BROOKLYN
TAZIN KHAN, CYBER COLLECTIVE
CREDITS
BREAKOUT
Host
ROBERT WOOD JOHNSON
Sponsor
STEVEN WHITE
Strategist
ZACK SCHWARTZ
Facilitator
ARIEL GOLDREL
Illustrator