Undesign: A Social Change Podcast

What does the Boston Symphony Orchestra installing curtains for auditions back in 1952 have to do with gender justice in 2022? And why could the rigour of data capture and analysis hold the key to undoing unconscious bias in the community, and specifically in the workplace? Anisha Asundi, Research Fellow at the Harvard Kennedy School, talks to us about how she has been working on how gender gaps in the technology sector can be addressed to increase diversity, equity and inclusion. She speaks on why diversity training has limited effectiveness, and how gender equity, equality and justice all differ as goals of a more inclusive workplace and society.

If you’ve seen shows such as the Tinder Swindler, Inventing Anna or The One, it would be easy to believe that technology enabled romance is rife with danger and subterfuge. Yet despite popular culture’s fixation with the risks of online dating, it has been the bread and butter of current personal relationships for years. So why is it still often hidden, demonized or stigmatized? In this episode speaking with Dr Lauren Rosewarne from the University of Melbourne, we unpick why online dating is unprecedentedly popular, yet is often still seen as an inferior or dubious way to find love, partnership and sex. 

For more, go to DrawHistory's website: drawhistory.com/undesignpodcast/.

Joining Undesign on this special surprise episode to discuss inclusive technology is Garen Checkley, Product Manager at Google's Next Billion Users initiative. Garen shares plenty of insightful stories on Google’s mission to make technology helpful for everyone, everywhere, from their new research on building voice-first products, to an important report on gender equity online.

This surprise episode was released to celebrate DrawHistory's sixth birthday, and the enduring role that technology design can play in creating societal change. For more, go to DrawHistory's website: drawhistory.com/undesignpodcast/. 

Joining us on Undesign’s Season One finale to talk racial justice, online activism, and active allyship is our guest, Fadzi Whande. Fadzi is currently the Senior Programme Officer (Diversity and Inclusion Adviser) at the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR). She is also the Founding Director of the Whande Group, a consultancy and program development organisation extending this work.

For more, go to DrawHistory's website: drawhistory.com/undesignpodcast/.

We drop by with two quick announcements we're excited to share. While we originally planned for 8 interviews this season, we have a special bonus episode with Google next week to talk about their Next Billion Users initiative on making technology inclusive for everyone, everywhere! Also, Undesign is up for the 2021 People's Choice Podcast Awards.

To vote, go to podcastawards.com and click on the big blue button for “Nominations Voting”. We’re under the “Society & Culture category”. The rest of the categories are optional, but you can stick around and vote for your other podcast favorites if you have the time.

For more, go to DrawHistory's website: drawhistory.com/undesignpodcast/.

Talking to us on this episode of Undesign is our guest, Luke Pearson. Luke is a Gamilaraay man who founded IndigenousX, a digital “pass the mic” platform for upcoming Indigenous writers, creatives and thought leaders to take back control over their stories and their voices.

For more, go to DrawHistory's website: drawhistory.com/undesignpodcast/.

On this episode of Undesign, we discuss using social media for social good with Nadir Nahdi. Nadir is the founder of BENI, a multi-platform space for a truly multicultural, pluralist, digital community to emerge, as well as a YouTube Creators for Change Ambassador. This episode is a personal, introspective chat where hard truths emerge.

For more, go to DrawHistory's website: drawhistory.com/undesignpodcast/.

On this episode of Undesign, we are joined by Emmy Suzuki Harris. Emmy is the Asia Regional Director for the Change.org Foundation, the philanthropic initiative of Change.org. We dive into some of the questions that she and her team spend everyday trying to better understand, from what makes a campaign successful to assessing the effectiveness of petitions.

For more, go to DrawHistory's website: drawhistory.com/undesignpodcast/.

On this episode of Undesign, we dive deeper into nationalism and its impacts on our identity with Dr Farida Fozdar. Farida is a distinguished sociologist with The University of Western Australia who has published over a hundred journal articles, chapters, books and reports on these fundamental questions of how diverse communities (and people) form relationships with one another. 

For more, go to DrawHistory's website: drawhistory.com/undesignpodcast/. Special thanks to Kai from Curiosity Digital for recording this episode. Learn more about Kai at kailovel.com.