The document summarizes a talk given by Matt Jones at Swansea University about activist, cause-led project management. Some key points: 1) It discusses challenges like echo chambers on social media and how technology could promote a "sea of sameness." 2) The talk introduces the Computational Foundry project which aims to develop technology from a human-centered perspective with a "bright beacon" of inclusion and empowerment. 3) The Foundry's work includes prototypes like a smart speaker designed for different global contexts to reimagine how the technology could be more useful.

1. Activist, Cause-Led
Project ManagementSwansea University, Weds 18th October
Matt Jones
Future Interaction Technology Lab, Computational Foundry, Swansea University

3. Please Note
• This slide deck does not summarise the key points of
the talk - I used it to illustrate what I was saying…
• A video that contains some elements of the vision
presented in this talk can be found at:
• www.computationalfoundry.eu
• Several of the images are sourced from Google images
• Please get in touch if you want to learn more:
matt.jones@swansea.ac.uk

4. Swansea - A Special Place

5. New Materials

10. Self%Centered%Darkness?%

12. Trolls, Echo Chambers…

13. A Sea of Sameness
More black rectangles made their debut in Barcelona

14. Moving on? A new perspective?

16. Making the Future…
• Designed in California
• Assembled in China
• Colonising everywhere…?

17. Computational Foundry
• New Perspectives
• Human Centred
• A bright beacon

29. Chameleon Prototype

30. Reimagining Smart Speakers

31. Dharavi (Mumbai, India)

32. Hole in the Wall

33. Hole in the Wall

34. Design inspiration workshops

35. Procedure
• 45-minute technology walk
• Where might speech devices be placed?
• Role-play
• Reflect on use-cases and
potential services

36. Deployed probe

37. Deployed Probe

38. A future worth hoping for?

39. Precious Smallness of
Human life and Living
• Human Centred
• Health and Well Being
• Safety and Security
• Inclusion and empowerment

40. Why am I telling you
this?

41. Importance of Narrative
• From the time we imagined the
Computational Foundry
• Spoke about past
• Present
• Future
• Used characters and
personas
• These informed design,
recruitment, change
processes… everything

42. Urgent Purpose as a Driver
• Galvanises
• Gently encourages
• Forces decisions

43. No narrative,
no urgent
purpose?