Examining Our Collective Relationship With AI - a Conversation With Venessa Paech
Release Date: 02/06/2023
Shaping Tomorrow Together: Scott Smith and Susan Cox-Smith on the Dynamics of Futuring
Cohere Podcast
In the Cohere podcast episode, hosts Bill Johnston and Dr. Lauren Vargas, along with guests Scott Smith and Susan Cox-Smith, delve into the shift from traditional forecasting to the dynamic practice of futuring, as explored in their works How to Future and Future Cultures. They discuss the importance of evolving strategic frameworks to foster anticipation and adaptability, particularly in navigating complex crises. The conversation highlights the role of online communities in driving innovation and building future resilience. Through insights and case studies like the UNDP Future Trends...
info_outline
How the Humanistic Values in Organizational Development Can Guide Communities with Dr Sharon Varney and John Hovell
Cohere Podcast
In the latest thought-provoking episode of Cohere, hosts Bill Johnston and Dr. Lauren Vargas welcome two distinguished and returning guests. First up, we have Dr. Sharon Varney, a dynamic force in the realm of leadership and organizational development. With a rich background spanning complex organizations across manufacturing, utilities, travel, banking, oil and gas, Sharon's encounter with complexity theory in the early 2000s sparked a profound shift in her approach to leadership and change practice. Her academic journey, combined with her hands-on experience, has led to groundbreaking...
info_outline
Art School Every Day with Dave Gray: Insights from School of the Possible
Cohere Podcast
On this episode of the Cohere podcast, co-hosts Bill Johnston and Dr. Lauren Vargas interview Dave Gray, Chief Possibilitarian at School of the Possible. They delve into being a "possibilitarian," exploring how this mindset fosters innovation and openness to new ideas. Dave shares the School of the Possible founding story, an experimental learning community that challenges conventional education models. The discussion covers how critical thinking and creativity are encouraged and the practical application of knowledge to solve real-world problems. Listeners will discover how embracing...
info_outline
Teasing Out the Best Insights and Ideas From a Volatile 2023
Cohere Podcast
As we begin 2024, Lauren and Bill would love to hear from you! Please send your suggestions, feedback, and ideas for topics and guests to . Welcome to our special year-end 2023 review of the Cohere podcast. This year, we marked a significant shift in our approach. We moved away from the constraints of seasonal formats, embracing topical series that have allowed us to delve deeper into various themes, synchronizing seamlessly with our ongoing work and research. Let’s walk down memory lane and revisit some of the most insightful moments from this year's episodes. Venessa Paech sheds...
info_outline
Decoding Crypto Adoption with Reneé Barton: A CRADL Report Deep Dive
Cohere Podcast
In the last episode of 2023 for the Cohere podcast, co-hosts Bill Johnston and Dr. Lauren Vargas welcome Reneé Barton, Manager of Impact Research at the Crypto Council for Innovation. They delve into the CRADL report, the crypto industry's first in-depth ethnographic study, which illuminates the varied motivations behind crypto adoption and highlights opportunities for industry refinement. Barton elaborates on the meticulous research methodology that captures diverse user experiences, revealing overlooked use cases and challenging assumptions about crypto's role in equitable wealth...
info_outline
Imagining Tomorrow with Rob Hopkins: Cultivating Community and Shaping the Future
Cohere Podcast
In this episode of the Cohere podcast, co-hosts Bill Johnston and Dr. Lauren Vargas interview Rob Hopkins, Ph.D., co-founder of Transition Network and author, on the power of community imagination in shaping our future. Dubbed a "guest from the future," Rob shares his insights on creating spaces for collective dreaming and the journey towards a healthier relationship with the internet. They discuss the ingredients for successful community initiatives, the role of imagination activists, and overcoming barriers to our creative potential. With storytelling as a pivotal theme, Rob also...
info_outline
Community Ecosystem Development: A Conversation on the State of Practice
Cohere Podcast
In this episode of the Cohere podcast, hosts Bill and Lauren engage in a reflective conversation about the ongoing transitions and emerging trends in community practice. Drawing from their extensive experience, they discuss the evolution of community roles, exploring how a broader approach to community ecosystem development is taking shape.
info_outline
Navigating the AI Surge: A Conversation with Jeremiah Owyang on Tech Cycles, Community Engagement, and Sensemaking Tools for Business
Cohere Podcast
On this episode of the Cohere podcast, co-hosts Bill Johnston and Dr. Lauren Vargas sit down with Silicon Valley veteran Jeremiah Owyang to discuss the evolution of digital technology and the rise of AI. Owyang traces his career back to community leadership roles in tech, emphasizing the importance of transferable skills acquired over decades-long technology cycles. He attributes his pivot to AI as a natural progression in tech, noting that we are amid a surge of interest in AI technologies. Owyang shares how he stays updated in the field, cultivates space for him and others to explore...
info_outline
The History and Future of the Maker Movement with Dale Dougherty
Cohere Podcast
In this episode of the Cohere podcast, co-hosts Bill Johnston and Dr. Lauren Vargas welcome Dale Dougherty, the founder of Make: Magazine and Maker Faire, and a person who played a key and critical role in the launch of the Maker Movement. Dougherty shares his career journey and his belief that everyone is inherently a maker. The conversation takes a deep dive into the history and future of the Maker Movement, discussing the importance of community in both digital and real-life maker experiences. Dougherty also outlines plans for the return of the Bay Area Maker Faire, revealing a new...
info_outline
Responsible AI: Appropriate Trust and LLM Fabrication with Mihaela Vorvoreanu, PhD
Cohere Podcast
On this episode of the Cohere podcast, co-hosts Bill Johnston and Dr. Lauren Vargas dive deep into AI ethics with Mihaela Vorvoreanu, Director of UX Research and RAI Education for Microsoft's Aether. The conversation primarily focuses on "appropriate trust" in AI, emphasizing the need for accountability in AI systems. Vorvoreanu boldly challenges listeners to rethink Large Language Models (LLMs) not merely as information retrieval systems but as systems of fabrication. She further confronts the exaggerated notion of AI as super capable and superhuman, shedding light on the common errors made...
info_outlineVenessa Paech is an internationally regarded online community strategist with over 25 years of experience building community online. Venessa is also a PhD candidate studying the intersection of AI and community, and a global authority on communities and community management.
In the first Cohere episode of 2023, Venessa joins Bill Johnston and Dr. Lauren Vargas to discuss the quickly evolving role of AI in our digital experiences, how AI is currently playing a role in online communities, and what the future may hold regarding our collective relationship with AI.
Key Quote:
"It's still a relationship business. It's just we now have relationships with tools and machines in a new way: in a more anthropomorphized way and in ways that mimic our own thinking and behavior sufficiently that we do need to recontextualize them. So how do we do that in a way that still prioritizes and centers the human work of what we're doing and brings us to those core community protocols of: How are we building a healthy, thriving, constructive space for constituents? is it accessible? Is it productive in meaningful ways? Is it relevant? And honoring the context, always honoring our context, which is one of the biggest problems we do see with so many different sorts of automated and or AI tools, is they tend to flatten and standardize context because that is how they operate. … But for community, which is typically a smaller, more intimate, and more nuanced sort of cluster of relations and ties, that does not work.”
Resources From This Episode:
All things In Moderation Conference: https://www.allthingsinmoderation.org/call-for-papers
SWARM (Australia’s Community Management Conference): https://swarmconference.com.au/
Australian Community Managers: https://www.australiancommunitymanagers.com.au/
Download the 2022 ACM State of Community Management Report
Books:
- Atlas of AI: Power, Politics, and the Planetary Costs of Artificial Intelligence by Kate Crawford
- Building Brand Communities: How Organizations Succeed by Creating Belonging by Carrie Melissa Jones and Charles Vogl
- Smart Mobs: The Next Social Revolution by Howard Rheingold
- The Accidental Community Manager: A Guide to Building a Successful B2B Community by Adrian Speyer
- Virtual Reality: The Revolutionary Technology of Computer-Generated Artificial Worlds-And How It Promises to Transform Society by Howard Rheingold
Venessa’s scholarship:
Where to find Venessa: