Announcing the Technology and Public Purpose Fellowship Cohort for 2020-21

Cambridge, MA – The Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs at Harvard Kennedy School is pleased to announce its inaugural cohort of Technology and Public Purpose (TAPP) Fellows. The cohort comprises seven leading practitioners from government, business and civil society who are passionate about addressing public purpose considerations for emerging technology. This year’s fellows will spend an academic year in-residence at Harvard University fostering an expert community to provide independent and rigorous analysis of some of today’s most pressing challenges in tech.

In recent years, dilemmas posed by rapid technological innovation have become more complex and acute. Building on the school’s rich history of tech policy education, the TAPP Fellowship was crafted in response to the greater need to train people to carry out multidisciplinary tech policy and practitioner analysis in both government and industry. Led by Belfer Center Director, MIT Innovation Fellow, and former Secretary of Defense Ash Carter, the TAPP Project launched this new fellowship program to inspire and support the next generation of leaders to make tech and public purpose a fundamental part of their work and life calling. 

Leaders in government, business, non-profits, and academia increasingly relay to me the importance of considering public purpose implications of new and emerging technologies. The TAPP Project is leading the way in providing this fellowship program for professionals from tech, policy, and venture capital. We are pleased to bring together such an accomplished and passionate group of innovators to tackle today’s dilemmas of emerging technologies and bend the arc of progress towards public good.

- Ash Carter, Director of the Belfer Center and
Former U.S. Secretary of Defense
 

Meet the TAPP 2020-21 fellowship cohort:

Clare Bayley

Clare Bayley started her career in computer science at MIT, but quickly realized that she likes interacting with humans more than computers. Most recently, Clare served as the Director of Product for the United States Digital Service, working under the White House to improve how the government makes and uses technology (or trying to, anyway).

Flavia Chen

Flavia Chen, MPH, is the Deputy Program Manager for the Program in Prenatal and Pediatric Genome Sequencing (P3EGS) at University of California San Francisco. Her research interests focus on the ethical and policy implications of translational genomics, including issues of data governance, as well as on social and policy influences on health outcomes.

Devin Gladden

Devin C. Gladden is an energy, technology, and transportation policy professional who has worked on a variety of climate change and international issues. Currently in his role at AAA National as a manager for federal energy and technology policy, he covers a range of vehicle related issues — including gas prices, deployment of electric vehicles, and safety policy for self-driving cars.

Mark Lerner

Mark Lerner is an engineer, strategist, and design advocate with expertise in digital transformation. He focuses on empowering teams and improving critical services through technology and design. He most recently served as the Deputy Executive Director of the U.S. Digital Service team at the Department of Homeland Security, where he led a team of 30 engineers, product managers, and designers to improve critical services serving immigrants, asylum seekers, disaster survivors, and schools nationwide.

Elizabeth (Liz) Sisson

Liz is the Chief Operating Officer of Urban Us, a venture group investing in startups that are improving life in cities and combating climate change. Prior to investing in urbantech, Liz was a Managing Director at the Roosevelt Institute, an economic think tank, where she managed programs that researched and implemented public policy initiatives in local communities across the country.

Jake Taylor

Jake Taylor is currently serving as the Assistant Director for Quantum Information Science at the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP). When not on detail at OSTP, he is also a Fellow of the Joint Center for Quantum Information and Computer Science (QuICS), a Fellow of the Joint Quantum Institute (JQI), and a NIST Fellow at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST).

Rebecca Williams

Rebecca Williams is a civic technology and information policy analyst with a background in law and city planning. She currently serves as a Digital Services Expert at the White House Office of Management and Budget’s Office of the Federal Chief Information Officer where she develops data policy and performance measures for the Federal Government.

About the Technology and Public Purpose Project

The Technology and Public Purpose (TAPP) Project works to ensure that emerging technologies are developed and managed in ways that serve the overall public good. Learn more about the project here.

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