What I’ve been doing
It’s been months since I’ve done weeknotes - which feels wrong as there’s been lots going on. The peak of excitement was being part of the team that ran a Booth at the AI For Good Summit Expo in Geneva. It was a busy week and I’ve co-authored a blog about that experience (which will hopefully be signed off/published soon).
We’re rapidly heading towards the final six months of the anticipated five year lifespan of Connected by Data. That has meant lots of internal conversations about our legacy, ending well and what we want to write up and archive. It has also meant us thinking about what may be next - for us as individuals but also whether Connected by Data undergoes a regeneration. Our Board is keen for this to be considered thoroughly in order that all the time/resources that have been used to establish an organisation is not lost (it’s hard to do a startup!) All that thinking has been herded into a coherent proposal that the Board will be discussing at the next meeting in September.
We’ve got a nice long list of things we plan to write up - but do shout if there’s something you wish we’d share about how we approached something, or did something, or think about something.
The little flurry of events I was expecting in September have now been pushed back in the year, so there’s a bit of breathing space before them. People are starting to talk about PAIRS 2027 (Geneva, June) and I’m holding an action to plan how we ‘end well’ (but am not committing it to paper until I know from the Board what our ‘end’ is going to look like).
The Annual Report was published (thanks to Jeni and her love of coding) and it’s a good read (in my humble opinion).
What I need to take care of
After the Board meeting there’ll be a lot of actions for me about leading the transition to ending / regenerating. Plus a couple of events to support (that I know about already.
I’m intrigued by Claude Skills and have watched this video about utilising them with interest. My challenge is that I don’t think I do anything that repeatable…but maybe I should be.
I’m finding it slightly tricky (mental load wise) at the moment to balance Connected by Data having a slightly quieter period and my freelance gigs (one in particular) feeling “full on”. In fact one feels from a workload perspective that it could be a full time job (but I only have one day a week on it).
What I’ve been inspired or challenged or moved by
With the recent death of Dolly Parton there’s been a lot of social media posts about all the amazing stuff she’d done (including funding the research for the Moderna COVID vaccine…which I had one hit of!; and promoting a love of reading). I was particularly struck by one observer that reflected “how special it is, to be rich with money AND humanity”. True.
What I’ve been reading
This blog by our Tim, Octavia from Ada Lovelace Institute and Susan from the University of Sheffield talked about the work that led to my being in Geneva.
For pleasure I’m reading “Running Through Sand: An Ageing Comedian’s Ill-Thought-Out Ultra in the Sahara” by Paul Tonkinson. I listen to Paul’s podcast (Running Commentary) on my long runs and enjoyed his first book. This is a great telling of someone relatable experiencing the Marathon des Sables (considered to be one of the hardest foot races on the planet). I’m training for an ultramarathon (50K) in just over three weeks - this book is reminding me it could be a lot worse!