Podcast: The IDEMS Podcast

In this festive episode of the IDEMS podcast, Lily and David discuss the theme of giving during the holiday season. They explore the impact of charitable initiatives like the Band Aid song and emphasize a balanced approach to giving, encouraging contributions both locally and globally while recognizing Africa’s potential on the global stage.

IDEMS co-directors David Stern and Kate Fleming consider the concept of collective intelligence and its implications for society and technology. The discussion covers the relationship to artificial intelligence, misinformation, and how collective intelligence can be utilised to help address global issues like climate change and systemic problems by democratising and elevating diverse forms of expertise.…

In this episode, Lily and David celebrate and reflect on IDEMS International’s recent International Impact Award 2024 win at the Social Enterprise UK Awards. They highlight the organisation’s significant achievements, including the digitalisation of a parenting program trialled in Tanzania, demonstrating the potential for high impact at scale. The conversation underscores IDEMS’ innovative approach to…

Lucie and David discuss their upcoming research methods workshops in West Africa under McKnight Foundation’s Collaboration for Resilient Food Systems. Covering a decade of workshops, they consider the history and evolution of these training sessions, including the birth of R-Instat. They consider challenges during COVID-19, and emphasise the value of community building.

In this episode, Lily and David discuss the pros and cons of giving money directly to individuals versus using systemic approaches to address poverty. They highlight real-life examples where well-intentioned cash donations led to unintended negative consequences and explore the potential benefits and challenges of universal basic income. The conversation underscores the importance of context…

In this episode, co-founding directors David Stern and Danny Parsons discuss the organization’s approach to tackling grand challenges. They consider three core principles guiding their decision-making: sustainability through capacity building, scalability via community development, and systemic change by collaborating with institutions. Would it be a failure if IDEMS was no longer valuable?

Lucie and David continue their reflections on the recent Farmer Research Network convening held by the McKnight Foundation. They focus on the sharing of experiences between farmer research network representatives in West and East Africa, and their role as Research Methods Support to support those interactions and learnings.

IDEMS founding directors David Stern and Danny Parsons discuss the concept of impact activation and the potential for mathematicians to contribute to social impact projects. They consider specific ways in which the skills of mathematical scientists can be useful in these contexts, advocating for a pipeline to create more opportunities for those interested in this…

In this episode of the IDEMS podcast, David talks with James Musyoka about their journey to revolutionise statistics education at Maseno University and beyond. They highlight the use of technology, overcoming access issues, and the importance of practical data work. They emphasise gradual change led by new educators and the critical need for interpretation skills…

In this episode, Lily and David Stern consider IDEMS’ relationship to transparency. They discuss the challenges and ethical considerations in sharing data, and the importance of balancing transparency with the need for privacy and protection against potential harm.