Information architects work in a system with ourselves at the center. We are fundamental to making great experiences and as such, we must care for ourselves in order to best represent the people using the systems we are creating. Prioritizing the needs of users comes next, and with that protecting them by caring about diversity, inclusion and ethics. Finally, collaboration with colleagues and communities that influence our work can be done by educating them about IA work.

1. IAis Elemental:
People are Fundamental
Carol Smith
@carologic

2. IA is Elemental: People are Fundamental
Circles of Understanding
You, IA Community
Our users
Colleagues
Organizations,
communities, cities,
governments and world

3. You, IA Community

4. IA is Elemental: People are Fundamental
Shared interests
Making sense of messes
Understanding content
Bringing context into view
Finding needed answers
Improving interactions
and experiences

5. IA is Elemental: People are Fundamental
+ Your Work
You

6. IA is Elemental: People are Fundamental
“Caring for myself
is not self-indulgence,
it is self-preservation,
and that is an act of political warfare.”
- Audre Lorde

7. IA is Elemental: People are Fundamental
Find your
kind of chaos

8. IA is Elemental: People are Fundamental
Find Your People
People who care
as much as you do
about what you do
KenMileshttps://twitter.com/miles_k/status/1228873313327419392

9. IA is Elemental: People are Fundamental
IA = Disadvantage Doubled
Women and Information Technology By the Numbers. NCWIT.org. www.ncwit.org. Twitter: @ncwit https://www.ncwit.org/sites/default/files/resources/btn_05092019_web.pdf
By 2050 US will be majority-minority country

10. IA is Elemental: People are Fundamental
Challenges to IA Efforts?
Bide your time
Try to gently push through improvements
Be creative in approach
Find evangelists to support your work

11. IA is Elemental: People are Fundamental
Talk about it
Ask IA’s if you can unload for a bit
We’ll listen. We’ve been there.
Leave out names
Ask that we keep it confidential
Find a counselor you trust
During rough patches
We’ve all been there or will be

12. Too
frustrated?
Bored?
Move on.
New challenges
await you.

13. IA is Elemental: People are Fundamental
Networking Works

14. IA is Elemental: People are Fundamental
Customize
Your Resume
Different versions
for different jobs
Every single one.

15. IA is Elemental: People are Fundamental
The Greatest Organizers
Problem solvers
Truth seekers
Storytellers
Creative artists

16. IA is Elemental: People are Fundamental
Bigger, Broader Problems
Visible reminders
Similar interfaces
Similar Tasks
Scope has never been this big

17. IA is Elemental: People are Fundamental
Skills are more relevant than ever
Responsibility to convince
Important work
Can feel lonely

18. IA is Elemental: People are Fundamental
You are not
alone

19. IA is Elemental: People are Fundamental
Who we are matters.
Be inclusive.
“Being human-centered
demands moments of
grief and discomfort”
- Vivianne Castillo
Vivianne Castillo @vcastillo630
https://twitter.com/vcastillo630/status/1142908968769085440

20. IA is Elemental: People are Fundamental
Make the tent bigger, lengthen the table
Invite people in who
Think different than the rest of the team
Are different (education, background, race, culture, etc.)
Not lowering the bar, making more space along it

21. IA is Elemental: People are Fundamental
Great Minds
Think Different

22. Our Users
Despite my issues with the term…

23. Even though we humans might now be using
advanced technology with voice recognition and backlit
touch-screen displays, we still depend on the
same bodies and brains that our
ancestors used thousands of years ago to allow
us to act in our environment, no matter how digitally
enhanced.
- Andrew Hinton
Understanding Context

24. IA is Elemental: People are Fundamental
We protect people
Honored guests
in your space
Feel safe
and cared for

25. IA is Elemental: People are Fundamental
Shaping
information
products
and services
Even more dire

26. IA is Elemental: People are Fundamental
Powerful and Dangerous Experiences
MAKING MORE POWERFUL SYSTEMS
Augmented intelligence
via machine learning
EMBEDDING EXISTING BAD BEHAVIORS

27. IA is Elemental: People are Fundamental
Check the bias
Who provided the data?
Is source respected
by users?
How do we deal with data
that is potentially
“accurate”
but also racist?

28. IA is Elemental: People are Fundamental
Challenge Assumptions
Our job to counter
Do we need an
App for that?
AI for that?
Etc?
What is the need?

29. IA is Elemental: People are Fundamental
Organize information
Support usability, and patterns
What is the context?
What is important?
Many screens, many devices?

30. IA is Elemental: People are Fundamental
Not be Ableist
Accessibility – build for everyone
How People with Disabilities Use the Web: Overview https://www.w3.org/WAI/intro/people-use-web /

31. IA is Elemental: People are Fundamental
Make usable,
engaging, ethical,
transparent
and fair IA

32. IA is Elemental: People are Fundamental
Technology Ethics
1. Well-being
2. Respect for autonomy
3. Protection of privacy and intimacy
4. Solidarity
5. Democratic participation
6. Equity
7. Diversity inclusion
8. Prudence
9. Responsibility
10. Sustainable development
Montréal Declaration for a responsible development of artificial intelligence. https://www.montrealdeclaration-responsibleai.com/the-declaration

33. IA is Elemental: People are Fundamental
Let Us Avoid Future Confessions
First they came for the communists, and I did not speak out
— Because I was not a communist.
Then they came for the trade unionists, and I did not speak out
— Because I was not a trade unionist.
Then they came for the Jews, and I did not speak out
— Because I was not a Jew.
Then they came for me
— and there was no one left to speak for me.
Compilation of the post World War II confession first made in German in 1946 by the German Lutheran pastor Martin Niemöller

34. IA is Elemental: People are Fundamental
Your Silence Will Not Protect You by Audre Lorde review – prophetic and necessary. RO Kwon. Wed 4 Oct
2017. The Guardian. https://www.theguardian.com/books/2017/oct/04/your-silence-will-not-protect-you-
by-audre-lorder-review

35. Colleagues
Organizations, communities, cities,
governments and world

36. IA is Elemental: People are Fundamental
Partner
Programmers
ML Specialists
Data scientists
Product managers
Subject matter experts
Understand their work at a high level and support it

37. IA is Elemental: People are Fundamental
Share process
and create more
IA’s

38. IA is Elemental: People are Fundamental
Present as a problem solver
What is the need?
What problem/opportunity is there?
How can I quickly address / add value?

39. IA is Elemental: People are Fundamental
Modeling
Describe information
Flow of information
Stakeholders and environment
Answer big questions
Represent the users
If you don’t who will?

40. IA is Elemental: People are Fundamental
Build inclusivity
Acknowledge and accept everyone’s individual differences
When safe, bring "whole selves" to work
Encourage others
Everyone wants to feel valued, connected, that we belong

41. IA is Elemental: People are Fundamental
Diverse teams
Focus more on facts
Process facts more carefully
More innovative
“…become more aware of their own potential biases”
Why Diverse Teams Are Smarter. Harvard Business Review. https://hbr.org/2016/11/why-diverse-teams-are-smarter

42. IA is Elemental: People are Fundamental
Technology Ethics
1. Well-being
2. Respect for autonomy
3. Protection of privacy and intimacy
4. Solidarity
5. Democratic participation
6. Equity
7. Diversity inclusion
8. Prudence
9. Responsibility
10. Sustainable development
Montréal Declaration for a responsible development of artificial intelligence. https://www.montrealdeclaration-responsibleai.com/the-declaration

43. IA is Elemental: People are Fundamental
Start with building
awareness and
knowing ourselves

44. IA is Elemental: People are Fundamental
Checklist and Agreement
Pair with Tech Ethics
Bridge gap between
“do no harm” and reality
Reduce risk and unwanted
bias
Mitigation planning
Support inspection
CMU SEI Checklist and Agreement - Downloadable PDF: https://resources.sei.cmu.edu/library/asset-view.cfm?assetid=636620

45. IA is Elemental: People are Fundamental
Conduct research and activate curiosity
Abusability Testing
Speculate about misuse
and abuse
Create “Black Mirror”
episodes
Severe abuse
and consequences
Template by: Anna Abovyan & Allison Cosby, IxDA Pittsburgh, Sep 2019

46. IA is Elemental: People are Fundamental
Brown Bag
Sharing
Bring your lunch (brown bag)
and share your knowledge
Partner with team on learning
programming skills
Teach them about IA

47. IA is Elemental: People are Fundamental
Enable Colleagues
Give them information to make informed decisions
Connecting them to the users
Make consequences of actions relatable

48. IA is Elemental: People are Fundamental
Excellence
is Ethical
Shape information products
and experiences ethically

49. IA is Elemental: People are Fundamental
Circles of Understanding
You, IA Community
Our users
Colleagues
Organizations,
communities, cities,
governments and world

50. IA is Elemental: People are Fundamental
Leads, Raise Your Hands
We have the
privilege
Take the
responsibility
Bring others in Lengthen the
table
Enlarge the
tent

51. IA is Elemental: People are Fundamental
I hear you. I see you. I’ve been you.
Not easy
You picked a hard career
You are up for the challenge

52. IA is Elemental: People are Fundamental
Distill meaning from the mess
The world is a mess. It always has been.
Find the patterns
Bring them forward

53. IA is Elemental: People are Fundamental
For Us
Care for yourself and each other
Find people who hold space for you
Talk about issues
Consider your career

54. IA is Elemental: People are Fundamental
For our Users
Keep them safe
Represent people
Challenge assumptions
Make IA accessible, ethical

55. IA is Elemental: People are Fundamental
For Colleagues
Support with information
Connect to users
Push to do better

56. IA is Elemental: People are Fundamental
You are Enough!
Find joy and meaning in your work
Connect with others
Be kind

57. IA is Elemental:
People are Fundamental
Carol Smith
@carologic