13. Do You, For Good with Dr. Desmond Patton

"I always want to be toggling between authenticity and joy. To me, that means being this homegrown person from Gastonia, that got a PhD from U of Chicago, who is now an Ivy League professor, that wants to work in and support Black communities, who likes fried chicken and also eats sushi. I want to be all those things all the time, and that is who I am. And I want to bring that to work. " - Dr. Desmond Patton

In this episode, Corey and Sharma talk with Dr. Desmond Upton Patton, Senior Associate Dean for Academic Affairs and Curriculum Innovation at Columbia University. A leading pioneer in the field of making Artificial Intelligence empathetic, culturally sensitive and less biased, he is founding director of the SAFE Lab and co-director of the Justice, Equity and Technology lab at Columbia School of Social Work. Dr. Patton’s research uses virtual reality to educate youth and policymakers about the ways social media can be used against them and how race plays a part. During this conversation, Dr. Patton shares vulnerably about his journey to authentic leadership, and how he has deliberately shaped his research, and thus his career, around his passions and issues he cares most about. He talks openly about the internal work he's had to do, the many courageous asks he's made along the way, and the riskiness of it all. For those  wondering how to both, "Do You, For Good" - meaning, being your true and authentic self while doing immense good in the world, and also "Do You, For Good,"  meaning, being your authentic self consistently and confidently without question, this podcast episode has too many gems to count!