The IDEMS Podcast

IDEMS International · idems.international

Stories from a social enterprise that uses mathematical sciences in impact-oriented work around the world. Our experiences range from helping some of the world's poorest farmers get value from data, to enabling academics to use AI responsibly in their teaching. We never know what our next task will be but the last 6 years have shown that it is likely to lead to a story.

289 episodes

12d ago latest

weekly cadence

English language

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Episodes 291

291 – Understanding Multilevel Data Through Context
5d ago · 20:46
Continuing their reflections on 20 years of research methods support, David and Lily explore multilevel data through examples from agricultural research in West Africa. They discuss how identifying the right levels can help account for variability and reveal important differences that might otherwise be missed.
290 – Understanding Statistical Interactions Through Context
9d ago · 16:08
Continuing their reflections on 20 years of research methods support, David and Lily explore statistical interactions through a striking example from agricultural research in West Africa. They discuss how interactions can reveal the importance of context, and how understanding local practices can challenge research assumptions and lead to more relevant research.
289 – The Story Behind Explore, Describe, Present
12d ago · 20:07
David and Lily reflect on how the Explore, Describe, Present framing emerged through years of research methods support with the West African Community of Practice. They discuss how long-term collaboration helped develop a simple language for thinking about the different roles of data visualisation, including the importance of understanding your audience when presenting results.
288 – Putting Our Open Textbook Vision to the Test – Lessons from the STACK Conference
16d ago · 24:58
Following the first STACK Conference to be held in Africa, David and Kate reflect on what the event revealed about IDEMS’ vision for open textbooks. They discuss growing interest in adapting the approach across different African contexts, and explore the importance of local ownership, collaboration, and working with existing education systems to bring open resources to scale. They also consider how bringing together experiences from high- and low-resource settings can spark new ideas and create opportunities for innovation that flow in both directions.
287 – Putting Our Open Textbook Vision to the Test – Lessons from ICOTS
19d ago · 25:37
Following the International Conference on Teaching Statistics (ICOTS), David and Kate reflect on how IDEMS’ vision for open textbooks was received by the statistics education community. They explore how rapid developments in AI are changing what students need to learn, and why adaptable resources, carefully designed assessment, and meaningful human decision-making are becoming increasingly important. They also discuss the encouraging response from textbook authors, educators, and international organisations, and what this could mean for building a wider community around the open textbook initi
286 – Rethinking Mathematics Education in Kenya – An Interview with Mike Obiero
23d ago · 30:59
David and Mike reflect on a period of change and opportunity for mathematics education in Kenya. They discuss the upcoming launch of a new MSc in Mathematical Innovation, lessons from bringing open textbooks into classrooms, and the importance of putting teachers at the centre of educational innovation. Recorded just before the first STACK Conference to be held in Africa, their conversation also explores how bringing together local stakeholders and an international community could contribute to a more relevant, accessible, and locally grounded approach to mathematics education.
285 – ICOTS 3 – Building Communities Around Open Textbooks
26d ago · 26:59
In the final episode of this three-part series reflecting on the International Conference on Teaching Statistics (ICOTS), David and Lily discuss the reception of IDEMS’ open textbook initiative within the statistics education community. They explore how new approaches to adaptation, accreditation, and collaboration could strengthen open educational resources, enabling communities to build on one another’s work while preserving the expertise and contributions of original authors.
284 – ICOTS 2 – Statistics Education in the Age of AI
1mo ago · 23:43
In the second of three episodes reflecting on the International Conference on Teaching Statistics (ICOTS), David and Lily discuss the growing influence of AI on statistics education. They reflect on how the community is responding to rapid technological change, and explore why educators should play an active role in shaping AI tools that support responsible, accessible, and equitable learning.
283 – ICOTS 1 – The Statistics Education Community
1mo ago · 23:54
In the first of three episodes reflecting on the International Conference on Teaching Statistics (ICOTS), David and Lily discuss the statistics education community itself. They explore why data literacy deserves to be recognised as a distinct educational priority, reflect on the longstanding relationship between statistics and mathematics, and consider why so many well-established ideas from statistics education research have yet to achieve broader impact.
282 – The Farm Hack Box and New Possibilities
1mo ago · 23:58
David and Kate discuss the Farm Hack Box and the new possibilities it suggests for community-owned digital infrastructure. While conceived for farming communities, they explore how the same ideas could reshape education and other social impact contexts, enabling local AI, greater digital sovereignty, and technologies that communities can truly own and adapt.
281 – Rethinking Digital Sovereignty for Communities
1mo ago · 18:58
David and Kate examine the idea of digital sovereignty through the lens of communities rather than nation states. Reflecting on recent discussions around AI governance and digital infrastructure, they explore why community ownership, local adaptation, and collaboration may be just as important as national strategies in shaping the future of technology.
280 – Open App Builder, PLH and AI agents
1mo ago · 22:05
David and Michele discuss how recent advances in AI are opening new possibilities for the Open App Builder and the authoring of digital tools for social impact. Drawing on IDEMS’ work with Parenting for Lifelong Health, they explore how AI agents can help reduce barriers to authoring while keeping people in control of the decisions that matter, enabling more adaptable and community-owned digital technologies.
279 – AI agents and STACK Authoring
1mo ago · 24:59
David and Michele discuss how advances in AI are opening new possibilities for STACK question authoring. Using this practical example, they reflect on the design of multi-agent systems, the role of specialised models, and why building efficient, interoperable AI tools may be just as important as building ever more powerful ones.
278 – Reflections from the Global Smart Farming Conference
1mo ago · 19:20
Following David’s participation in the Global Smart Farming Conference hosted by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), he and Santiago reflect on some of the key themes and debates that emerged. Their discussion explores competing visions of smart farming, the role of AI and digital technologies in agriculture, and the importance of ensuring that innovation remains centred on farmers and the communities they serve.
277 – Reflections from the AI and Food Security Forum
1mo ago · 25:03
Following David’s participation in a World Food Programme forum on artificial intelligence, digitisation, data governance, and food security, he and Santiago reflect on some of the key themes and debates that emerged. Their discussion explores the opportunities and risks AI presents for food systems, and the role of governance, local knowledge, and technological alternatives in shaping more equitable and sustainable futures.
276 – The Agency Fund’s Social Sector Tech Stack: The Front End
1mo ago · 18:17
Continuing their discussion of The Agency Fund’s proposed technology stack for the social sector, David and Santiago explore the three frontend approaches outlined in the article: frontline worker tools, chatbots, and custom applications. Drawing on their own experience developing digital tools for social impact, they reflect on the strengths, limitations, and future potential of each approach. https://theagencyfund.substack.com/p/a-default-tech-stack-for-the-social
275 – The Agency Fund’s Social Sector Tech Stack: The Back End
2mo ago · 26:36
"David and Santiago discuss The Agency Fund’s recent article on a technology stack for the social sector, exploring the backend systems that make modern AI-enabled tools possible. From LLM gateways and agent builders to data pipelines, monitoring, and experimentation, they examine the growing ecosystem of open tools that can help small organisations access capabilities once reserved for large technical teams. Along the way, they reflect on how these developments relate to IDEMS’ own work and why this is an exciting moment for organisations seeking to build impactful technology with limited res
274 – The Power of the AI Narrative
2mo ago · 20:24
In the final episode of the series, David and Kate explore the power of narratives in shaping the future of AI. Inspired by Karen Hao’s *Empire of AI*, they discuss how messaging, lobbying, and financial influence have created a sense of inevitability around one particular vision of AI, while alternative approaches struggle to gain visibility. They reflect on the importance of articulating and championing alternative visions for AI, concluding with a call for the liberation of AI from AI empires.
273 – The Future of Work Beyond AI Empires
2mo ago · 32:38
Continuing their exploration of alternatives to today’s dominant AI paradigm, David and Kate reflect on what the future of work could look like beyond AI empires. They discuss the role of education, apprenticeships, and human expertise in a world increasingly shaped by AI, and consider how technology might free people to focus on more creative, collaborative, and meaningful work. The conversation highlights the importance of building alternative visions for the future and asks how societies can create systems that value human development, collaboration, and social impact alongside technologica
272 – The Foundations of Community-Centred AI
2mo ago · 27:12
Building on their exploration of alternatives to today’s dominant AI paradigm, David and Kate discuss what a community-centred approach to AI might look like. They explore the importance of collaboration, deep interoperability, distributed ownership, and adaptability, arguing that effective AI systems should strengthen communities rather than replace them. The conversation considers how communities can retain agency over their data, tools, and knowledge while remaining connected to wider networks of learning and innovation.
271 – Why AI Matters Now
2mo ago · 26:07
Continuing their examination of the assumptions underlying today’s dominant AI narrative, David and Kate reflect on why AI has become such an important topic within IDEMS. They discuss how years of work on community ownership, trust, interoperability, and complex social systems have shaped their thinking, and why recent advances in AI may finally make it possible to build technologies that support rather than constrain local agency. The conversation explores the relationship between technology, governance, and social impact, and considers what kinds of foundations are needed for more distribut
270 – Human Capital and the Future of AI
2mo ago · 25:24
Continuing their examination of the assumptions underlying today’s dominant AI narrative, David and Kate explore the role of human expertise in building effective AI systems. They discuss the often-overlooked human work that underpins current AI, from reinforcement learning and quality assurance to research, teaching, and domain expertise. The conversation highlights how diverse forms of human capital, collaboration, and innovation may be far more important to the future of AI than simply increasing data and compute.
269 – Why Better Data Matters
2mo ago · 28:45
Continuing their examination of the assumptions underlying today’s dominant AI narrative, David and Kate explore what makes data useful, trustworthy, and meaningful. They discuss the limitations of extraction-based approaches to AI, the importance of local context and data ownership, and the challenges of building systems that can learn across diverse communities without centralising control. The conversation highlights why better data—not just more data—may be key to building more effective and trustworthy AI systems.
268 – What Lies Behind AI as a Product?
2mo ago · 23:04
Continuing their examination of the assumptions underlying today’s dominant AI narrative, David and Kate explore the distinction between AI as a product and AI as a sociotechnical system. They reflect on the often-invisible infrastructure, labour, resources, and governance structures that sit behind AI technologies, and discuss why understanding these systems is essential for making informed choices about technology, impact, and innovation. The conversation highlights how different assumptions about ownership, trust, and accountability shape the technologies we build and the societies they ser
267 – The Forces Shaping AI
2mo ago · 22:11
Continuing their discussion on the future of AI, David and Kate explore the economic and institutional forces shaping today’s dominant AI models. They discuss the roles of investment, monopoly power, research funding, and commercial incentives in driving ever-larger AI systems, and consider how these pressures influence both technological development and public narratives around AI. The conversation highlights why the current trajectory of AI is not inevitable and what alternative paths might look like.

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