About the Authors

Helena Rong is an interdisciplinary designer, technologist, and urbanist. She is a Ph.D. candidate in Urban Planning at Columbia University and a Technology and Public Purpose Fellow at Harvard Kennedy School’s Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs, whose research focuses on the use of emerging technologies such as AI and blockchain for the design and governance of the built environment. She received her Master of Science in Architecture and Urbanism from MIT and her Bachelor of Architecture from Cornell University. Rong is the founder of CIVIS Design and Advisory, a design and research practice based in Boston and Shanghai that engages in multi-scalar and interdisciplinary architectural and urban projects. Her work has been exhibited internationally at the Shenzhen Bi-city Biennale of Urbanism and Architecture, World Real Estate Forum, Future of Architecture Platform, among others.

David Dam is a first-year Master in Public Policy student at the Harvard Kennedy School. Previously, he worked at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York’s Research and Statistics Group, focusing on macroeconomic and monetary policy research. David comes to HKS to combine his quantitative research background with the more practical aspects of policy making. His wide-ranging policy interests include technology policy, climate action, the intersection of business and government, and equitable development policy. Upon graduation, he hopes to utilize his skills to contribute to data-informed policy design and decision-making.