In this episode, Nathan sits down with AI researcher and economist Dr. Karen Boyd for a conversation that explore the AI related questions many of us are wrestling with. How is AI reshaping work, creativity, trust, and human connection? And why navigating these questions requires more nuance than either the enthusiasts or the skeptics often provide.

Karen explains why many of the biggest concerns surrounding AI—from environmental impact and privacy to bias and job displacement—deserve careful attention without resorting to fear or false certainty. Along the way, the conversation expands into much bigger questions: What parts of our work actually give us meaning? Does effort have value beyond efficiency? How do we preserve authenticity in a world where machines can increasingly imitate human creativity? And if AI can do more of our work, what kinds of work should we value in the future?

Whether you're excited about AI, deeply skeptical of it, or simply trying to figure out where you stand, this conversation offers a grounded, practical, and deeply human perspective on one of the defining technological shifts of our time.

Dr. Karen Boyd helps mission-driven organizations navigate AI with confidence. She is an economist at the Policy and Innovation Center in San Diego and co-founder of Our AI Futures Lab, where she has trained more than 300 nonprofit, government, and social-impact leaders on the thoughtful adoption of artificial intelligence.

Her research focuses on AI ethics, machine learning documentation, and the future of work. Karen earned her PhD from the University of Maryland, where she studied how machine learning engineers identify and respond to ethical issues in training data, and she also holds an MBA from the Rady School of Management at UC San Diego.

Karen serves on the San Diego Foundation's AI Council and is the author of Amplify Good Work: Effective, Ethical AI for Mission-Driven Work. Her work has been featured in leading academic conferences and publications, cited in hundreds of scholarly articles, and recognized by organizations across the nonprofit and technology sectors. She also hosts the upcoming Labor in the Loop podcast, exploring the future of work in the age of AI.

Karen Boyd

• Website: https://drkarenboyd.com
• Newsletter: https://drkarenboyd.com/newsletter
• Blog: https://drkarenboyd.com/blog
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/drkarenboyd/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/karenboydauthor/

Resources Mentioned

• Amplify Good Work: Effective, Ethical AI for Mission-Driven Work
• Free Sustainability & AI Chapter: https://drkarenboyd.com/freechapter
• Mission First Starter Kit: https://drkarenboyd.com/missionfirst
• Coming Soon: Labor in the Loop Podcast: https://www.laborintheloop.com/

What does it really mean to become a man in a world that offers plenty of expectations but a lot of contradictory direction.

In this episode, Nathan sits down with men's relationship coach Dave Lishansky for a wide-ranging conversation about masculinity, relationships, emotional growth, and the work of becoming more fully human. Together they explore why so many men are taught grit, responsibility, and self-sacrifice, yet rarely given the tools to understand themselves, express vulnerability, or build meaningful emotional support systems.

Drawing from his own relationship journey and years of coaching men, Dave shares how intimate relationships often become mirrors that reveal the parts of ourselves that are unfinished, wounded, or longing for growth. The conversation explores the difference between reacting and responding, the role of anger and people-pleasing in men's lives, and why many of the patterns that create conflict in relationships begin long before we ever meet our partners.

Nathan and Dave also dive into larger cultural questions: the disappearance of meaningful rites of passage, the ways modern work and capitalism have replaced traditional forms of initiation, and how many men unconsciously sacrifice themselves to expectations they never consciously chose. Throughout the discussion, they return to a central theme: growth is not about reaching a finish line, but about continually waking up to ourselves, our relationships, and the opportunities life gives us to become more present.

Whether you're navigating a relationship, questioning old definitions of masculinity, or simply curious about what it means to live with greater intention, this conversation offers a thoughtful and deeply human exploration of courage, connection, and personal transformation.

Dave Lishansky is a men's and relationship coach and the host of the Reclaiming the Gentle Man podcast. He helps men find their inner steadiness in the moments relationships test them most—when everything inside wants to shut down, withdraw, or fight back—and discover what becomes possible when they remain open and present instead.

Drawing from both personal experience and years of coaching, Dave helps men develop greater self-awareness, emotional resilience, and deeper connections in their relationships. He and his wife spent more than a decade building their relationship before getting married in November 2025, an experience that continues to inform his work and perspective on growth, intimacy, and partnership.

Connect with Dave

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dave_lishansky/
• YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@dave_lishansky

Dave's Podcast

• Reclaiming the Gentle Man: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/reclaiming-the-gentle-man/id1813031348

Free Relationship Assessment

• Discover what may be causing your relationship conflicts to escalate "out of nowhere":
  https://your-reconnection-code.lovable.app

In this episode of Braver New Worlds, Nathan sits down with Lola Akapo, founder of Benchtop to Boardroom, a biotech communications consultancy specializing in mRNA therapeutics and biologics. Drawing on nearly a decade of vaccine and drug development work, Lola argues that the biotech companies shaping the future of medicine can’t simply rely on building breakthrough technologies. They also need to be proactive towards building trust.

Lola shares the concept of a "trust infrastructure" which includes the partnerships, educational efforts, and coalition-building that all serves to help investors, regulators, advocacy groups, and the public understand why scientific work matters long before a therapy reaches the market.

The conversation also dives into the tension between healthy skepticism and public trust, the challenge of communicating complex science to non-scientists, and whether society needs more "translators" who can bridge the gap between researchers and the wider world.

Along the way, Nathan and Lola discuss scientific literacy, risk, regulation, storytelling, and how societies decide what—and whom—to trust.

Lola Akapo has spent nearly a decade inside mRNA vaccine and biologics programs, where she saw firsthand how brilliant science and fragmented narratives can prevent early-stage teams from communicating their impact effectively.

She is the founder of Benchtop to Boardroom, a consulting practice focused on helping biotech organizations build the internal scientific literacy infrastructure needed to communicate clearly with boards, regulators, manufacturers, investors, advocacy groups, and eventually the public. Her work helps early-stage teams align around a shared understanding of their mission, impact, and scientific story.

Lola Akapo (LinkedIn)
https://www.linkedin.com/in/damilola-akapo/

Benchtop to Boardroom Website
https://benchtoptoboardroom.com/

Benchtop to Boardroom Substack
https://benchtoptoboardroom.substack.com/

Instagram
https://www.instagram.com/benchtoptoboardroom/

Learn more about Lola's consulting work, speaking engagements, and scientific communication resources through the links above.