Meet Dr Jane Thomason – Woman of The Future

Dr Jane is a futurist and thought leader in the rapidly developing field of Metaverse, which is projected by Citi to be a $13 trillion industry by 2030. A well-known author, she is on the Editorial Board of the Journal of “Metaverse”, and “Frontiers in Blockchain”. She has published over 40 peer reviewed articles, and multiple books including “Blockchain for Global Social Change”. She also has a book on Web 3.0 forthcoming “Advancements in the New World of Web 3: A Look Toward the Decentralized Future”. Dr. Jane Thomason has also been featured in Women of the Future, Forbes (2018) as Blockchains’ leading social evangelist. She has multiple awards including: Top 100 Women in Crypto (2020); Women in GovTech 2019; Top 10 Digital Frontier Women, UN Decade of Women (2018); Top 100 Fintech Influencers for SDGs (2018). She has been blockchain advisory to WHO, OECD, ADB, USAID and Commonwealth Secretariat. She is the Top Woman in Technology 2023 by Stylfemina.

 

More about Jane Thomason:

Jane: I worked for many years in health care, and problems of poverty and inequality, in the developing world.  I realized that Blockchain if deployed and scaled could help solve some of the global problems of our time. I have made it my mission to accelerate the development, testing and scaling of Blockchain and other disruptive technologies to address global problems. The transformative impact of technology can revolutionize human interaction and improve quality of life beyond measure. All these technologies need to be explained to people and the use cases implemented to highlight solutions to the real world problems. People do not view emerging technologies in their true light and need education. There is little understanding in government, industry and the community in general, of the transformational impact emerging blockchain technologies could have on the world if implemented at scale.   The main obstacle is the tendency to think within existing models. There is the need for vision and to think out of the box on a very large scale.

Now is the time to engage with blockchain technology. The governments and industries must strategize and plan to help shape it, explore its potential for use cases, to review it both as standalone or  integrated with other technologies to ensure healthy social transformation.

Dr. Thomason’s Career & Contribution to Blockchain Realm:

Jane: I was an early proponent of Blockchain for social impact in 2016. I believe that we can all be agents of impact in the world. I have chosen to use my experience, networks and influence to envision the world on the power of digital transformation, and to be part of the movement to make it happen at scale. All of my work is focused on the way to enable digital technologies for social impact to achieve SDGs. We need to build bridges to connect entrepreneurs, government, industry, academia, capital, start-ups and schools.  Building the evidence base is critical, so that we start building a repository of credible case studies and data showing the actual impact of technologies on people’s lives.  Through my writing, speaking and advocacy, I have connected with thousands of people globally and helped them understand the possibilities. Moreover, through my work with social impact startups, I have supported them to build the technological impact projects for the future.

 

The Impact:

Jane: My focus has been on emerging economies and social impact. I have spoken at many conferences, to governments, international agencies, and have consistently launched social media awareness campaigns to ensure people understand the uses of Blockchain technology for building sustainable future.  I have been a proponent of using hackathons to solve global challenges of health, environment, financial inclusion, gender equality and basic service delivery.  I am writing a book at present on Web 3.0 to share my knowledge. I am the Co-Founder of the British Blockchain and Frontier Technology Association, and the World Metaverse Council. I am working to establish a technology for social impact cooperative in the Middle East and SusTex. I am working towards ensuring a more aware and growing technologically efficient society.

 

 

Dr. Thomason’s Vision:

Jane: Technological advancement is constant and connectivity is growing at a fast pace. At 7.2 billion, there are more mobile connections than people on the planet and 30 percent of the world’s population has access to the internet. This offers a huge opportunity to use digital as a tool to address long-standing issues in inequality and disadvantage.

We need to rethink the entire narrative around the way we measure success and value. The economy is being reimagined, and in order to drive any meaningful change around the SDG’s, the measurability of trust, freedom, and new forms of value, technological solutions need to be embedded into the mandate across the entire value chain across the economy.  This is incredibly powerful, the only way to truly drive a much more impact-oriented approach to investment, use of finance or the deployment of digital technologies requires to balance profit-driven interests with the impact-driven.

The Glass Ceiling for Women in Technology:

Jane: I think that technology, generally, is an ideal area for women – because it allows them flexible working hours and arrangements with family responsibilities.  There are rapidly emerging new use cases – that means opportunity! We need to help women and girls across the world to create their own future. If we think less about what others think and more about what we can do, individually and collectively – we will succeed.  The next generation of women will be better off because technology will enable flexible working conditions and even transform childcare (self-driving cars and robots will be extremely helpful to mums!).

Don’t let the idea that the technology industry is male dominated prevent you from getting involved in reconstructing a different future. Step up to the plate and be the kind of person who excels in tech industry regardless of your gender. In my view, success in any industry comes down to the same things: Are you really good at what you do? Can you get the job done? Can you understand the people you work with?

Dr. Thomason’s Plan for Next Five Years and Beyond:

Jane: I want to be part of, shaping of Blockchain, Metaverse and Tech4Sustainability ‘at scale’. I continue to get busy in creating social benefits and leveraging the global financial system through technological innovation. The two things that give me the greatest satisfaction are doing something tangible that improves people’s lives, like supporting impact focused start-ups in emerging economies, and mentoring young people: helping them through their career trajectories to achieve their dreams. I am especially passionate about helping young women negotiate careers and families so as to be successful at both.

I want to be part of driving this and make significant contributions to solve some of the big, global problems of our time, like identity, financial inclusion, preventable deaths in women and children and climate change. The future of work, of society and of government are in question and I am excited about being at the vanguard of the transformation.

As a thriving technology hub, the UAE is the ideal place to build a Tech4 Sustainability Ecosystem. The government has an ambition to lead globally in  technology; therefore, the country has a vibrant and diverse community of technology innovators from around the world, who are striving to create a  better future. With the Global Climate Conference in 2023 in the UAE, it’s an ideal time to focus on technology for climate action.

I am also excited to be one of the founders of the World Metaverse Council, a platform leading the dialogue for an equitable and inclusive life in the metaverse. We promote collaboration to create an equitable, inclusive, and truly decentralized Metaverse and maximize the incredible economic and social possibilities. A key initiative will be to promote teaching and education on Metaverse which offers accessibility globally. It will connect and merge resources, to accelerate the adoption of open, free Metaverses, on shared open source protocols, open infrastructure, and an open financial system.

Here is what Women in Tech Should Do:

Key success factors for me are:

1. Have a clear set of values that you live by. This is vital, because they engender trust, define who you work with and how you approach problems. Mine have always been around respect, trust, integrity and pursuit of excellence.
2. Be resilient. Resilience is a critical success factor for people in business.  You will fail, you will have knock backs, what matters is how you learn from that, and how fast you are able to re-frame and start again.
3. Stay focused. It is easy to get distracted by small things – always keep your eye on the big  picture and what you are trying to achieve.
4. Strategic agility is critical in the CEOs of today more than ever before, the world is changing fast and your business will be impacted. You need to be constantly scanning the horizon and preparing for changes that are coming, while managing the problems of today.
5. Show leadership – be a leader who is going somewhere that people want to follow.
6. Finally – never give up.  Be persistent, if you do not succeed at first, try another strategy, until you find one that works.

Don’t be afraid to fail, be bold and do it now.

Contact Dr Jane Thomason:

Linkedin: @drjanethomason