Championing Tech Equity & Digital Sovereignty - A Spotlight on Alejandro Mayoral Baños

My weekly Purposeful Empathy newsletter is dedicated to amplifying the voices of people from around the globe who believe the world needs more empathy - and are doing something about it. In May and June, I’m highlighting the incredible social impact work of Ashoka Canada Fellows.

As a newly minted computer science grad, Alejandro Mayoral Baños found it hard to reconcile his passion for technology with his deep-seated Indigenous identity. He wasn’t alone.

One day, an Indigenous friend put that inner conflict into words by sharing how he felt compelled to align with his career identity at the expense of his personal identity. That’s what inspired Alejandro to find ways to harmonize Indigenous values with technology.

Driven by this vision, Alejandro founded the Indigenous Friends Association (IFA), an organization that cultivates digital opportunities rooted in Indigenous worldviews.

Through innovative programs, IFA participants gain technical skills while learning from Elders and Knowledge Keepers, fostering a profound connection between technology and cultural traditions. Their approach extends beyond education, offering mentorship and internship opportunities, and empowering Indigenous professionals to thrive in tech careers without sacrificing their identities.

Their work challenges the idea that digital tech and Indigenous values and worldviews are incompatible. Instead, the IFA highlights synergies that also point to a more inclusive and sustainable future.

More specifically, by integrating the Indigenous principles of community, environmental stewardship, and conflict resolution into technological solutions, the organization also promotes a future where technology respects and enhances ethical, communal, and ecological values.

For example, when it comes to developing and integrating new technologies like AI into our lives, Alejandro emphasizes the need to slow down.

In a conversation with him for my podcast, Alejandro explained that in our fast-paced digital world, there's a drive to move quickly from one innovation to the next. Instead, he stresses that slowing down allows for a deeper assessment of technology's consequences, both positive and negative.

He believes that by taking the time to listen – especially at the local level – digital solutions can be crafted in a more thoughtful, empathic, and productive manner. And by embracing long-term thinking, the tech sector as a whole could move past quick-fixes to truly inclusive innovations that respect and uplift us all.

Our conversation made me think of Bayo Akomolafe’s compelling quote: “The times are urgent; Let’s slow down.”

Want to learn more about how social entrepreneurs are leveraging empathy to change the world? Order my debut book, Purposeful Empathy: Tapping Our Hidden Superpower for Personal, Organizational, and Social Change.

Watch my Purposeful Empathy interview with Alejandro on YouTube here or listen to it as a podcast on your favourite platform (Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or Google Podcasts).