TheBridge profile: Ellysse Dick
Name: Ellysse Dick
Current city: Washington, D.C.
Current job: Policy Analyst, Information Technology and Innovation Foundation
Past job: Communications lead, The Women in Public Service Project at the Wilson Center
Q. Favorite spot for a coffee meeting? The nearest available Compass Coffee
Q. Describe how a skill you learned in a previous job helped you in your current job. My on-campus job in college was giving live presentations at a planetarium. I would explain the wonders of outer space to everyone from small children to astronomy students to members of the community of all ages and backgrounds. In addition to fun space facts, that job taught me how to take something I was excited and relatively knowledgeable about, and explain it to others in a way that made them excited about it too. As I work on more and more complex policy issues, this skill has helped me engage a variety of different audiences in the issues I'm passionate about.
Q. Job advice in three words? Build genuine connections.
Q. How are you (or your org) currently bridging the gap between innovation and regulation? ITIF is a think tank working at the intersection of policy and innovation. We promote innovation-friendly policy solutions by providing policymakers with research, analysis, and recommendations that help them understand the role their decisions can play in accelerating innovation and avoiding potential pitfalls. My own research focuses on augmented and virtual reality, which you don't see playing a role in most of the broader tech policy conversations (yet). So I'm working to build those linkages between well-established policy debates and this new technology that could have huge impacts in the coming years.
Q. What can innovators learn from policymakers? Engagement, engagement, engagement! So much of the policymaking process is just listening and asking the right people the right questions. I'm hardly the first person to say this, but innovators can look to these practices to develop product development and implementation processes that account for the broadest possible set of intended and unintended impacts.
Q. What can policymakers learn from innovators? The value of iteration. There is never a be-all, end-all solution to a problem - and that goes double for the tech and innovation questions that a lot of policymakers are grappling with today. Too often the policy community winds up forcing incredibly dynamic innovations into static solutions that are somehow also expected to prevent future challenges. Innovators understand the value of thinking big, but starting small, and recognizing that the process might take you in a completely new direction.
Q. Everyday is probably different, but can you describe a "day in the life" of your job? To put it simply, my job consists of geeking out about policy and trying to get others to geek out with me. Sometimes I do it in writing, or at events, or in one-on-one conversations. It's really the dream!
Q. Looking back, what advice would you give yourself in the beginning of your career? Have confidence in your ideas and experience! Coming at a problem from a different perspective than everyone else in the room is a strength, not a weakness. There will always be someone smarter than you, but you'll also understand or think of things that others don't.
Q. If you had to live in another city, which would it be? I'm a Midwest girl at heart, so I'd be happy anywhere with four real seasons, friendly people, and plenty of opportunities for outdoor activities!
Q. How do you unwind after work? After a particularly busy day, I like to throw on a VR headset and cycle through some of my favorite apps and games (and I'm always looking for new recommendations!). But that usually lasts about an hour before my cat starts to demand my attention.
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