Social issues are complex, and people need them broken down to problems or solutions they feel they can impact, in order to get them engaged. Homelessness is a daunting issue to understand and to know where to help. However, if a shelter has a need for blankets, coats, gloves or new socks, many people can understand that need and contribute. Some people feel better giving their time or expertise instead of money. Its valuable when you break down the needs the community can fulfill. That communication makes it easier to connect to the value our citizens can give.
As part of my series about “authors who are making an important social impact”, I had the pleasure of interviewing Lois Melbourne.
Lois Melbourne is a former software entrepreneur and CEO. She focuses her community impact through philanthropy and activism to improve kid’s future. She is the author of Moral Code, a sci-fi exposing the issues of child abuse and trafficking, while fighting the issue with the most ethical artificial intelligence ever created.
Thank you so much for joining us in this interview series! Before we dive into the main focus of our interview, our readers would love to “get to know you” a bit better. Can you tell us a bit about your childhood backstory?
As the youngest of five in rural Iowa and Missouri, creating stories for myself and reading were primary sources of my entertainment. I wrote for the school newspaper and yearbook. I fancied journalism school, but Missouri State was cheaper, and I knew I could work at one of the local ad agencies. I was enamored with both the short storytelling in ads, and the business side of the industry, so I studied marketing. Which of course is why I started a software company which had absolutely nothing to do with marketing. I’m flexible like that.
When you were younger, was there a book that you read that inspired you to take action or changed your life? Can you share a story about that?
As a child I loved “The Borrowers” and “The Boxcar Children”. The characters found creative ways to repurpose everyday items. My grandparents and my mother were very pragmatic and optimistic, in similar ways, so I could relate to these characters making things happen with what they had available. I believe that pragmatism is what made entrepreneurship possible for me. Our software company became a global enterprise, but it started out of our house, and I found ways to just make things happen regardless of resource limitations. The secret is to get on with it and solve the problem.
The book that changed my life in a literary sense was Stephen King’s “The Stand”. That was the first book that made me notice that a book could be about anything you could imagine. I read it in high school, and it shook my world creatively.
It has been said that our mistakes can be our greatest teachers. Can you share a story about the funniest mistake you made when you were first starting? Can you tell us what lesson you learned from that?
Can you describe how you aim to make a significant social impact with your book?
There are two areas I hope “Moral Code” can impact. Ethical boundaries for artificial intelligence systems are critical, as are the powerful ways AI can have positive impacts on society. It will be very gratifying if I inspire anyone to work in or support the fields. The story also exposes the painful cycle abuse and trafficking of children can develop. The hopeful side of that coin is that protecting kids and preventing those dangers and bullying can have profound results for children and their adult lives. Hope is primary ingredient for success. When a child feels safe and has the ability to set goals, they stand on the foundation needed for greatness.
Can you share with us the most interesting story that you shared in your book?
I needed to make the story and the technology as believable as possible, while educating and inspiring people to imagine the positive power of artificial intelligence. While the story line that would have explained the ability to create ethical boundaries for AI was trimmed down to keep the pace of the story, the premise is still explained.
To define what is ethical and to create training data for the artificial intelligence, a massive effort of crowd sourcing was required. A consortium globally collected definitions, guidelines, and teachings of ethics from tens of thousands of organizations, schools, religions political bodies like the United Nations. Extreme beliefs were excluded from the AI’s guardrails and the agreed upon principals became an enormous and evolving dataset.
I’m proud of our design for reaching ethical near consensus. It’s a model that is possible yet will be a challenge to achieve.
What was the “aha moment” or series of events that made you decide to bring your message to the greater world? Can you share a story about that?
We talk about technology a lot in our house. During a discussion about what the most ethical role artificial intelligence could play in this world, my husband and I agreed that protecting children from abuse would be the ultimate role. With the combination of my own childhood and things I’ve seen, I knew that the cycle of generational abuse was real. Imagining a world free of child abuses was so powerful that we started braining storming about how one would train an AI for such a mission.
Without sharing specific names, can you tell us a story about a particular individual who was impacted or helped by your cause?
My broader mission always involves making kid’s futures better. Outside of Moral Code’s storyline I’ve helped a lot of kids explore career and education options that align with their dreams. In that capacity I gave one of my typical workshops in an afterschool program. I also fund scholarships at the organization. A young man announced in the workshop that he was going to be doctor because he was going to make a lot of money. Without discouraging his swagger I quizzed him about the activities he liked and how he imagined his job including those interest. There was no alignment with a medical doctor career and his obvious love of engineering. With new guidance he started exploring the development of medical devices. I was proud to provide him scholarship funding the next year when he headed off to engineering school. He is now earning his master’s and working in Minnesota on new radiation delivery equipment.
Are there three things the community/society/politicians can do to help you address the root of the problem you are trying to solve?
Members of every community need to stop protecting the perpetrators of bullying and child abuse. We must make safe relationships for kids to tell their stories and be believed and have action taken to protect them. Every community, every social stratosphere has abusers. We can’t stay silent out of convenience or ease of life. Our silence contributes to the destruction of a healthy life (childhood?) and statistically, long lasting issues.
How do you define “Leadership”? Can you explain what you mean or give an example?
I believe leadership is evident when you give enough respect to others that they feel comfortable reciprocating the respect at levels needed to buy into the goals and activities you present for action.
Nelson Mandela changed the lives of millions and the trajectory of South Africa. He needed people from many walks of life to help him change the way the country’s humanity interacted. He gave respect to everyone he met, even his previous jailers. He believed all these people had it in them to do the right things. He painted his vision and in his belief of whole segments of the population, he told them how they played an important role. He then went to the next segment and explained the importance of their roles. He respected the groups and individuals to rise to the occasion. Respect is contagious and people listened. They learned a respect for Mandela and followed him into the next phase of the country’s life after apartheid.
What are your “5 things I wish someone told me when I first started” and why? Please share a story or example for each.
- Social issues are complex, and people need them broken down to problems or solutions they feel they can impact, in order to get them engaged. Homelessness is a daunting issue to understand and to know where to help. However, if a shelter has a need for blankets, coats, gloves or new socks, many people can understand that need and contribute. Some people feel better giving their time or expertise instead of money. Its valuable when you break down the needs the community can fulfill. That communication makes it easier to connect to the value our citizens can give.
- The question you ask greatly shapes the outcome. Ask a child what they want to be when they grow up and you often get a shrug, or a brisk non-committal response, especially a teenager. The conversation is often dead at this point. If you engage with a question that doesn’t expect them to understand the world of job titles and professions they’ve never seen, you are more likely to find success and be helpful. Instead of the traditional question, consider starting with one of the following: “do you see yourself working outdoors or indoors?” “Would you like to work in teams or more independently?” This allows an answer closer to something they can relate to. If you are aware of hobbies or interest, you can ask if they have heard of jobs that use those skills. These questions can drastically change the trajectory of the conversation and most importantly give you an opportunity to help them explore options for their future, instead of creating awkward silence. This concept is not exclusive to the topic of kid’s looking at their careers.
- People don’t know how to help, even when they really care. Give them multiple paths to participation. During the last decade a lot of people in my community wanted to participate in elections for certain candidates or just helping to encourage voting. Many felt intimidated by the process, didn’t feel comfortable speaking their opinion to neighbors, or felt constraints in the time campaigns were seeking volunteers. A community organizer started postcard design parties. The decorating, messaging, and addressing of the postcards galvanized a large community to come together and foster other election efforts. Many activists would never have started their journey without that small, but significant step into the arena.
- People are not thinking about you or your causes near as much as you think they are. There are pros and cons to this fact. We shouldn’t worry about what people are thinking about us, near as much as we are inclined to do. However, if we want people to care about an issue enough to act towards improving the situation, we have to get the word out to them, far more times than we think is necessary. People are just not paying attention, and everyone has a lot on their mind.
- I want to share a piece of advice that I was given when I was first starting out. My late mother-in-law told us, “Live like others won’t, until you can live like others can’t.” This was a great motivator as a young entrepreneur watching friends move up corporate ladders, get new cars, etc. We poured our discretionary income into our software company instead of keeping up with our peers. That allowed the business to grow, create incredible jobs around the world, and eventually be a mechanism for our early retirement. That retirement has opened my time for writing my books and working in the community as a volunteer and advocate.
Can you please give us your favorite “Life Lesson Quote”? Can you share how that was relevant to you in your life?
This is such a hard question because one of my most treasured possessions is a collection of quotes my grandmother gathered throughout her 96 years. Quotes are a big deal in our family. So, I’ll give the favorite that aligns the best with the theme of your interviews.
“If you think you’re too small to make a difference, try sleeping with a mosquito.” ~The Dalai Lama
Is there a person in the world, or in the US with whom you would like to have a private breakfast or lunch with, and why? He or she might just see this, especially if we tag them. 🙂
Ashton Kutcher, one of the founders of Thorn, an amazing tech organization making real progress in reducing child trafficking and online abuse of children. He is no longer directly involved in the organization, but he had the vision. All proceeds from the “Moral Code” goes to Thorn and Prevent Child Abuse America. Because of his involvement to quell these problems and getting the message out there that this is a big problem in the USA I’d like his opinion on taking Moral Code to the screen, which could give greater visibility to the issues.
How can our readers further follow your work online?
Webpage: www.loismelbourne.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LoisMelbourne.Author/
Instagram: loismelbourne131
https://www.instagram.com/loismelbourne131/
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/lois_melbourne
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/loismelbourne/
Book Website www.MoralCodeTheBook.com
This was very meaningful, thank you so much. We wish you only continued success on your great work!
Social Impact Authors: How & Why Author Lois Melbourne Is Helping To Change Our World was originally published in Authority Magazine on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.