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Landecker Democracy Fellows Rayén Jara Mitrovich and Jo Jara Kroese are the co-founders of Radical Data. In June 2023, they are participating in MediaFutures Demo Days in Hamburg to present the first version of “Self” – their new app.
“Self was selected to be part of the MediaFutures program to receive funding and mentoring as a project responding to the topic of misinformation,” Rayén explains. Notably, Self is one of the outcomes of Queering the Quantified Self, Rayén’s Landecker Project.
On Thursday, June 8, Rayén and Jo will pitch the results of their process at the MediaFutures final event in Hamburg. To learn more about the conference’s program, click here.
About Self
“Self is a health app for every body,” the team explains. “It started as a simple idea: how can we use data to understand our bodies?”
Built as a ‘ground-up’ rethinking of what a health app is, Rayén and Jo worked with diverse communities, experts and “downloaded more health apps to our phones than probably anyone else in the world,” they claim.
Through this research, they realized that everyone carries out research about their own body and mind – a process called self research. “However, we often lack the tools and knowledge to do it effectively, leaving individuals open to health misinformation. Self is the tool to help individuals on this journey,” Rayén and Jo explain.
Therefore, Self is built to be private (your data never needs to leave your phone), non-normative (it makes no assumptions about your body) and infinitely flexible (adapting to whatever is unique to your body).
In other words, Self is not just another health app. “It represents a paradigm shift, providing individuals with the tools they need to understand their bodies better,” they add. “We invite you to join us on this transformative journey of self-discovery and empowerment. Together, we can create a healthier future for every body.”
The team behind Self is a supergroup consisting of the co-founders of Radical Data, Jo Kroese and Rayén Mitrovich, the founder of Applied Creative, Niels Janssen, and the designer Hannah Nishat Botero.
Learn more
- Discover MediaFutures Demo Days!
- Read about Queering the Quantified Self, Rayén’s Landecker Project.
- Learn more about Self.
Rayén and Jo are 2022-2023 Landecker Democracy Fellows. This fellowship, a collaboration between the Alfred Landecker Foundation and Humanity in Action, was created to strengthen a new generation of leaders whose approaches to political and social challenges can become catalysts for democratic placemaking and community building. Read more about the fellowship here.
