Beth Coleman

Beth Coleman is the inaugural director of the University of Toronto’s Black Research Network – an Institutional Strategic Initiative and the first of its kind in Canada dedicated to promoting Black research excellence. Coleman is also an associate professor of Data & Cities at the Institute of Communication, Culture, Information and Technology and Faculty of Information at the University of Toronto, where she directs the City as Platform lab. Working in the disciplines of science and technology studies and critical race theory, her research focuses on smart technology and machine learning, urban data and civic engagement. 

Coleman’s research affiliations have included the Berkman Klein Center for Internet & Society; Microsoft Research; Data & Society Institute; and expert consultant for the European Commission Digital Futures. She is a founding director of Thriving Cities, Singapore. Coleman is a 2021 Google Artists and Machines Intelligence awardee and a Google Brain visiting researcher.