Hi, I’m Sebastian!
I’m currently working as a design engineer and researcher for 
metaLAB (at) Harvard while studying at the Oxford Internet Institute. 
Select Projects
 
                Helping educators critically and creatively engage with AI
metaLAB (at) Harvard • 2023 – Present
 
                Investigating U.S. disinformation capabilities and strategies
University of Toronto • 2024
 
                Helping educators reflect on their teaching and learning practice
STLHE • 2024
 
                Teaching students to embrace, learn, and bounce back from failure
University of Toronto • 2022 – 2024
 
                Visualizing how radio wave technologies shape our world
metaLAB (at) Harvard • 2024
 
                Mapping domestic Predator drone deployments in the U.S.
Independent Project • 2023
About
I’m a design engineer and researcher at metaLAB within the Berkman Klein Center for Internet & Society at Harvard University. My research explores critical surveillance and security studies, algorithmic governance and critical data practices, digital humanities, and pedagogical development. At metaLAB, I am the lead engineer and designer of the AI Pedagogy Project, where I’m building digital tools that help educators critically and creatively engage with AI in the classroom. I have a Bachelor of Information from the University of Toronto, and am completing an MSc in Social Science of the Internet from the Oxford Internet Institute at the University of Oxford.
Outside of metaLAB, I work as a research collaborator with the Data Nutrition Project, where I contribute to the organization’s efforts to mitigate AI bias through educational initiatives. I’m also affiliated with several interdisciplinary research and educational initiatives, including the Failure: Learning in Progress Project at the University of Toronto, the REFLECT Project at the Society for Teaching and Learning in Higher Education, and the Beyond Disinformation Research Cluster, a collaboration between researchers at the Universities of Manchester, Melbourne, and Toronto. 
Areas of Research
Internet Studies
Human-Centered AI
Digital Humanities
Privacy and Surveillance
Human-Computer Interaction
Critical Security Studies
University Pedagogy
Preserving the Past, Generating the Future: How Archivists Can Contribute to Generative AI’s Development
Association of Canadian Archivists Annual Conference
June 12, 2024 • With C. Thierstein
Facing the Fallout: The Private Military Contractors Protecting America’s Nuclear Arsenal
DH Fest 2024 at the University of Toronto
April 9, 2024
Dark Patterns: Deception and Manipulation in UX Design
Critical Digital Humanities International Conference
October 1, 2022 • With M. Iantorno & D. Guadagnolo
The United States of Surveillance
Digital Humanities Summer Institute (DHSI) Conference and Colloquium
June 18, 2021
Shaping Reality: How America Wages (Dis)Information Warfare
Beyond Disinformation Research Symposium by the Universities of Manchester, Melbourne, & Toronto
October 7, 2024
Dark Patterns: Where Marketing Meets UX Design
University of Toronto CDHI Emerging Scholar Showcase
April 22, 2022
The United States of Surveillance: A Review of America’s Mass Surveillance Laws, Programs, and Oversight
Interdisciplinary Digital Engagement in Arts & Humanities (IDEAH), 3(2)
2022
Recent Employment
Design Engineer & Researcher
metaLAB (at) Harvard, Berkman Klein Center for Internet & Society
JUN 2023 – Present
Research Collaborator
Data Nutrition Project
NOV 2024 – PRESENT
Web Designer & Research Engineer
Society for Teaching & Learning in Higher Education
Apr 2024 – Sep 2024
Web Designer & Developer / Research Assistant
University of Toronto
SEP 2022 – SEP 2024