naresh agarwal – Project Oneness World

May 21, 2026May 21, 2026

Diane Sonnenwald

In Conversation

Episode 16 Diane Sonnenwald

Emerita Professor and Emerita Chair

In conversation with Diane Sonnenwald, Emerita Professor and Emerita Chair at the University College Dublin, creator of the information horizon theory, and Past President of the Association for Information Science & Technology. She talked about working in a male dominated field, moving to Europe, and the information horizons theory.

Trailer (1:00)

Interview (1:43:21)

Timecodes

0:00 Trailer

0:55 Intro

3:51 Childhood

8:16 Bell Laboratories and Rutgers

15:51 Move to Academia

17:55 Kindergarten

19:53 Programming at Prudential

21:32 Woman in Male-dominated Field

26:54 Changes in the Field

29:22 Significant Turning Points in Career

38:04 Key Skills

43:11 Moving from the US to Europe

51:13 Information Horizons Theory

1:03:38 Influences

1:09:37 Planning

1:13:28 Biggest Successes

1:18:22 Resilience

1:31:15 Ok to Rest

1:31:26 Life Lessons

1:38:51 Small Pleasures

1:39:09 Goals

1:40:07 Mentoring Advice

This interview was supported by the ASIS&T Bob Williams Research Grant 2025.

More about Diane Sonnenwald University College Dublin | Google Scholar | LinkedIn

April 15, 2026May 12, 2026

Ina Fourie

In Conversation

Episode 15 Ina Fourie

Retired Professor, Head of Department, and Chair of the School

In conversation with Ina Fourie, who retired as a Full Professor from the University of Pretoria, South Africa. She has been Head of Department of Information Science and Chair of the School of Information Technology. She talks about growing up in apartheid South Africa, her work in health information behavior including cancer, grief, and palliative care, how personal experiences shaped her scholarly direction, with meaning, compassion and human connection being central to it all.

Trailer (1:00)

Interview (1:50:56)

https://youtu.be/b_hqFI3Uei8

Timecodes

0:57 Introduction

3:49 Early Life

15:23 South Africa

27:06 Career

36:39 Turning Points

42:31 Autoethnography

48:17 Serendipity

55:18 Information Science

1:02:26 Influences

1:11:55 Husband

1:19:36 Influential Books

1:21:36 Key Skills

1:27:12 Biggest Successes

1:30:28 Hardest Periods

1:34:34 Personal Conflict

1:37:47 Uncertainty

1:46:33 Goals

1:48:02 Mentoring Advice

This interview was supported by the iSchools Research Grant 2023.

More about Ina Fourie University of Pretoria | Google Scholar | LinkedIn

December 20, 2025December 20, 2025

Yunjie (Calvin) Xu

In Conversation

Episode 14 Yunjie (Calvin) Xu
Professor, Fudan University

In conversation with Yunjie (Calvin) Xu, Professor at the Department of Information Management and Business Intelligence, School of Management, Fudan University, Shanghai, China. He talked about growing up poor in a farming family, his faith, the social problems of AI, and balancing work and family.

Trailer (1:00)

Interview (1:24:55)

Timecodes

0:00 Trailer
0:55 Intro
4:45 Growing up in poor farming village in China
9:24 What led to career in information management
14:18 Moving from China to the US
15:21 Why choose Calvin for an English name
16:59 Turning points in career
26:46 Serendipity and life priorities
34:05 Information science field
38:50 Influences
41:33 Publication and writing
58:18 Advice for new researchers
1:02:02 Biggest successes
1:03:09 Biggest challenges
1:12:21 Life principles
1:19:44 Meaning of happiness
1:21:18 Goals

This interview was supported by the iSchools Research Grant 2023.

More about Calvin Xu Fudan University | Personal website | Google Scholar

June 19, 2025October 28, 2025

Lynn Perry Wooten

In Conversation

Episode 12 Lynn Perry Wooten
9th President of Simmons University

In conversation with Lynn Perry Wooten, the 9th President of Simmons University and the first African American to lead the University since its founding in 1899. She talked about growing up, her family, philanthropy, being the Pandemic President, and her vision for the University’s future.

Trailer (0:50)