Short bio, Dr. Dana Klisain

There was a time I believed that if we designed our technologies with human values–empathy, altruism, compassion–we could shift the arc of human consciousness. And I still believe that. But I’ve come to see it’s only half the equation.

My early work in Psychology focused on designing tools for the ethical design of information and communication systems. In 2005, I introduced the concept of transception—a term I coined to describe cyberception infused with moral imagination, drawing from systems theory and Buddhist psychology. It became a foundational principle in my exploration of conscious media and the Evolutionary Guidance Media framework, designed to support the development of social impact media (before it was called that). I was invited to contribute this research to a special issue of Futures. Later, I applied Ken Wilber’s Integral Theory to the Evolutionary Guidance Media framework, designing a meta-theory for designing ethical media and technology. It resulted in the EGM-Integral Framework.

I coined the term digital altruism to describe early expressions of altruism online and developed the Cyberhero archetype as a new model of prosocial identity in a networked world. My research on cyber-kindness, and collaborative heroism contributed to some of the earliest frameworks for understanding how emerging technologies might nurture compassion and social responsibility supporting digital citizenship and advancing consciousness.

These ideas weren’t just theoretical. I brought them to life through collaborations with dynamic, interdisciplinary teams—including interactive media labs, government bodies, and nonprofits. An in-house example is the Cyberhero League® platform, an award-winning edtech adventure, helping children cultivate heroic qualities through real-world impact. It’s currently undergoing an exciting new upgrade. We launched one of the early Indiegogo campaigns for gaming and learned firsthand about the power of crowd-sourced fundraising.

Over time, my work began to stretch into new terrain. Empathy by design—while powerful—is only sustainable if we’re also attending to our relationships with nature, with community, and with our own inner lives. I began exploring what it means to rewild the human psyche and to design future systems capable of restoring our innate capacities for resilience, sensory intelligence, and ecological awareness.

Today, through ReWilding: Lab, I bring together psychology, the arts, and nature-based practices to help individuals and organizations restore human-nature relationships and expand the realm of imagination and future possibilities.

Throughout, I’ve continued working at the intersection of psychology and technology. My research has long emphasized youth development in digital environments, and I’ve contributed to initiatives led by UNESCO, Stanford’s Existential Risk Initiative (SERI), and Elon University’s Imagining the Digital Future Center. I write regularly for Psychology Today, and my work has been featured by the American Psychological Association, Forbes,  BBC Radio, and Time.

I grew up in a family of artists and readers. My sister, Melisca Klisanin, is an award-winning designer of retail spaces and products (who also paints and designs gardens). She is my business partner and the creative superpower at EGM R&D. We lost our younger sister to mental illness—she was a dancer, musician, and visual artist. Her life and work continues to inspire us.

My own art often has a participatory component. I am currently exploring human-nature connection through the Wild Twins project and exploring new models through Wild Willpower . I enjoy writing poetry and fiction. In my Chronicles of G.A.I.A. book series, I imagine a future shaped by youth—with support from AI. The series features B.E.L.A.—a Benevolent-Expertise Learning-based Artificial Intelligence Assistant—who helps guide children through a rapidly changing world. It's fiction rooted in foresight: a vision of AI designed not to replace us, but to remind us of what makes us beautifully human.

We hold more than the capacity to process data or create content in the blink of an eye. We are living beings in a living system—where our choices shape the well-being of future generations. The rapid evolution of AI is not just a technological milestone—it’s a call to consciousness.

Which brings me full circle. Our collaborative potential to co-create compassionate futures for all beings is what drive my work.

My CV can be found here.

Dr. Dana Klisanin