A pretty standard week, except that it started with a day where Y was at home (due to her teachers have a training day).
This week I

• Got invited for an interview for next week on a project I’d really like to land, after submitting a proposal at the start of the week.
• Had the weekly client meetings
• Talked to a new member in the Dutch tactical council for the EU data strategy
• Had some trouble with my laptop’s internet connection after updating MacOS turns out there was some conflict between the OS and my Little Snitch filter / monitoring tool.
• Took delivery of a 4-person inflatable kayak, which we intend to use in the canals and stream around our neighbourhood, now that Y can swim.
• Commented on a draft letter to Parliament concerning digital ethics efforts in the public sector
• Made the monthly salary payments
• Read and commented on a document concerning the re-use options of the national database for flaura and fauna.
• Wrote some feedback to the interprovincial community of practice on data management about the discussions we had in the interprovincial digital ethics board about the use of generative AI in policy documents and public sector work.
• Did a close reading of the version of the AI Act that the European parliamentary commission agreed on. A plenary vote in the EP should take place in June, after which the negotiations start with the Council and the Commission to find a single common version of the text. The EP committee has sought to strengthen the AI Act but also I think deleted an instrument (the updatable Annex listing some of the technologies in scope) that was worthwile and could have stayed even with the addition of a definition the EP did in the legal text itself. Now all the fuss will be about whether or not something fits the definition, whereas keeping the Annex would have allowed an adaptable list of the things that are considered to fit the definition by default.
• Had a conversation with former business partner E, talking about their work in the past few years. It seems there is reason to explore if we can work together on the topics of participation and citizen science. A conversation to extend on later.
• Met up with old university friend A, having not seen him since shortly after university. We talked for over four hours without noticing, about our lives and its turning points, work and work related travel.
• With our entire team did a workshop with the similar sized team of Geon, to get to know each other and our work better, and see where there’s overlaps and differences.
• Took Y to her swimming lesson.
• On Saturday did all the preparations for Y’s birthday, including E and Y baking an apple pie together.
• Celebrated Y’s 7th birthday today with family visiting, friends and family from far away sending things in the mail and videocalling, and enjoying the lovely weather outside.

Y getting ready to bake an applie pie with E for her birthday party.