Building Resilience, Private Payments & Digital Governance — DisrupTV Ep. 282 with Sharron McPherson, Joshua Goldbard & Dr. David Bray

On DisrupTV Episode 282, hosts R “Ray” Wang and Vala Afshar bring together three voices working at the front lines of systemic change: Sharron McPherson (Co-Founder & CEO, The Green Jobs Machine), Joshua Goldbard (Founder & CEO, MobileCoin), and Dr. David Bray (Distinguished Fellow, Stimson Center; Principal, LeadDoAdapt Ventures). The conversation spans climate resilience and green-jobs creation, privacy-preserving digital payments, and the governance leaders need as AI and data reshape public and private institutions.

Featured Guests

  • Sharron McPherson — Co-Founder & CEO, The Green Jobs Machine. A resilience strategist whose work sits at the intersection of climate resilience, AI, and national security, with deep experience in infrastructure investing and workforce development. 
  • Joshua Goldbard — Founder & CEO, MobileCoin. Entrepreneur behind MobileCoin, a privacy-focused, mobile-native digital payments network designed for fast, user-friendly transactions. 
  • Dr. David A. Bray — Distinguished Fellow, Stimson Center; Principal, LeadDoAdapt Ventures. Advisor and operator on tech, data, and governance challenges across government and industry, focused on human-centered, resilient systems.

Key Takeaways

  • Climate resilience will be built job by job. McPherson highlights that the transition to resilient infrastructure requires skilling at scale—from energy retrofits to last-mile adaptation projects—so communities can thrive amid climate shocks. Her work connects climate resilience with AI-enabled workforce pipelines to create “green jobs” where they’re most needed. 
  • Privacy is a feature, not a bug, in the next wave of digital payments. Goldbard’s MobileCoin vision centers on fast, simple, privacy-preserving transactions designed for everyday use—bringing digital cash experiences to mobile messaging and consumer apps without sacrificing user protections. 
  • Governance must keep pace with exponential tech. Bray underscores that leaders need mission-driven, human-centered governance to navigate AI, cybersecurity, and data risk—moving beyond compliance to adaptive, coalition-based resilience. 
  • Public–private collaboration is the multiplier. From climate jobs to secure payments to AI safety, the common thread is cross-sector execution—pairing policy, capital, and technology with community outcomes. (Synthesis based on guest domains and roles.

Standout Insight

“Resilience, privacy, and trustworthy governance aren’t separate agendas—they’re the operating system for the modern enterprise.” — Synthesis of themes raised by McPherson, Goldbard, and Bray in this episode.

Why It Matters 

  • Green jobs & climate tech: how to fund and staff local resilience projects. 
  • Private, mobile-native payments: usability + speed + privacy for mainstream adoption.
  • AI & digital governance: frameworks for leaders to manage risk and earn trust.

Final Thoughts

Episode 282 connects three pillars every leader now needs to operationalize: a resilient workforce, privacy-by-design payments and data flows, and governance that scales with AI. If you’re planning climate adaptation initiatives, exploring embedded payments, or updating risk frameworks for AI, the playbook is the same: start with human outcomes, build coalitions across sectors, and instrument your systems for rapid learning and adaptation. That’s how you turn disruption into durable advantage.

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