Please introduce yourself, your role in the DRS and your research.
I am a newly elected member of DRS’s International Advisory Council (IAC). I have a background in industrial design and professional experience at various design schools in Brazil and the Netherlands. My academic research is highly interdisciplinary, situated mainly at the intersection of design and the philosophy of technology. Currently, I explore how designers contribute to social justice in emerging technologies (e.g., artificial intelligence) through form-giving practices. Specifically, I am developing conceptual frameworks for designing technology-mediated human freedom, drawing on the Hegelian notion of intersubjective recognition.
Could you talk about the initiatives you’re involved with in the DRS and any upcoming events you’d like to share?
Within the IAC, I co-lead a working group dedicated to Designing. This is the upcoming official journal of the DRS, where I will also serve as a senior editor. Our primary objectives are to advise the DRS Executive Board on journal-related decisions and to develop internal policies and procedures that ensure its successful operation in collaboration with our publishing partner. Additionally, I contribute to another IAC working group focused on Plurality, Diversity, and Inclusion.
What do you see as the benefits of being involved with the DRS and how can those interested become more involved in the Society?
The main benefit is to help strengthen the field of design research by drawing on a broad, diverse, and reputable academic community. As an IAC member, I am committed to increasing the global diversity of design publishing, particularly by fostering fairer conditions for design researchers from less privileged regions, contexts, or positions. I aim to achieve this by synergistically integrating my IAC role with my editorial position at the journal Designing, whose mission includes advancing design research across all regions of the world.
Those interested in becoming more involved with the DRS are welcome to reach out to me or any other member of the Designing working group or editorial team. We encourage discussions on the current state of representation in design research and invite ideas on how to further enhance global diversity.
Choose five items from the DRS Digital Library that you'd like to highlight.
The DRS 2024 International Conference in Boston was my first exposure to the DRS community. I was highly impressed by the diversity of perspectives and approaches to design research represented there. My selections come from the conference and highlight notable presentations I witnessed, as well as insightful works I discovered later while browsing the proceedings.
The first two are powerful, emancipatory works led by two young feminist academics.
Bibiana Oliveira Serpa and Marco Mazzarotto (2024). “Towards a design methodology against oppression.” https://doi.org/10.21606/drs.2024.617
Valentina Volpi, Val Mitchell, Stuart Cockbill, and Ksenija Kuzmina (2024). “The road to cooptation is paved with good intentions: an anarchafeminist critique of empowerment ambiguity in DSI.” https://doi.org/10.21606/drs.2024.942
The next three studies, highly praised by reviewers, are led by researchers from Turkey, Colombia, and India—countries less frequently featured in academic design journals.
Serpil Karaoğlu, Aslı Günay, and Ilgım Veryeri Alaca (2024). “Designing a crossover multisensory picturebook with older adults at a care home.” https://doi.org/10.21606/drs.2024.780
Juan Mendoza-Collazos, María Astrid Rios Durán, and Maria Cecilia Loschiavo dos Santos (2024). “Colombia-Brazil dialogues. In search of a Latin American epistemology for design.” https://doi.org/10.21606/drs.2024.1143
Chhail Khalsa and Pranshu Kumar Chaudhary (2024). “Co-creation framework to develop and situate e-textiles with indigenous crafts.” https://doi.org/10.21606/drs.2024.846