Designing with people with visual impairments challenges us to rethink how we listen, adapt, and build tools that belong to their users. Here’s what co-designing TOMAT Navigator with visually impaired communities taught us about participatory design—and why it matters for everyone.
Designing with people who can’t see Read More »
The path to meaningful work is open 2025-03-05 Feeling stuck? You’re not alone. You’re talented, capable, and eager to contribute—but lately, your work feels hollow. Maybe you’re grinding through soulless projects just to pad your portfolio, or stuck in a cycle of unstable gigs that pay the bills but drain your purpose. You crave work
The path to meaningful work is open Read More »
From the way we gesture while speaking to how we instinctively reach out to steady ourselves, our physicality shapes every interaction. Embodied technology leans into this reality, creating tools that align with—not fight against—our innate ways of moving, sensing, and being.
Embodied technology: designing tools that honor our human nature Read More »
Imagine walking into a room and seeing a chair. Without thinking, you know you can sit on it. That’s an affordance in action—a design feature that intuitively communicates how something should be used.
Affordances: the secret ingredient to designing technology that just makes sense Read More »
Designing with individuals who have cognitive impairments—such as autism, ADHD, traumatic brain injuries (TBI), or intellectual disabilities—is not just about creating tools; it’s about fostering connection, understanding, and empowerment. No two cognitive profiles are the same, and a rigid, one-size-fits-all approach often falls short. Participatory design, when thoughtfully tailored to the unique needs and capabilities of users, becomes a powerful way to create solutions that truly resonate.
Imagine designing a chair. You could make it look sleek, but if it’s uncomfortable, no one will use it. User-centered design (UCD) flips the script: it starts with the people who will actually use the product. It’s about asking, “What problem are we solving, and who are we solving it for?”
Imagine a woman named Margaret. She’s sitting in a sunlit room, her hands trembling slightly, her eyes distant. She has dementia. Words often fail her, but when a caregiver plays a song from her youth—Blue Moon by Frank Sinatra—her face lights up. She hums along, her foot tapping to the rhythm. For a moment, she’s Margaret, the woman who danced to this song at her high school prom.
What designing with people with dementia teaches us about participatory design Read More »
