Design as Activism Symposium

Today, as calls for racial justice, climate action, and gender equity grow louder and more urgent, designers and makers in Chicago and beyond are demonstrating how design, as both practice and theory, can challenge the status quo. In response to these conditions, I am serving as the co-principal investigator and project lead for Design as Activism, a two-day public symposium on Sept. 13-14, 2024. It will include a day-long activation across the city, followed by a second day of invited speakers, workshops, and an evening panel/event at the Institute of Design at Illinois Tech. Invited speakers will include Chicago-based activists, design practitioners, scholars, commentators, and experts from diverse backgrounds. 

Our programming will consider: 

• Chicago as an enduring and evolving nexus of activism and innovation

• the contemporary intersection of design and activism, including anti-racism, gender equity, and disability justice

• design’s role in social movements

All events will be free and open to the public.

This event is supported by a grant from the Terra Foundation in connection with the Chicago History Museum’s Designing for Change: Chicago Protest Art in the 1960s-70s.

Stay tuned for more details!