Design Thinking Roundtable

ERA Chair in Social Innovation @ Nova SBE

The Design Thinking Roundtable is a collaboration between the DESIS Lab and the ERA Chair in Social Innovation at NOVA SBE with the Design Lab @ NYU MakerSpace. Originally conceived by Harshita Nedunuri and Anne-Laure Fayard, then co-created with Priyanka Vora. Since Fall 20219, it is conceived and produced by AL Fayard. Audio production and sound design (in various episodes): Guilhem Tamisier; Blake Rook; John Klima; Claudio Silva. Covert Art: Guilhem Tamisier

  1. Designing for Justice-centered Futures and Collective Liberation

    MAR 3

    Designing for Justice-centered Futures and Collective Liberation

    Hanieh Khosroshahi is an independent design consultant, researcher, and community organizer working in pursuit of people and the planet. Her work spans multiple sectors from international development and public health to women’s rights and technologies. She also worked in many geographies including Canada, Rwanda, Tanzania, Nepal, and Afghanistan.  She applies principles and methods of Human-centred Design, participatory research, and systems thinking to design, test, and scale innovative and impactful solutions, both online and offlineHer mission is to advance the health, opportunities, and rights of those on the margins, with a particular focus on youth and women in under-served and low-resource settings, from or with roots in the global majority. In this episode, Hanieh shares with us the journey that led her to English Literature, Visual Arts and Journalism to Human-Computer Interaction and UX design, to her work today at the intersection of design, social change and community organizing. She shared her perspective and work on participatory design and decolonizing practices, providing us with a sense of what designing for collective liberation and justice-centered futures looks like. Community, care and relationships are at the core of her work as a researcher, a designer and a social activist. To learn more about Hanieh's work, follow her on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/haniehk/ and check her website: https://hanieh.me/ Learn about Thousand&One, a global, feminist community co-founded by Hanieh. It supports Women of Colour to thrive in their personal and professional lives.: https://thousandone.org Credits: Conception, host and production: Anne-Laure Fayard Sound design & Post-production: Valter Gouveia Music & Art Work: Guilhem Tamisier

    33 min
  2. Tales of the field: Raise Your Voice, A Strategy Game for AI in Humanitarian Work

    12/23/2025

    Tales of the field: Raise Your Voice, A Strategy Game for AI in Humanitarian Work

    Tales of the Field is a podcast series which gives voice to social activists and social innovators who work in and with their communities to create social impact and sustainable change. They share with us their work in the field - where they  tackle complex social issues and aim to create sustainable change and social impact. At its core, their work is human-centered, systemic and always informed by a deep understanding of the context and people’s lives. In this episode, we talked with with Shane Casey, Creative Lead, and Fergus Gleeson, Research Lead in Applied Human Sciences, at The Dock, Accenture’s global innovation center in Dublin, who share the outcome of a research project Accenture did with CARE International in order to understand the challenges and opportunities of AI in the Global South. We talked about the design and development of Raise Your Voice, a strategic game to create participatory engagement of communities in the Global South, and give them a voice in the development and governance of AI. They highlighted the value of games for inclusive and participatory engagement in humanitarian and development contexts, and beyond. To learn more about the research done by Accenture with Care International on AI and the Global South: https://www.careinternational.org.uk/news-stories/ai-and-the-global-south-making-ai-more-ethical-and-effective-through-inclusive-participation/ About the game: https://www.100archive.com/projects/raise-your-voice To download the game: https://github.com/Accenture/raiseyourvoice Conception: Melchior Tamisier-Fayard Co-conception: Anne-Laure Fayard Voice, Sound design, and Post-Production: Melchior Tamisier-Fayard Music : Guilhem Tamisier Artwork: Jyoti Tamisier-Fayard

    18 min
  3. An Invitation to Citizen

    11/08/2025

    An Invitation to Citizen

    Jon Alexander, a Storyteller, Strategist, and Visiting Fellow atHarvard University. Jon started out in advertising and co-founded in 2014 with Irenie Ekkeshis a consultancy, the NewCitizen Project which works with organisations across sectors to explore what it would mean to treat people as citizens, not just consumers. In 2022, he published a book, Citizens, which won numerous book of the year awards, was reviewed by the Financial Times as an “underground hit”, selected by the World Economic Forum for its CEO Book Club. Jon wears a few other hats: as a Visiting Fellow at the University of Manchester, a Senior Associate at the Cambridge Institute for Sustainability Leadership, a founding member of the OECD's Innovative Citizen Participation Network, and a member of the Advisory Councils of DemocracyNext, the Apolitical Foundation, and the Democracy and Culture Foundation. Jon holds three Masters degrees spanning humanities and business. In this episode, Jon reflects on his journey from advertising to starting a consultancy The New Citizen Project to writing a book and become an author, public speaker and actionist. He reflects on human history as a journey from subject to consumer to citizen. He proposes a definition of citizen as a practice rather than status and as verb as a noun. He explores how storytelling is not only a way to inspire and agitate, but also a form of action. He shares many inspiring stories that can help imagine a citizen future. Jon highlights the value of collaborations especially at the intersections, and invites us to embrace a citizen-centered design approach. To learn more about Jon's work, follow him on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jon-alexander-11b66345/ and check his website: ⁠https://jonalexander.net/⁠ Two references he shared with us in the podcast: Using Emergence to Take Social Innovation to ScaleMargaret Wheatley and Deborah Frieze Navigating Societal Change through Design by Sara Gry Striegler and Julie Hjort. Credits: Conception, host and production: Anne-Laure Fayard Sound design & Post-production: Claudio Silva Music & Art Work: Guilhem Tamisier

    31 min
  4. Design for human-wildlife coexistence

    10/12/2025

    Design for human-wildlife coexistence

    Francesco Cara, a designer, educator and curator. Francesco explores what it means to design in the current epoch, the Anthropocene, marked by climate disruption, unstoppable biodiversity loss and growing social inequality, with a focus on two domains: digital sustainability and human-wildlife coexistence. Francesco is an activist for AlGore's Climate Reality Project and for the Right to Repair. He taught ecodesign at Politecnico di Milano and IED Milano. He had various leadership roles in design at Nokia, Sapient,IconMedialab in Finland, France and the UK, and co-founded one of the earliest User-Centered Design studios in Europe, CB&J in Paris He curated Climate Space festival with Ludovico Einaudi and Ponderosa Music & Art.  Francesco has a MSc and a PhD in Cognitive Science from the University of Edinburgh. In this episode, Francesco reflects on his journey and how he went from cognitive science "in vitro" to cognition "in the wild", and design; and within design: from Human-centered design to ecodesign and human-wildlife coexistence. Francesco argues that design has a fundamental role to play in finding solutions and a new balance. He highlights the limits of ecodesign, noting that reducing social and environmental impact is not enough. He proposes a fundamental worldview shift, from considering human beings as apart from and in a position of superiority to placing human beings back within the web of life. Through several inspiring stories, he illustrates how we can create the conditions for positive relationships between people and the living world to occur. Last, he discusses his work as an activist and engaged researcher, which aims to provide more positive narratives of a future where humans live in harmony among themselves and with the living world. To learn more about Francesco's work, follow him on LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/francescocara and check his website: medium.com/@frakara  Credits: Conception, host and production: Anne-Laure Fayard Sound design & Post-production: Claudio Silva Music & Art Work: Guilhem Tamisier

    34 min
  5. Design Beyond Things: From Experience to Policy Making

    06/24/2025

    Design Beyond Things: From Experience to Policy Making

    Dima Boulad, a designer and problem solver moved by positive impact with more than 14 years of experience. Dima is currently the Head of Design Research for the Dubai Design Lab, which is part of Dubai Future Foundation. Prior to that role she led the Design Research Team also at the Dubai Design Lab. She also worked as Innovation Design Manager for EY and has worked on multiple projects as an independent design consultant. The projects she worked on includes design research for the International Refugee Committee on Information Flow, working with Doctors without Borders in Beirut and being an OpenIDEO community Fellow. She has a Masters in Multimedia and Project Management from IESA in Paris and a Bachelor in Graphic Design from the American University in Beirut. In this episode, Dima reflects on her journey and how her deep interest in design research led her to explore human-centered and participatory design. She emphasizes the importance of truly catering to people's needs and creating meaningful and impactful experiences.She discusses her current work at the Dubai Design Lab, their approach and how their work informs governance and policy making. Last, she talks to the changing role of the designer and what it means for design education. To learn more about Dima's work, follow her on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dimaboulad/?originalSubdomain=ae and check her website:  https://www.dimaboulad.com/ Credits: Conception, host and production: Anne-Laure Fayard Sound design & Post-production: Claudio Silva Music & Art Work: Guilhem Tamisier

    31 min

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About

The Design Thinking Roundtable is a collaboration between the DESIS Lab and the ERA Chair in Social Innovation at NOVA SBE with the Design Lab @ NYU MakerSpace. Originally conceived by Harshita Nedunuri and Anne-Laure Fayard, then co-created with Priyanka Vora. Since Fall 20219, it is conceived and produced by AL Fayard. Audio production and sound design (in various episodes): Guilhem Tamisier; Blake Rook; John Klima; Claudio Silva. Covert Art: Guilhem Tamisier