DO NO HARM: THE ROLE OF DESIGN(ERS) IN COMPLICATED TIMES For many of us, it feels like we’re living in complicated times. Although the complexity of the moment might seem to have the most implications for our personal and political lives, they also have implications for our professional ones. Regardless of our design specialty, we are caretakers of the built environment, and how we choose to tend to or create something physical has consequences. This talk will explore what it means to think of design in this context and the opportunity to more strongly leverage our role and our work to improve human life, foster better communities, and catalyze a more just world.

LIZ OGBU is a designer, urbanist, and spatial justice advocate, and an expert on social and spatial innovation in challenged urban environments globally. From designing shelters for immigrant day laborers in the U.S., to a water and health social enterprise for low-income Kenyans, Liz has long worked with/in communities in need to leverage design to catalyze social impact. She is Founder and Principal of Studio O, a design consultancy working at the intersection of racial and spatial justice. Her honors include IDEO.org Global Fellow, Aspen Ideas Scholar, and TEDWomen Speaker. She earned architecture degrees from Wellesley College and Harvard University.