Within social justice, those most impacted by design often find themselves left out of the design process. After witnessing power struggles between the oppressed and their surroundings, design practitioner Lesley-Ann Noel identified the need for co-designing within a system to create the most productive and equitable outcome.

Lesley-Ann Noel is a university professor at North Carolina State University, author of Design Social Change, and a design practitioner specializing in equity, social justice, and marginalized groups in design research. She has a background in industrial design, an MBA from the University of the West Indies, and a PhD in Design from North Carolina State University.

In this episode, Dart and Lesley-Ann discuss:
- The importance of co-designing with those affected by a system
- 3 levels of awareness inherent to an effective design process
- Finding power in different aspects of one’s identity
- Why designers must recognize their positionality
- Using anger and intense emotions as design tools
- What materials create social change
- The duality of the oppressed and the oppressor
- The essential “recipes” to change the world
- And other topics…

Lesley-Ann Noel is a university professor at North Carolina State University, an author, and a design practitioner with a focus on equity, social justice, and the experiences of marginalized groups in design research. Her work focuses on the realms of social innovation, education, and public health, as showcased in her latest book, Design Social Change.

Before joining North Carolina State University, Lesley-Ann was the Associate Director of Design Thinking for Social Impact at Tulane University. She was also a lecturer at Stanford University and the University of the West Indies. Lesley-Ann holds a BA in Industrial Design from the Universidade Federal do Paraná, an MBA from the University of the West Indies, and a PhD in Design from North Carolina State University. She is co-chair of the Pluriversal Design Special Interest Group of the Design Research Society and a co-editor of “The Black Experience in Design.”

Resources mentioned:
Design Social Change, by Lesley-Ann Noel: https://www.amazon.com/Design-Social-Change-Challenge-Stanford/dp/1984858149

Connect with Lesley-Ann:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lesleyannnoel/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lesleyannnoel/
https://dschool.stanford.edu/book-collections/design-social-change 

Work with Dart:
Dart is the CEO and co-founder of the work design firm 11fold. Build work that makes employees feel alive, connected to their work, and focused on what’s most important to the business. Book a call at 11fold.com.