DC Design Week 2021
Designing Safe Spaces: Lightning Talks to Spark Ideas Conversation and Change
DC Design Week is an annual celebration of DC’s creative community, hosted by the American Institute of Graphic Arts. In support of DC Design Week’s 2021 programming, I planned a cross-disciplinary series of lightning talks which advocated for the design of safe spaces across physical and digital environments. This event, “Designing Safe Spaces: Lightning Talks to Spark ideas, Conversation and Change”, was a virtual event which featured 9 design professionals who each examined the topic from a DEI perspective (as well as a service design, UX design, interior design, and urban design perspective respectively). The event was DC Design Week’s largest speaking event of the year with 143 registered guests.
Responsibilities: Event Planning, Speaker Outreach, Copywriting, Creative Direction, Event Moderation
Purpose
Marginalized communities often navigate physical and digital environments that are shaped by long-standing racial, social and economic inequities. These spaces frequently fail to reflect or respect their needs, making it difficult for them to feel a sense of belonging, safety or empowerment.
Intentional design has the power to challenge this status quo. By centering inclusion, empathy and equity, designers can create environments where everyone, especially those who have been historically excluded, can thrive. But what does it truly take to design spaces that are not only welcoming but transformative? How can designers move beyond aesthetics to create environments that foster sustained safety, trust and empowerment?
This lightning talk series sought to explore these crucial questions. Through a dynamic Pecha Kucha format, nine design professionals shared bold, actionable insights on creating both digital and physical spaces that promote belonging and disrupt systemic inequity. The event aimed to inspire designers to rethink how environments are shaped in a post-COVID world where safety and inclusion are no longer optional, but essential.
Speakers & Topic Discussions
Audience Poll
Before introducing my first speaker, I facilitated a live word cloud poll, in which I asked over 120 event participants to submit the first word that came to mind when they heard the term “safe space”.
The responses revealed a mix of perspectives with many associating the term with inclusivity and support, while others revealed a more skeptical viewpoint, linking it to sensitivity and overprotection.
In conducting this poll, I not only broke the ice with event attendees, encouraging them to engage further with the content that they would later be presented, but I also allowed my speakers the opportunity to gauge the audience’s mindset before beginning their discussions.
Event Recap
The entire event was 2.5 hours and included icebreakers, polls and presentations by various professionals within the design and DEI community. The passion and expertise of each presenter moved audience members who reported that each presentation heightened their understanding of safe spaces and encouraged them to incorporate these spaces into their personal, professional and academic lives.
Click play to view the 2-minute recap below.
