A Design Strategist with a focus on qualitative research, I have extensive global experience gathering and translating consumer insights that improve design on both emotional and functional levels. I champion users within the innovation process to create better experiences at home, work and play, while helping key stakeholders align on successful business strategies. Lately I've partnered with designers from every discipline to create a series of visual brand languages for a world-leading surgical robotics company. The Cooper-Hewitt National Design Museum published my book, "Design for Repair: Things Can Be Fixed," under the DesignFile imprint in May 2015. Metropolis, Fast Company, and Core77 have published my writing recently.

Matt van Leeuwen is a Dutch Graphic Designer. Currently Design Director at Mother Design, NY.

Jing Wei is a Chinese-born, Brooklyn based illustrator. Her work takes on a variety of applications, from magazine editorials to one-off objects to large scale murals. Jing was previously the illustration director at Etsy, but is now running wild and free as a full-time freelancer. Most days, she can be found in her Greenpoint studio, eating sandwiches and drawing chubby people.

Mitzi Akaha is a New York-based actress with roots in the Midwestern US, Japan, and the central coast of California. After developing her career in Japan, she relocated to New York in 2014 where she continues to contribute her particular talents and peculiar humor to a variety of projects, starring in national commercial spots, music videos and films. She is also a published writer and illustrator and has multiple scripts in development.

Amber Vittoria is an illustrator focusing on femininity and the female form, leveraging physical traits such as body hair, overtly extended limbs, and rounded features. Her work has been recognized by Print Magazine‘s 2017 New Visual Artists – 15 Under 30, It’s Nice That, Computer Arts, HuffPost, Teen Vogue, Man Repeller, and 20×200.