Deep Dive Into Design: How Might We (Re)Design Spaces for Belonging?
with an introductory roundtable featuring David Jay, Brooke Toczylowski, Susie Wise, and Christine Wong Yap

How might we (re)design spaces for belonging? This online discussion group, co-presented with North Atlantic Books and the Stanford d.school, features artists and author-designers in an introductory roundtable before transitioning into an informal discussion about how we may wield the power of design thinking in (re)shaping our world.

Launched in June 2024, the Deep Dive Into Design discussion group at Mechanics' Institute explores how the creative capacity of design has the transformative power of shaping a more beautiful, caring, and just world. We focus on visionary works that challenge us to rethink our designed environments and how we interact with them. This discussion group promotes a dialogue on how human creativity could come into harmony with both natural and human-made ecologies. Whether you're a design enthusiast or simply curious about design, these introductory roundtables and informal discussions demystify design as a creative capacity that is accessible to all.

How to Participate

Play in our "design sandbox," exploring works that center belonging, including:

Artists' Portfolios:

• Brooke Toczylowski
• Christine Wong Yap

Author-Designers:

• Design for Belonging by Dr. Susie Wise and her Design for Belonging website
• Relationality by David Jay

This discussion group meets ONLINE via Zoom -- you will receive the Zoom link in your e-mail after you register.

From 6:00-6:45 pm (PT), join us for an introductory roundtable with David Jay, Brooke Toczylowski, Susie Wise, and Christine Wong Yap. This introductory roundtable is hosted by Nico Chen of Mechanics' Institute and will revolve around the inquiry, "How might we (re)design spaces for belonging?" Please note that the first half of this online event will be recorded and uploaded to our YouTube channel.

After bidding a thank you and goodbye to our roundtable guests, the latter part of our discussion group (from 6:45 to 7:30 pm PT) transitions into a sharing of a salient art piece or a "golden line" from a book in our design sandbox. While this is optional, we'd love to hear from you! Our informal discussion also includes an inquiry into how this design sandbox may guide us towards harnessing design as a creative capacity in reshaping our world.