Putting Pluriversal Ontological Design Into Practice: Designing for Effective River Management Through Weaving Together a Decolonial Imaginary

Thursday, April 22, 11:30am–12:30pm PDT

Exploring how the use of design tools and frameworks, such as boundary objects and infrastructure can help build out a decolonial imaginary, the talk will explore how – through our design practice – we are able to successfully acknowledge and work with different ‘ways of being’ in the world. Focusing on the empirical example of a design project focused on the restoration of a riverine system in New Zealand, the talk will provide an outline of ways that pluriversal ontological design can occur in practice.

Manuhuia Barcham works at the intersection of interaction design, service design, and strategic design. He has over twenty years of experience working across the Asia-Pacific, Europe, and North America for a wide range of clients, including the United Nations, the Australian Federal Government, and Snap Inc, as well as a range of First Nations and Tribal Governments across Canada and the USA. He is currently an elected National Board member of AIGA - the oldest and largest design association in North America.