A Better World by Design was founded in 2008 by Brown University’s chapter of Engineers Without Borders (EWB), and continues to be a collaboration among EWB, Brown University, the Rhode Island School of Design, and communities in Providence.
Speakers, panels, workshops, tours, social events, the Expo – join students and professionals from across the country and around the world for three days of collaboration and innovation in Providence, Rhode Island on September 19 – 21.
Each year, Better World by Design brings a global community of innovators to Providence, Rhode Island to reach across disciplines and unite under a common goal: building a better world. Presenters share engaging stories, workshops teach creative skills, and discussions re-frame perspectives. Better World is an immersive experience that deepens our understanding of the power of design, technology, and enterprise to engage our communities and sustain our environment.
Content
More 2014 conference speakers, panels, workshops and social events will be announced soon!
Plan Your Trip
If you need help getting to Providence, staying in Providence, or getting around Providence, this is the page for you!
Eco-logistics
The title of this page says a lot about our attitude. That’s right, we take pride in keeping our conference clean and green, for generations to enjoy–and that’s what sustainability is all about!
Conference
Speakers, panels, workshops, tours, social events, the Expo – join students and professionals from across the country and around the world for three days of collaboration and innovation in Providence, Rhode Island. The 2014 content will be announced soon!
Sabrina Stevens
Teacher-turned-writer and a leading voice for a democratic, community-driven vision of education reform.
Shana Dressler
Founder of the Social Innovators Collective, an organization dedicated to “training and nurturing the next wave of social change leaders” so that they are able to implement financially, ecologically and culturally sustainable solutions to the most pressing issues of our time. She is also the creator and editor of the Social Good Guides, a series of essential readings for start-up organizations in the realm of activism. Shana has been selected as a delegate for the 2014 UN Global Accelerator. Her photography has been exhibited in galleries all over the world.
Sam Chaltain
DC-based writer and strategic communications consultant. He uses his training and experience as a high school and undergraduate teacher to help individuals and organizations find and tell stories that capture the emotional center of an idea; build and sustain an audience of active supporters over time (as opposed to merely generating public awareness); and leverage both traditional and new media in order to expand an organization’s following.
Melissa Mongiat
Daily Tous Les Jours is a design studio with a focus on public participation – empowering individuals to have a place in the stories that are told around them. These experiences take many forms, including urban interventions and city planning, exhibitions, products, spatial design, events, software applications, and film. Co-founder Melissa Mongiat has been awarded numerous honors for her work, such as an SXSW Award, a CyberLion in Cannes, as well as a selection by Wallpaper magazine as one of the world’s ten breakthrough designers.
Deborah Mills-Scofield
Deborah Mills-Scofield has her own consultancy on innovation and strategy and is a partner in an early stage Venture Capital firm. Deb writes for Harvard Business Review, Switch and Shift and other venues, including her own blog, and has contributed to several books. She is on the board of RISD’s DESINE-Lab and Brown University’s Engineering School as well as lecturing in Brown’s IE-Brown E-MBA program. Deb also mentors students doing ‘regular’ and social startups and supports those involved in STEAM. Her patent from AT&T Bell Labs was one of the highest-revenue generating patents for AT&T and Lucent. She can be reached at @dscofield on twitter or [email protected].
Grace Teo
Founder of Open Style Labs — an educational program that teams up student engineers, designers and occupational therapists to create clothing for people with disabilities.
Michael Ben-Eli
Founder of the Sustainability Laboratory, a group that attempts to expand, scale up, and accelerate sustainable change. Michael is also the author of The Five Core Sustainability Principles. This book focuses primarily on Systems Thinking and Cybernetics, within management and organization structures, to tackle issues related to sustainability and sustainable development.
Cheryl Heller
Founding Chair of the first MFA program in Design for Social Innovation at SVA and founder of CommonWise. She has taught creativity to leaders and organizations around the world, helped grow businesses from small regional enterprises to multi-billion dollar global market leaders and launched category-redefining divisions and products.
Brian Glenney
Philosophy professor who studies how we perceive shape by sight, touch, and sound. He’s also developed a device that turns colors into sounds.
Nurit Bar-Shai
Interdisciplinary artist who works at the intersection of art, science, and technology. Working with biological systems, Bar-Shai conducts experiments through creative collaborative inquiries and addresses the ethics and the emerging practices of DIY biology.
The 2014 conference theme is Wayfinding
Wayfinding is about orientation. It’s about developing and reading signs, navigating new terrain, and processing the unfamiliar. It encompasses understandings of both where you are and where you are going—individually, and in relation to your community. The 2014 conference will challenge attendees to create a more comprehensive understanding of our relationship to spaces, problems, and experiences.
