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NNEKA SOBERS 2 0 1 3 - 2 0 1 9 Design Por tfolio
CONTENTS 01 Process 02 Resume 03 Swappl 0 5 Right to the City 0 7 C i r c u l a r Wa s t e 0 9 Tr a n s i t H u b 11 Maker ’s Park 13 Symbols of Power 15 Magazine Square
1. SCOPING Define problem through research and stakeholder engagement
2 . D ATA Collect and analyze qualitative and quantitative data to discover new patterns
3. OBJECTIVES Synthesize client needs and project parameters to prioritize goals
4 . I D E AT I O N Explore exercises such as mapping and feasibility to form creative solutions
5 . E VA L U AT I O N Utilize metrics to determine the strengths and weaknesses of project implementation
6 . I M PA C T Good solutions always start with the user in mind in order to create positive experiences and improve quality of life
MY DESIGN PROCESS Powerful solutions are born from a dynamic process that begins with empathetic and creative exploration problem-solving. Through design, complex problems can be disrupted by developing tactical solutions that create positive change.
NNEKA SOBERS Designer and systems thinker working across multiple scales in order to augment human experiences
through
design,
data, and technology
C O N TA C T
E D U C AT I ON 2018 2016
MIT: MASSACHUSETTS INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY
2014 2010
VIRGINIA TECH
present may 2019
530 Riverside Dr, NYC jun 2019 oct 2017
L A N G U A G E English French Spanish
jun 2018 sep 2016
Goss Fellow, 2018 MIT Martin Trust Center for Entrepreneurship Recipient, 2018 MIT Outstanding Master’s Thesis Recipient, 2017 MIT FinTech Award for Social Impact Recipient, 2017 Architect Magazine Studio Prize
CO-FOUNDER + CEO Swappl | Cambridge, MA
R E S E A R C H A S S I S TA N T MIT Center for Advanced Urbanism | Cambridge, MA
·· Analyzed crowdsourced mapping data for informal development in Kyiv, Ukraine ·· Co-authored MIT DRAN report on displacement prevention using EVIA tool aug 2017 jun 2017
C I T I E S C O N S U LTA N T I N T E R N Buro Happold Engineering | Berlin, DE
·· Facilitated spatial analysis to support ecological tourism in Habala, Saudi Arabia ·· Developed methodology for quantifying site feasibility and project objectives sep 2016 jan 2015
T R A N S P O R TAT I O N D E M A N D M A N A G E M E N T ( T D M ) C O O R D I N AT O R University of Virginia | Charlottesville, VA
·· Oversaw and evaluated University’s bikeshare program and ridership database ·· Managed resource and capacity planning for analytical reports and projects ·· Supervised and trained team of ten interns to implement campus programs dec 2013 aug 2013
Presenter, 2019 Design Museum London DR4C Symposium
W e W o r k | N e w Yo r k , N Y
·· Built award-winning technology company that facilitated community exchange through grassroots bartering economy ·· Led UX and product research and design for website and mobile app development ·· Supervised team of six developers and designers through product development ·· Managed business, product development, digital marketing, and raising capital
Native Intermediate Beginner
AWA R D S
DESIGN RESEARCH LEAD ·· Designs and conducts research applying qualitative & quantitative methods, including interviews, diary studies, service blueprinting, A/B testing, and surveys ·· Cross-functionally communicates impact of research insights throughout product development/strategy cycle ·· Rapidly develops low and mid fidelity prototypes and project plans
+1 757.477.5931
3D Printing ArcGIS Arduino AutoCAD Furniture Design HTML InDesign Illustrator Laser Cutting Microsoft Office Photoshop Python Rhino Screen Printing Sketch SQL
Bachelor of Arts in Urban Planning + Landscape Architecture Minor
E X P E R I E N C E
nnekasobers@gmail.com
S K I L L S
Master in City Planning + Urban Design Certificate
CITY DESIGN INTERN Skidmore, Owings, & Merrill (SOM) | Chicago, IL
·· Designed and facilitated community engagement initiatives for project input ·· Published an urban development resource guide for local stakeholders
P R O J E C T S I N T E R V E N T I O N W I T H O U T E X T R A C T I O N : E Q U I TA B L E D E S I G N R E S E A R C H G U I D E Publication- Design Research for Change (DR4C) | Accra, Ghana | Summer 2019
Research methodology and case study that outlines generating positive anti-exploitative impact in marginalized communities. Case study explores how I designed a community-led exchange platform
C I R C U L A R E C O N O M Y O F WA S T E : VA L U E - S T R E A M + M A N A G E M E N T S T R AT E G Y Individual Studio Project | Georgetown, GY | Winter 2018
Enhanced community resilience through local waste economy. Project awarded $6 million from IDB
SY M B O L S O F P O W E R : W E A R A B L E R E F U G E E P O L I C Y R E F O R M Solo Art Installation | Al Azraq, JO | Fall 2017
Interactive data visualization of refugee camp policies and tools for inclusive social reform // 02
SWAPPL Extending design thinking to entrepreneurship 2018 // Boston, Massachuset ts // Star tUp
Serving as the foundation of my startup, Swappl (formally known as ALL PPL), my Master’s thesis explored my development of a Peer-to-Peer (P2P) decentralized-risk exchange platform that leverages blockchain and AI technology to facilitate access to capital through local exchange and community empowerment. Capitalizing on how people informally trade and lend services without money, Swappl allows communities to connect and for underbanked individuals to access capital by providing local jobs through community projects and bartering. Capitalizing on how people informally exchange with each other assets that they have a part from money, Swappl automates a trust network caters to increasing access to capital for underbanked users through crowdsourced community jobs. Through Swappl’s incubation in MIT’s premier startup accelerator, Delta V, I helped transform Swappl from a research product to a working prototype. This process included developing wireframes, managing a team of developers and designers, and facilitating usability tests for 1000+ pilot users. Swappl launched at MIT campus in Fall of 2018.
+
Create Profile
Peer Vetting
Search + Initiation
Exchange
INDIVIDUAL BARTER
POOLED BARTER
Completion
Rating + Rewards
// 04
PROBLEM DEFINITION
RIGHT TO THE CITY
ASSET MAPPING
What are the physica cultural, an political fact contributin to poor was managemen
QUEST I O N
Focused on disruptive technologies to increase community empowerment, my research led me to Accra, Ghana, where I worked closely with community members from a socially and economically excluded neighborhood called Ayawaso East. Due to the pressure of displacement by the government, Ayawaso East suffers from inadequate waste infrastructure. By connecting the seemingly disparate stories and capacities of local residents and government officials, I was able to uncover latent factors and opportunities to help empower local residents and keep their community clean. I developed a community-led waste management system framework and cocreated an app with local residents to provide Ayawaso East residents the tools needed to implement community-led infrastructure projects; more specifically, a barter-based community ran waste management system. My research later became an award-winning thesis and company called, Swappl.
TOOL
2018 // Accra, Ghana // Master ’s Thesis
INSIGHT
Translating design research into community empowerment initiatives
CONTEXTUAL INQUIRY
The government is not providing waste management ser vice as a tactic for displacement
A C C E S S I B I L I T Y A N A LY S I S
Community low-income and would li an alternativ way to remo waste witho spending mon
al, nd ors ng ste nt?
is e ke ve ove out ney
PROJECT OBJECTIVES
P R O D U C T S U I TA B I L I T Y
How could the community sustainably manage their waste infrastructure?
How would usage of the app translate to real-world communitydriven waste managment?
ACTIVIT Y
USABILIT Y
FACILITATION
TESTING
Community members would like a mobile app to organize and monitor waste pick-up system
What is the user experience when navigating the app and facilitating a transaction?
Creation of a mobile app that allows for community projects enabled by bar ter exchange
// 06
WA S T E C O M P O S I T I O N
Implementing holistic community empowered systems
5 1 % .....................Vegetables 2 0 % .............................Plastic 1 7 % ..............................Paper 1 2 % ...............................Other
2018 // Georgetown, Guyana // Solo Projec t
The neighborhood of Sophia, within the city limits of Georgetown, Guyana, is a grouping of six former sugar plantations, first settled illegally in the 1980s. As a result of rapid population growth and development, the area has been undergoing a development regularization process. Since 2001 Guyana’s Central Housing and Planning Authority has put in place a plan to give legal status to the settlers and to improve the substandard infrastructure. Due to environmental vulnerability, flooding and poor waste management have jeopardized the community’s quality of life. In response to community needs, data-driven metrics, and creative innovation, my aspect of the studio project challenges the convention of traditional waste management systems. I proposed a cross-stakeholder collaborative approach of upcycling waste products in Sophia, where 88% of Sophia’s poorly-managed waste can be recycled into high-value products used to increase the quality of living for local residents. (ie. commercial compost for local agriculture and employment opportunities) Because of local and national enthusiasm, my waste management project was awarded $6 million by the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) for implementation.
14,078
CIRCULAR WASTE
P O P U L AT I O N
SOPHIA G U Y A N A
86586
kg
M A X . W A S T E W E E K LY G E N E R AT E D
6
WASTE RICKSHAWS NEEDED FOR DAILY WASTE PICKUP
30 COMMUNAL WA S T E P I C K U P L O C AT I O N S Proposal of an Environmental Center to increase local waste management and provide employment + educational opportunities
}
CREATI ON O F LOC AL PRODUCTS
}
S E LL E XCE SS WASTE TO STAKE HOL DER S
COMPOST
BIOFUEL
BIOCHAR
ROOFING TILES
In collaboration with Georgetown Mayor & City Council (M&CC) to be sold or used in local agriculture initiatives
In collaboration with University of Guyana- Faculty of Environmental Science to be used for sold or used for cooking & electricity
In collaboration with University of GuyanaFaculty of Natural Science to continue research on soil water retention methods
In collaboration with the Institute of Applied Science & Technology (IAST) to be purchased by CH&PA for core homes
PBDI
CCI
SWMU
GMRA
Puran Brothers Disposal Inc.
Caribbean Container Inc.
Solid Waste Management Unit
Guyana Metal Recycler’s Assn.
HAZARD BIOMASS
PLASTIC
PAPER
GLASS
METAL
}
S O RTI N G OF LOC AL WASTE
WASTE
RECYCLE
}
RE GU L ARI ZED TR ASH CO LL ECTI ON
}
LOC AL USE O F LOC AL PRODUCTS
// 08
MAKER’S PARK Resilient development through landscape and historic revitalization
Bounded by rail and water, the current condition of the Maker’s Park may be perceived as derelict and neglected; however, there are unique built and landscape conditions that have made the site an informal place of interest within the local community. The former HMN Zinc Factory has scarred the site with exaggerated landscape formations and historic structures. Honoring the manufacturing legacy of Katowice, while celebrating the new artisans of the community,
ZONE 1: MIXED DEVELOPMENT
ZONE 2: ARTS+ REC
Katowice Maker’s Park is a live, work, play,
a fforda ble housing , commercia l use, livework spa ce, wa ter front , nig htlife
mot o c ro ss t rac k , c o n c e r t h all, p ub lic ar t , c amp sit e
typology that provides formalized spaces for community users who were informally utilizing the site during its derelict state.
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A ACCESSIBILIY TO LIVING PROGRAM DIVERSITY S O I L H E A LT H PRESERVED TERRAIN ECONOMIC RESILIENCE ASSESSMENT: LIVELIHOOD CLUSTERS
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ZO N E 3 : H I STO RY h isto r ic p res e r va t i on , l i ght in d u str y, p h y t ore m e d i a t i o n
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HOUSING VARIETY BUILDING DENSITY BUILDING UPKEEP INSTITUTIONAL VARIETY COMMERCIAL ACTIVITY ASSESSMENT: LIVING CLUSTERS
// 12
SYMBOLS OF POWER Policy reform and social integration tools through interactive art 2017 // Al Azraq, Jordan // Ar t Installation
In response to the UN’s High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) approach to the global Syrian Refugee Crisis, this piece examines the policies that influence the lives of over 5 million displaced persons. As a critique on the inhumanity of UNHCR’s refugee camp standardizations policies, the wearable art expands upon traditional Syrian textile design as a catalyst for a productive dialogue to improve living standards and transparent processes regarding refugee living conditions. Encoded in the symbology of the silk-screened garment expose the scale of resources that create the refugee condition. The garment juxtaposes the iconic UN utilitarian vest with intimate Syrian cultural symbolism. Such juxtaposition instigates a purposefully interaction between the perspectives of those who are displaced and those who regulate such populations. 4 Sectors : 1 Settlement 4 Blocks : 1 Sector 8 communities : 1 Block 1 community : 2 bathrooms, 1
1 diamond : 1 community 14 refugee families : 1 diamond 6 triangles : 1 refugee family 1 triangle : 1 person of the diaspora Syrian Rendition of UNHCR logo
// 14
MAGAZINE SQUARE Leveraging local and regional assets through centralized activation
267, 5 Resid
2016 // Cambridge, MA // Studio Collaboration
Nestled amidst a unique arrays of universities, regional commercial attractions, and local shops, the current parking lot site has the potential to link its neighboring assets. In celebration of Cambridge’s urban “Square”, Magazine Square is a regional destination with local charm. Encompassing a commercial district re-imagined as a new community center/node, while also providing connection from the neighborhood to Magazine Beach park ACTIVE STREETS through an extended grid network and a new commercial wetland promenade, Magazine Square connects local physical and social networks while leveraging a regional draw. The terracing of buildings and activation of the street and rooftop levels of the site, allows people to visually and physically engage with the site through unique open space typologies and commercial and residential options.
AC TI V E LA ND S C A P E
SOBERS
MAGAZINE SQUARE: A FORMAL COMMUNITY NODE // 16
ACTI VE STR E E T S
03
ACTIVE LANDSCAPE Provide physical and visual connection to Magazine Beach Park
BIG IDEA: REGIONAL / LOCAL GIAMPIERI | LITTLEFIELD | MASCOOP | SOBERS
Provide better pedestrian and bicycle access to the businesses within the site
A C B
D
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F N
40FT
H
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Marriott Hotel Garden
C Modular Rooftop Garden
E
Sculpture Promenade + Playground
G Productive Rooftop Garden
B
At Grade Commercial Plaza
D Graffiti Alley
F
Rain Garden + Reclaimed Wetland
H Local Park
Pedestrian Connection to
SOBERS
MAGAZINE SQUARE: A FORMAL COMMUNITY NODE // 14
02 // 16
nnekasobers
s@gmail.com