Technical designers typically view their role in design as clinical, with their decision-making as prescriptive. But research shows that the positionality of the engineer with regard to the user population and other stakeholders can tremendously influence design outcome, performance, and sustainability. This talk will explore the relationship between an engineer’s own perspective and position in a humanitarian engineering project and outcome.
Ann-Perry Witmer is a teaching associate professor in the Carle Illinois College of Medicine and a lecturer in the Department of Agricultural and Biological Engineering at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. She is the originator of the field of contextual engineering, which applies human factors and relationships to technical design for improved outcomes, and she has authored two books on the subject.
