Fringe Design: Tackling Disability & Death
Who gives a f*ck about techies? We don’t.
We prefer to consider those at the fringes of life. Yes, we’re talking about incapacitation and death. It’s not fun. It’s not sexy. And it certainly won’t inspire the next wave of thoughtful design. Or will it?
Every stage of life, planned or unplanned, has its unique set of challenges, yet our focus is on the average, the repeatable and the “target audience.” What would happen if we considered audiences at the fringes of life, with real problems that are typically ignored?
Creativity flourishes when we dismiss the status quo and attack a problem with a different set of challenges. How can technology help us prepare for death? How can it help the disabled live more normal lives? And how can it help us retain our identities, even when we can’t express them anymore?
Join us to learn how designing for the fringe gives us a different perspective to unlock our creative potential. As you know, we’ll all join the fringe sooner or later.
Presenters
Evan Carroll
Author/Founder
The Digital Beyond
Evan Carroll is a user experience designer, author and speaker from Raleigh, NC. He is co-founder of The Digital Beyond, a blog and think tank devoted to digital afterlife and legacy issues.
Evan is the author of the book, Your Digital Afterlife: When Facebook, Flickr and Twitter Are Your Estate, What’s Your Legacy? (New Riders Press, 2011). Evan has appeared in numerous media outlets including The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, NPR’s Fresh Air, CNN, PBS NewsHour, Popular Science, Fox News, CNN and The Atlantic. Evan holds MS and BS degrees from UNC-Chapel Hill’s School of Information and Library Science.
Virginia Ingram
Account Planner
Virginia Ingram and Associates
Virginia is an account planner and digital strategist who lives in Johnson City, TN and Durham, NC. She uses digital solutions to solve human problems and helps individuals understand how caregiving issues impact those who need care, the caregivers and those who love them.
In 2012 she became a remote caregiver for her aunt who has Alzheimer's. It completely changed her approach to her life and work.
She has worked in digital and marketing strategy since 1998. She learned her initial production and account management skills at a multicultural advertising agency and dotcom incubators in New York City and her account planning skills at one of the most respected communication firms in North Carolina and refined them in Miami. Today, she most often consults on how people interact with technology.
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