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e m b e d d e d n a v i g a t i o n presented in a collapsed 'toggle' view by default on the pages listed and linked below:
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(a)vocation *
more de zein
Adam Zeiner: a very curious human based in Asheville, NC, USA
^ ~ image glitched using PhotoMosh
I’m a persistently curious generalist (parading as a strategic designer, facilitator, and organizer) attempting to wrangle complexity. Currently enthralled by “soft” human action systems, networks* in the broadest sense, integrating futures literacy into design practice, information architecture + visualization, and engaging w/ intimate and less formal communities of practice and the people who comprise them.
* "Like organisms, social systems contain intricate networks of feedback processes, both self reinforcing (positive) and self-correcting (negative) loops. However, studies show that people recognize few feedbacks; rather, people usually think in short, causal chains, tend to assume each effect has a single cause, and often cease their search for explanations when the first sufficient cause is found." — John D. Sterman, Learning from Evidence in a Complex World
dezein: the persistent practice of considered creation, facilitation, and organization
Also a moniker i like to use online for myself and for my independent studio practice → dezein.studio
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currently:
Lead (Strategic) UX Designer → Expedia Group
an emergent mix of Team Management, Design Strategy, Service Design, Facilitation, UX Design, Information Architecture, and Design Research on Michelle Hazen’s Platform Design team, w/in the Platform Solutions cohort of the Core Services sub-division of EG Product & Technology
Chasing literal waterfalls → in and around ⛰️ western North Carolina ⛰️
w/ my partner Taryn and our dogs, Django + Archie
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formerly:
Founding Board Member → Design Futures Initiative
a volunteer-led nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization fostering the global community of Speculative Futures chapters by way of serving as an unpaid, avocational administrative backbone
regarded as a radical collaboration between the Dell Medical School and the College of Fine Arts at The University of Texas at Austin, shuttered in September ‘22 but certainly not forgotten
Strategic Design Advisor → Socialroots
acted as a fractional Design Partner in an advisory capacity to help the core team bring the Socialroots beta experience to fruition
Lead Organizer → Speculative Futures Austin
focused on Design-oriented Futures programming and Futures-oriented Design programming w/ support from iliana Martinez and Mirandy Kim and many members of the Austin chapter
Founding Member → vurv.co
a spun-down avocational tech-based arts collective turned intimate community, sometimes of practice and sometimes not, that still persists as a loosely moderated Slack workspace
Continued Learning Director → fresh2design
led the #Advance pillar of the organization which encompassed most educational programming
Design Partner → WholeSplit and Tapr
both start up ventures are now defunct, but served as invaluable learning experiences
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Indigenous Land Acknowledgment
I was born and raised in 🏗 Austin, TX 🏗 and moved to ⛰️ Asheville, NC ⛰️ in August 2021.