Jury Alumni

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  Hector Silva

  Executive Director, Advanced Design

  2021 Design Education Initiative Jury Captain

  Hector Silva brings over 7 years of teaching experience at the University of Illinois at Chicago, the University of Notre Dame, the Academy of Art University, the School of the Art Institute of Chicago and the Rochester Institute of Technology at their nationally-acclaimed industrial design programs. Recognized for his contributions in academia, Hector was awarded the Young Educator of the Year by the Industrial Designers Society of America (IDSA). An active professional in the field, Hector works as an industrial design contractor through his own studio, H Design, partnering with Crate & Barrel, DesignLab, Nickelodeon, LeapFrog, Foster Grant, Insight Product Development, Lund & Company Invention, as well as various entrepreneurs. Hector is also the founder of the design nonprofit, Advanced Design (AD), an organization awarded the Special Achievement Award by the IDSA for making design education more accessible and through disrupting the mediums through which design education has been traditionally offered. AD continues to grow today, connecting students and working professionals to foster a community of design excellence. Most recently, Hector founded Offsite, a 12 week pilot program catered towards furthering design education outside of traditional academia space. This program was developed to translate the needs of the industry into course content taught by design industry leaders. The goal is to help students develop the right skill set and mentorship to thrive on the job and support them along the way.

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  Laura Silva

  Vice President, Accessibility Technology UX Design Lead, Bank of America

  2021 Design Education Initiative Jury Member

  Laura Silva is Bank of America’s Vice President, Accessibility Technology UX Design Lead. Previously, she worked at Amazon in the Global Search team as Accessibility and D&I designer. She’s originally from Bogota, Colombia but calls the U.S. her home. In her work, she focuses on inclusion, diversity and equity for her customers and coworkers.
  Her experiences being “the first and the only one” as a Afro-Latina in tech inspire her to advocate for the business and cultural benefits of highlighting the intersectionality of their customers.

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  Jens Martin Skibsted

  VP, Mobility & Foresight, Manyone

  2021 Transportation Jury Captain

  Jens Martin Skibsted is VP of Mobility at Manyone. He is a multiple award-winning designer, entrepreneur, & design philosopher and part of the “Davos” think tanks. Known for his urban mobility designs for Biomega, & collab with Bjarke Ingels. His designs live in the collections at the MoMA, SFMOMA and many more. A published author, and expert blogger.

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  Stephanie Szarwark

  Senior Visual Designer, Enlisted Design

  2021 Commercial Equipment Jury Member

  Stephanie is a Senior Visual Designer at Enlisted Design, a visual and industrial design agency based in Oakland, CA where she brings brands to life through tangible visual design. Previously, she was a freelance brand designer, working with small Bay Area startups and large companies such as: Clif Bar, Nestlé, Ancestry, and Waymo (Alphabet). These projects ranged from packaging design to digital product illustrations to copywriting and art direction. Her diverse experience led her to specialize in helping clients hone their brand stories to better resonate with customers. Stephanie is particularly passionate about bridging the gaps between design and business strategy, and helping more people engage their own creative thinking.

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  Julius Tapper

  Human-Centered Design and Innovation Consultant

  2021 Design for Social Impact Jury Member

  Julius Tapper is an innovation strategist working to redesign systems to value equity, inclusion, culture and prosperity. Julius has over a decade of professional experience spanning product and experience innovation, customer strategy, and social impact. Julius has led project teams across strategy and creative, for organizations including the UN, American Express, and UBS.
  
  Julius leads equity-centered design initiatives at Doblin, Deloitte’s human-centered design and innovation consulting practice. Prior to consulting, Julius worked at TD Bank, founding their impact investing and social finance program and issuing TD’s first Green Bond. Julius earned an MBA from MIT, an MPA from Harvard, and a BCom from the University of Toronto.

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  Dever Thomas

  Partner, Design, Work & Co

  2021 Interaction Jury Member

  Dever Thomas is a design partner at Work & Co in Copenhagen. She sets and executes create direction for some of the world’s most admired global companies including IKEA, Aesop, Céline, La Mer, YouTube, and Virgin America. In her role, she collaborates closely with other disciplines — technology, product management, strategy — to shape the final product. She is a thought leader on digital design, published in the Wall Street Journal and Business of Fashion, and her work has won awards from Fast Company, Communication Arts, Glossy, and the UX Awards.

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  Karina Totah

  Chief of Staff to the President & CMO, Thyme Care

  2021 Strategy & Research Jury Member

  Karina Totah works to achieve greater equity in our cities and our healthcare system. Currently, she is Chief of Staff at Thyme Care, a startup that guides cancer patients through the complex healthcare system by providing personalized support, quality resources & quick access to high-value care. Prior, she was head of strategy for New York City Public Housing, the largest residential landlord in North America. Karina also practices as an end-of-life doula through her company, Nevit (www.nevit.net).

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  Lona Vincent

  Strategy & Innovation, Johnson & Johnson

  2021 Health & Wellness Jury Member

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  Parul Vora

  Designer, Researcher, Technologist, User Experience Specialist, IDEO

  2021 Strategy & Research Jury Member

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  Christina White

  Head of UX, Google Sheets, Google

  2021 Interaction Jury Member

  Christina is currently at Google, leading the UX design team for Sheets and Apps Script. Prior to Google, she built the UX team for brand and digital agency Gin Lane, where she launched digital-first startups like sweetgreen and Harry’s. She’s also led creative departments at digital agencies SapientNitro and Huge, specializing in retail, health & beauty, & consumer products. Christina holds a BS of Industrial Design from Georgia Institute of Technology, where she first established her belief in ergonomics in that delightful design is achieved when the product naturally fits into the environment, not the other way around. She lives in NYC with her husband and kids Geneveive, William, and Henry.