Since January 1, 2025, Anna Vallgårda was appointed Professor at ITU.

Professor Anna Vallgårda will give her inaugural lecture on May 09, 14:30 – 16.00 PM at the IT University of Copenhagen, Rued Langgaards Vej 7, Auditorium 0 (zero). The lecture is followed by a reception at the first-floor repos of RLV.

Title: Radical Redesign of Care Technologies

Abstract:

Despite its promise of life improvements and optimizations, we see how the increased undisclosed and complex use and misuse of data fosters personal and societal mistrust. The algorithmic designs on social media help generate societal divergence and social isolation. The increased cyborg existence characterized by self-tracking and medical technologies creates an intimate dependence on the norms embedded in their designs. For many, this dependence causes stress, rumination, low self-esteem, and increased vulnerability. On top of this comes the highly problematic ecological footprint that the mass consumption of digital devices and services has on our planet. Design research forms a crucial counterweight in not just critiquing current trajectories but in demonstrating alternative possible futures by radically redesigning existing solutions.

The first body of work demonstrates a move from treating the user as a matter of fact - or as a collection of data points - to treating the user with a matter of compassion. In a series of designs, we address mental and social well-being by poking into our relations with others and ourselves. Specifically, these designs foster compassionate engagements in contexts of abortion, pregnancy, ovulation, and premenstrual disorders.

The second body of work concerns care technologies designed for people with chronic illnesses. Here, I challenge the figure of the user as a recipient of the design, arguing that people living with these chronic conditions are always more than users and disregarding this might cause harm. We all attune differently to the world around us, including the technologies we live with, and we, therefore, need a much larger variety in the designs of care technology. To achieve this, I propose a deeply situated design approach where the designer dwells in individual diversities and interprets this into a range of designs.

Program:

14:30 Welcome Head of Research, Morten Hjelholt
14:40 Speech by Prorector Jakob Grue Simonsen
14:50 Inaugural Lecture by Anna Vallgårda
15:45 Q&A

From 16:00: Reception at the first-floor repos

The event will be recorded, so it is also possible to view the lecture after the event.

If you have any questions, please contact departmentsupport@itu.dk