Great design happens when the designer is a facilitator of the process, not the dictator of the solution, and using research insights as the torches that light up the ambiguous path leading to solutions.

Hello, I’m a Human-Centered designer and researcher experienced in the non-profits, consumer goods, academic, and financial services sectors. Currently, I am an Experience and Service Design Research Lead at Edward Jones.

Human-centered design and research appealed to me because it embodies many elements of social innovation including empathy, a user-centric approach, and understanding the needs and motivations of others. A great design happens when the solution is truly coming from, and for the users, not the designers. In my practice, a project is considered successful when it is insights-driven and the users feels the ownership and business values the investment in the project. By empathetically engaging users and stakeholders in all stages of the process: need-finding, brainstorming, prototyping, and piloting, the outcome is a sustainable solution that will be embraced by the users and welcomed by the stakeholders.

Trained as an architect and a designer from the University of Minnesota and the Cranbrook Academy of Art, my design work has been part of numerous exhibitions and earned a permanent collection space at the Cranbrook Art Museum.

In 2014, I started an architecture-inspired jewelry business @KoonyaiStudio and sculptural homeware @Beau(tifully)MadeThings in 2024. Products are available in boutique shops and museum stores nation-wide. Occasionally, you can find me in one of the classrooms at the Minneapolis College of Art and Design as an adjunct professor and a visiting reviewer for the University of Minnesota - College of Design.

San Diego, CA is my current home where I enjoy surfing, scuba diving, and standup paddle boarding after work with my dog child, Wallace.