Edward Glaeser in his 2012 book "Triumph of the City" refers to our cities as "our greatest invention". The history of the urban environment has been a mixed story of organic growth and considered, planned approach.

Traditionally much of the work of the UX/interaction designer has been in the world of software. But the world is made up of many complex systems with which people engage. Cities are a prime example of a complicated web of interacting processes with humans squarely at the heart.

With this in mind IXDA Dublin has invited a group of researchers and practitioners whose work is based firmly in the urban realm. They will present examples of how people-centred research, design thinking, digital technologies and the dawn of big data will impact the lives of more than half the world's population who live in urban areas.

Anja Maerz & Lucy Barrett

Anja Maerz works as a Lead Insight Expert and Cultural Anthropologist at Future Cities Catapult in London. Holding an MA in Cultural Anthropology, she works with interdisciplinary teams including designers, architects, urbanists, data scientist, urban planners and more to identify needs and opportunities for innovation in today cities and the cities of the future.

Lucy Barrett is a Design Researcher at Future Cities Catapult. Lucy has a BA in Psychology and an MA in Social Research and has worked in brand strategy and design research for the past seven years. She uses social and cultural research methods to explore complex topics. Most recently, in her role at Future Cities Catapult, she has focused on the big challenges that cities face and how we can use user-centred design to tackle these issues.

Sung-Yueh Perng

Sung-Yueh Perng is a Postdoctoral Researcher on the ERC funded Programmable City project at Maynooth University. He received his PhD in Sociology from Lancaster University, UK and his current research focuses on distributed, collaborative and embodied practices in civic hacking and incorporating personal analytics into urban lives.

This event will run from 18:30 - 21:00