MuseumX: Designing Experiences for Good

Stefanie Mabadi hosts conversations at the intersection of experience design and social change to be a resource for heart-centered designers who are called to create experiences that heal our world. You will hear from professionals inside and outside the museum and cultural sectors whose expertise can inform questions like, How might we design for compassion? Or, Create digital experience accessible for all? Or, How might we create teams primed to foster a sense of belonging for diverse groups? Together, we’ll tackle tough questions, explore complex topics and identify action steps to help us create experiences for the public good - experiences that help, heal, enrich and empower, and connect.

Winter Announcement 12/27/2023

E12: Feminist Design, Built Environment & Inclusion with Nourhan Bassam, Urban Design Innovator in Gender-responsive spaces 11/29/2023

E12: Feminist Design, Built Environment & Inclusion with Nourhan Bassam, Urban Design Innovator in Gender-responsive spaces When designing spaces, why is a feminist lens important? What might egalitarian social spaces look and feel like? How might museums, parks and cities be designed differently to include the needs of women, caregivers and girls? Historically, a male-centric perspective has been dominant in the design of spaces - particularly cities - which has led to a series of decisions and standards with long-term consequences on the experiences of others, including women and girls, people with diverse gender expressions, racial and ethnic minority groups, neurodivergent groups and other under-represented people. In this episode, we talk with Nourhan Bassam - a leader and innovator in the field of Feminist Urban Design. We discuss safety, ease of mobility, how the 'othered' groups may travel through and across spaces differently and more frequently. Impacts on indoor and outdoor museum, public and parks spaces include navigation, orientation, feeling and experiencing ease and safety. Some of these measures have been discussed and implemented in museum and cultural spaces, but there is still much to learn from applying a feminist lens the designs of museum buildings, museum experiences, public spaces, cultural spaces, and connection experiences like transportation and arrival to your site. Nourhan hopes by raising awareness about the barriers faced by women and the many othered groups, her work will inspire individuals, communities, and policymakers to take action and create spaces and cities that are safe, inclusive, and empowering for all. Links to resources: Bell Hooks book, . Safer Parks Project: - identify accessibility resources Leslie Kern book, Book, by Helen Jarvis, Jonathan Cloke, Paula Kantor Geo Chicas project, : Map of streets named after women in cities in Latin America and Spain, to make visible the gap that exists in the representation of female figures in cities. - a social organization working to make public spaces safer and more inclusive for women. They collect data using mobile phone applications. Nourhan Bassam’s book, The Gendered City: How today’s cities continue to fail women - expected to be published Dec 2023. Connect With Us Have questions or topics you’d like us to explore on the podcast? Or a Guest recommendation? Have a project in mind needing user-, visitor, or community centered research or strategy? with your idea or inqury! /episode/index/show/0da5716b-3cc7-47d2-adf2-4655053db1fa/id/28851028

E11, Pt 2: Close observation, empathy and compassion with Bonnie Pitman, Director of Art-Brain Innovation at UT Dallas Center for BrainHealth 11/10/2023

E11, Pt1: Close observation, empathy and compassion with Bonnie Pitman, Director of Art-Brain Innovation at UT Dallas Center for BrainHealth 11/10/2023

E10: Trauma-informed Digital Design with Melissa Eggleston and Carol F Scott, PhD 10/19/2023

E10: Trauma-informed Digital Design with Melissa Eggleston and Carol F Scott, PhD What does a trauma-informed digital experience look like? Or, better said, what does it feel like? Why is trauma-informed design particularly important for today’s digital experiences? We hear answers to these questions and more this week from Melissa Eggleston and Carol F Scott, PhD - the women behind Trauma-informedTech.com. Melissa is an expert in user-experience design and research with a focus on inclusive, trauma-informed technology and design. Carol is a social worker and social welfare expert whose training intersects law, social work, psychology, human-computer interaction (HCI), and health informatics. Melissa and Carol discuss what trauma is - and how broad our understanding of trauma has needed to become. We hear why it’s important - particularly today, and particularly with children in mind - to design digital experiences that are trauma-informed. Most importantly, we learn about how to approach and the steps to take in order to design a trauma-informed digital experience. Links to resource discussed in episode: , Melissa’s consulting business , Carol and Melissa’s collaboration providing resources, guidance and consulting on trauma-informed digital design Carol et al’s from ACM Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (CHI) on Trauma-Informed Social Media Recommendation: First, start with the basics of digital design: , because if the experience is not easy to use and accessible, it cannot be trauma informed. Next, you must be thinking about mobile - some people are only accessing online resources via mobile, so consider starting your designs for mobile use. The Six Principles of Trauma-informed Digital Design: Safety (physical & emotional), Trust and Transparency, Collaboration & Mutuality, Peer Support, Empowerment voice & choice, Cultural, historical and gender issues (aka, Intersectionality) and - Six Principles of Trauma-Informed Care - 6 Guiding Principles To A Trauma-Informed Approach University at Buffalo School of Social Work they help organizations become trauma informed. Look at the on Melissa & Carol’s traumainformedtech.com website to find more books, videos and resources. Book on ‘design gone wrong’ . Bassetti Architects - Carol says they are doing a good job! . You can also listen to our on Spotify. It was our first episode! Connect with us: Have questions or topics you’d like us to explore on the podcast? Or a recommendation of an expert to interview? Feel free to contact me or . Need help with a user-, visitor- or community-centered project, evaluation or experience design strategy? Head over to for info on human and community-centered strategies for your mission-driven institution Or, about your project or collaboration you’ve got in mind, or just to say hello! /episode/index/show/0da5716b-3cc7-47d2-adf2-4655053db1fa/id/28361075

E9: Embracing Bias with Dr Nicole Ortiz, Learning and Belonging Manager, Denver Zoo 10/04/2023

E9: Embracing Bias with Dr Nicole Ortiz, Learning and Belonging Manager, Denver Zoo We know we all have biases - it’s our brain’s way of speeding up decision-making and keeping us safe. We also know these quick decisions and snap judgments often don’t reflect today’s real world challenges and dangers. Destigmatizing bias is an important step toward acknowledging and then interrupting bias, but how might that work, exactly? And how might we help our report-tos, leaders and teammates sit with, challenge and unravel their own biases so we might all be better designers and create better, more equitable experiences for our visitors and audiences. This week we sat down with Dr Nicole Marie Ortiz, EdD, with Denver Zoo to learn more about how her team has transformed recent learnings about bias into regular practices to embrace and interrupt it. Nicole tells us what role ‘small moments’ plays when seeking to create a culture of bias interruption, and how you might develop similar practices with your team, institution or organization. Links to resources discussed in episode Book: Adreinne Marie Brown talks about ‘small is all’. This can be found in a two part series on YouTube: Three I’s: Introspection, Interdependence and Intentionality (no link for this one, these are part of the internal practice at Denver Zoo) Am I holding space for introspection for myself and for others? Am I seeing that this work is deeply interdependent and I am connected to other people..and we can help each other see the world from different viewpoints. What will I do purposefully? What intentional steps will I take to try and do something different - to try and hold another thought? And how might that other thought impact how I might behave? - (not Cartmans Drama Triangle!) & the Circle of Reciprocity, and the line between the two is the Line of Regulation on polyvagal theory & how to become regulated Book: Book: Podcast: Connect with us Have questions or topics you’d like us to explore on the podcast? Or, want to discuss a user-centered project, evaluation or experience design strategy? Please drop us a line to get in touch! /episode/index/show/0da5716b-3cc7-47d2-adf2-4655053db1fa/id/28227569

E8: Feminine Exhibit Design with Margaret Middleton, Independent Exhibit Designer 09/20/2023

E8: Feminine Exhibit Design with Margaret Middleton, Independent Exhibit Designer I ran across the concept of Feminine Exhibit Design when doing some post-conference research - and it perked my ears right up! What is feminine exhibit design? And, why is it important? has been focusing on these questions for several years now, and spent a little time with me to discuss. Margaret is a thought leader in the inclusive design space, designer of playful, enriching learning experiences, and speaker and consultant advocating for inclusive museum practices. In this week’s episode, Margaret shares their thoughts on why Feminine Design principles are a critical aspect for inclusive design and how and when to use them. We discuss how acknowledging and resisting an andro-centric perspective is important in design work, and how difficult that can be considering the complexities of femininity. We also discuss what fem-phobia is and how it may present itself in our design work. Margaret tells us how and when a focus on feminine design emerged from their work and how their thought exercise on this topic has developed since then - including how Cute came to be the 7th element in the emergent Feminine Exhibition Design structure. Links to resources discussed in episode: Book: Book: Book: Book: - describing 6 elements of Feminine Exhibition Design, before the 7th - Cute - was added for Feminine Exhibition Design article - ‘the curve is inhabited geometry’ - exhibit Margaret designed, and inspired their focus on feminine design asks ‘What feminine part of yourself did you have to destroy to be part of this world?’ , Acton Massachusetts - Teddy Bear diner Exhibit: - Museum Fine Arts Boston research from Exploratorium - recommended qualities regarding what works for girls in a science museum setting ’s work on femininity and fem-phobia ’s work on the concept of ambient belonging - she focuses on learning and educational spaces Book: feminist-inclusive, anti-racist, nonbinary field guide for graphic designers Connect with us: Have questions or topics you’d like us to explore on the podcast? Or a recommendation of an expert to interview? Feel free to contact me via Need help with a user-, visitor- or community-centered project, evaluation or experience design strategy? Head over to for info on human and community-centered strategies for your mission-driven institution Or, contact us via the website about your project or collaboration you’ve got in mind, or just to say hello! /episode/index/show/0da5716b-3cc7-47d2-adf2-4655053db1fa/id/28098983

MuseumX Podcast: Summer Announcement 07/16/2023

E6: Tables are Turned! Nicole interviews Stefanie, Part 2 06/28/2023

E6: Tables are Turned! Nicole interviews Stefanie, Part 2 PART 2 of 2 This week - the tables are turned! If you wanted to learn a bit more about me - here’s your chance. One of my favorite people, who is also a former neighbor and former museum colleague, interviews me! Nicole has the curiosity bug as badly as I do, so she’s one of my favorite people to explore ideas, make connections and generally chat with. She’s awesome. In the episode, you’ll first hear Nicole tell the silly and fun story of how we met and became friends - it’s pretty good. Vintage Stef stuff. We then talk about my professional path from anthropology to digital UX research and design, and then switching to non profit spaces, museum evaluation and being a business owner. You’ll hear about some of my favorite projects, why I became a digital nomad for almost 2 years, and what I mean by heart-centered design and who are heart-centered designers. (Spoiler - it’s probably you!) Links to resources discussed in episode: that Nicole & Ted have kept for years! Book: my favorite text book I recommend to guide researchers and designers understand the deep How-Tos of this potentially very subjective design process. for the Second International Conference on Automotive User Interfaces and Interactive Vehicular Applications (the gal sitting on the floor in Image 3 is yours truly) of the Shedd Aquairum $500M Experience Master Plan project Connect with us: Have questions or topics you’d like us to explore on the podcast? Or a recommendation of an expert to interview? Please drop us a line at [email protected] with your idea! Need help with a user-centered project, evaluation or experience design strategy? Head over to for info on human and community-centered strategies for your mission-driven institution, Or connect with us at [email protected] about your project or collaboration you’ve got in mind /episode/index/show/0da5716b-3cc7-47d2-adf2-4655053db1fa/id/27317355

E6 Tables are turned! Nicole interviews Stefanie, Part 1 06/28/2023

E6 Tables are turned! Nicole interviews Stefanie, Part 1 This week - the tables are turned! If you wanted to learn a bit more about me - here’s your chance. One of my favorite people, who is also a former neighbor and former museum colleague, interviews me! Nicole has the curiosity bug as badly as I do, so she’s one of my favorite people to explore ideas, make connections and generally chat with. She’s awesome. In the episode, you’ll first hear Nicole tell the silly and fun story of how we met and became friends - it’s pretty good. Vintage Stef stuff. We then talk about my professional path from anthropology to digital UX research and design, and then switching to non profit spaces, museum evaluation and being a business owner. You’ll hear about some of my favorite projects, why I became a digital nomad for almost 2 years, and what I mean by heart-centered design and who are heart-centered designers. (Spoiler - it’s probably you!) Links to resources discussed in episode: that Nicole & Ted have kept for years! Book: my favorite text book I recommend to guide researchers and designers understand the deep How-Tos of this potentially very subjective design process. for the Second International Conference on Automotive User Interfaces and Interactive Vehicular Applications (the gal sitting on the floor in Image 3 is yours truly) of the Shedd Aquairum $500M Experience Master Plan project Connect with us: Have questions or topics you’d like us to explore on the podcast? Or a recommendation of an expert to interview? Please drop us a line at [email protected] with your idea! Need help with a user-centered project, evaluation or experience design strategy? Head over to for info on human and community-centered strategies for your mission-driven institution, Or connect with us at [email protected] about your project or collaboration you’ve got in mind /episode/index/show/0da5716b-3cc7-47d2-adf2-4655053db1fa/id/27317316

E5: Equity Tools for Inclusive Design with Lauren Young Senior Director of Data and Analysis Beloved Community 06/15/2023

E5: Equity Tools for Inclusive Design with Lauren Young Senior Director of Data and Analysis Beloved Community We know creating equity-driven, inclusive experiences is critical to our institutions, sector, communities and society. But how might we make strides towards equity - as an institution? How might we continue on our own individual equity, diversity, and anti-racism journeys - together as an organization? We heard from Lauren Young with Beloved Community about their suite of Equity Tools, in particular their EQUITY LENS MAP (ELM), a tool to help teams and institutions identify needs and gaps in equity leadership across their organization, as well as opportunities for growth and resources for intervention. Beloved Community is a pro-black, pro-queer, pro-woman nonprofit racial and economic equity consulting firm based in New Orleans. Their tools are based on the firm belief that people change systems. As made clear by the name of their organization, Dr King’s vision of the Beloved Community inspires their work. ‘When we are practicing the beloved community, we center love for humanity. Love as accountability. Love as justice. Love as community. Love as belonging.’ -Beloved Community website Links to resources discussed in episode: , like Lauren did! What is the ? (create a free account to explore tools and resources) - examples of folks Beloved Community has worked with and the impact to their work Book: Book: (and there's a workbook!), Layla Saad. Podcasts: and Connect with us: Have questions or topics you’d like us to explore on the podcast? Or a Guest recommendation? Please drop us a line at [email protected] with your idea! Need help with a user-centered project, evaluation or experience design strategy? Head over to for info on human and community-centered strategies for your mission-driven institution, Or connect with us at [email protected] about your project or collaboration you’ve got in mind /episode/index/show/0da5716b-3cc7-47d2-adf2-4655053db1fa/id/27162981

E4: Nature, Immersion and Healing with Ed Moydell, Executive Director and Robin Gaphni, Program Manager, The Bloedel Reserve 06/02/2023

E4: Nature, Immersion and Healing with Ed Moydell, Executive Director and Robin Gaphni, Program Manager, The Bloedel Reserve How might a nature experience be purpose-built for healing? The Bloedel Reserve is a botanical garden with a very unusual design choice - no signage! There are no plant identification labels and (almost) no navigation signage. It’s a space not meant for learning about nature, it’s meant for learning about yourself. At the Blodel, the point is to slow down, focus on the moment, experience your body within nature, and to heal. Recently, a new and incredibly successful program - Strolls for Well-Being - has made this design intention come alive in new ways through a site specific program inspired by forest bathing. In the episode you’ll hear about the purpose, intention and impact from the program’s manager Robin Gaphni, who also leads one of the program cohorts focused on grief. From Ed Moydell, Blodel’s Executive Director you’ll hear about the unique purpose, history and planning of their 150 acres in the 1970s by psychology, environmental and landscape experts who designed The Bloedel Reserve as a nature-based environment for human healing. Links to Guests Reach Robin Gaphni: rgaphni AT bloedelreserve.org to discuss developing a Strolls for Well-Being Program at your institution Links to resources discussed in episode - ‘father of horticultural therapy’ Video: Webpage: Article: ’s pioneering Environmental psychologist, - published his Prospect Refuge Theory in 1975 - use in your backyard or local park Book: Connect with us Have questions or topics you’d like us to explore on the podcast? Or a recommendation of an expert to interview? Please drop us a line at [email protected] with your idea! Need help with a user-centered project, evaluation or experience design strategy? Head over to for info on human and community-centered strategies for your mission-driven institution, Or connect with us at [email protected] about your project or collaboration you’ve got in mind /episode/index/show/0da5716b-3cc7-47d2-adf2-4655053db1fa/id/27027966

E3, Pt2: Designing for Compassion with Amanda White, Director of Content at Local Projects 05/17/2023

E3, Pt2: Designing for Compassion with Amanda White, Director of Content at Local Projects PART 2: What’s the formula to spark and then activate compassion? As you’ll learn in this episode - there is one! I had the pleasure of interviewing Amanda White, Director of Content for Local Projects in NYC. Amanda is a leader in experience design on a global stage - with 17 years' experience in leading content development for design. She leads teams to transform concepts into impactful experiences for user engagement - with a specialty in strategic messaging and storytelling. In our two-part episode, we discuss how to connect with visitors’ compassion, how compassion might be transformed into action, and how Amanda is inspired to tell the stories that create deep connections with audiences. Links to other resources discussed in episode - example of immersion and a more linear relationship between ‘feel’ and ‘think’ - example of integrating ‘feel’, ‘think’ and ‘do’ in proximal relationship - Example of ‘feel’ and ‘think’ in a proximal relationship form making plays a big role - Experimenting with integrating opportunities for people to get involved with their community much more closely with other parts of content and exhibits. Ex of ‘Feel’, ‘Think’, and ‘Do’, in proximal relationship. Link to Stef’s episode sketch / mind map / data viz (aka Link to see the inside of my brain) Connect with us: Have questions or topics you’d like us to explore on the podcast? Or a recommendation of an expert to interview? Please drop us a line at with your idea! Need help with a user-centered project, evaluation or experience design strategy? Head over to for info on user-centered strategies for your mission-driven institution, Or connect with us at about your project or other cool collaboration you’ve got in mind! /episode/index/show/0da5716b-3cc7-47d2-adf2-4655053db1fa/id/26871129

E3, Pt 1: Designing for Compassion with Amanda White, Director of Content at Local Projects 05/17/2023

E3, Pt 1: Designing for Compassion with Amanda White, Director of Content at Local Projects What’s the formula to spark and then activate compassion? As you’ll learn in this episode - there is one! I had the pleasure of interviewing Amanda White, Director of Content for Local Projects in NYC. Amanda is a leader in experience design on a global stage - with 17 years' experience in leading content development for design. She leads teams to transform concepts into impactful experiences for user engagement - with a specialty in strategic messaging and storytelling. In our two-part episode, we discuss how to connect with visitors’ compassion, how compassion might be transformed into action, and how Amanda is inspired to tell the stories that create deep connections with audiences. Links to other resources discussed in episode - example of immersion and a more linear relationship between ‘feel’ and ‘think’ - example of integrating ‘feel’, ‘think’ and ‘do’ in proximal relationship - Example of ‘feel’ and ‘think’ in a proximal relationship form making plays a big role - Experimenting with integrating opportunities for people to get involved with their community much more closely with other parts of content and exhibits. Ex of ‘Feel’, ‘Think’, and ‘Do’, in proximal relationship. Link to Stef’s episode sketch / mind map / data viz (aka Link to see the inside of my brain) Connect with us: Have questions or topics you’d like us to explore on the podcast? Or a recommendation of an expert to interview? Please drop us a line at with your idea! Need help with a user-centered project, evaluation or experience design strategy? Head over to for info on user-centered strategies for your mission-driven institution, Or connect with us at about your project or other cool collaboration you’ve got in mind! /episode/index/show/0da5716b-3cc7-47d2-adf2-4655053db1fa/id/26871069

E2: Presenting difficult topics with Kelley Szany, Sr VP of Education & Exhibitions, Illinois Holocaust Museum and Education Center 05/03/2023

E1: Trauma-informed educational spaces, Lorne McConachie, Principal Emeritus of Bassetti Architects 04/26/2023

Hello! Introducing MuseumX: Designing Experiences for Good 03/17/2023

MuseumX: Designing Experiences for Good

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