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Student Spotlight: Fnot Gebremicael

fnotFnot Gebremicael is a student in the Graduate Program in International Affairs and President of the student organization Project Africa. Project Africa strives to promote a positive and accurate view of Africa through regular events open to The New School community and wider public. On April 5th, Project Africa successfully concluded Design Africa 2014, a one-day conference that presented new perspectives on communication, fashion, infrastructure, technology, and transdisciplinary design in Africa. The conference featured over 15 expert speakers and an interactive workshop co-facilitated by students of the Parsons MFA Transdisciplinary Design Program.

 

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interview conducted by Benjamin Ace.


IMG_6713Why did Project Africa decide to organize the Design Africa 2014 conference?

While Project Africa was founded by students in GPIA and mainly consists of GPIA students, it is really open to all New School students. It has been very challenging to get that message across to students of other divisions. So over the last year our programming has reflected a shift away from traditional discussions on development and current events, towards programming that shows Africa in a different light, a perspective one might not get from our coursework, and also programming that we think would appeal to students across divisions, specifically Parsons. We co-hosted a program on African fashion with the Fashion Studies program last semester that was very successful. Then Michael Cohen challenged us to think beyond fashion and to put on a program that featured design more broadly, and what is happening in terms of design in Africa.

What challenges did Project Africa face in putting together such an innovative event?

Where to begin! First, we were non-designers trying to organize a design conference, and I didn’t really appreciate what the implications of that were at the outset, which leads me to challenge number two: Reconciling the different ways of approaching this conference between us and our fellow students from Parsons. Through our collaborative relationship we were able to put together an informative, dynamic, and one of a kind program that appealed to both designers and non-designers.

IMG_6731Why did Project Africa partner with Trans Disciplinary Design students?

Parsons created the MFA in Transdisciplinary Design (TransDesign) for a new generation of designers who want to address pressing social issues using new ideas, tools, and methods. TransDesign is a program that focuses on project-based design work that incorporates a profound understanding of the ways design transforms social relations. Several TransD students are also a part of the BORN FREE project, an initiative launched in Johannesburg and is a global exploration utilizing street style as an entry point to creatively explore and critically engage a conversation around identity, courage, freedom, legacy and the power of self-expression. Our objectives over-lapped so well that we had to make the partnership happen.

What were the outcomes of the conference?

Throughout the course of the day and well after the conference, both attendees and the speakers shared with us how much they were enjoying the conference, how unprecedented the program was, and the need for it to continue. One woman in particular traveled from Washington, DC just for the conference and asked me on three separate occasions if we were going to do one every year!

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Can we look forward to another Design Africa conference in the future?

YES! Design Africa will definitely continue in one form or another. I am so proud of what we managed to do here, planning and executing a conference is difficult enough but doing so as a completely student-led exercise is even more challenging. The foundation is now there to build-upon and we have a growing interest outside of the New School community to see it continue. I’ll be graduating this semester but I’m excited to see what the continuing students come up with next year.

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