Identity
I am passionate about sustainability, more specifically, I am interested in recycling and helping people become more sustainable in their everyday lives. My other passion lies in physical health, particularly to support people to be more active and improve vitality in their daily lives. Within design, I like interior design and product design, these also fit with my aim to develop products for everyday life. A big inspiration for me is ‘fuseproject’ (Yves Behar) which has products in the same fields, such as ocean clean-up sunglasses.
My adaptability, curiosity and perseverance stand out most when I am working in groups. I can adapt well to my teammates and can thereby avoid unnecessary conflicts, this helps to move the project forward. When something catches my interest I become very curious and this keeps me motivated. Furthermore, I possess high perseverance. I am committed to completing projects once started and am determined to achieve excellence. This quality is deeply rooted in my perfectionistic nature.
Some hard skills I have that are beneficial for being a designer are graphic design, product rendering, and prototyping. I have always had an eye for visual aesthetics, but using new software like Illustrator, Photoshop, and Solidworks has helped me improve my hard skills. For example, I made a 3D rendering for Project 1 using Solidworks to create a clean and aesthetically pleasing poster.
Vision
Environmental friendliness and sustainability are increasingly more important and designers have a crucial role in working towards a sustainable future. In particular, I think marine debris should be recycled since this is a threat to marine life and therefore also to humans. This approach is already incorporated in some designs, such as lamp shades from Phillips that are 3D-printed from recycled fishing nets. However, I truly believe that it is possible to produce most products using recycled materials.
Moreover, designers should encourage sustainable behavior at home and at work. I think this can be achieved through smart technology. The ‘IKEA Concept Kitchen 2025’ from the faculty Industrial Design demonstrates this concept. This kitchen contains systems to reuse water and reduce waste. The kitchen table guides people in food preparation. This example aligns with my personal interests and values and therefore it is a big inspiration for me.
People have busy lives nowadays, leading to physical inactivity and prolonged sitting. This negatively impacts health, vitality and posture. I believe that products should be seamlessly integrated into daily lives to lower the barrier to work on physical health. I envision this as having smart furniture and smart home systems to guide people in their activities. For example, smart chairs and couches that can adapt to individuals, correcting their posture and reminding them to be active after prolonged inactivity. An existing example is ‘FORME Life’, a smart workout mirror from ‘fuseproject’.
"Our sustainable future only comes true when we design it."
My Professional Identity and Vision are also included in my Personal Development Plan. Next to that, the PDP shows my goals for each Expertise Area. This button will take you to my most recent PDP.