Laura Forlano

Laura Forlano is an Assistant Professor at the Institute of Design, Illinois Institute of Technology. She is a media expert and scholar in the social dimensions of emerging technologies, values in design, and urban computing, with a focus on critical social computing and sociotechnical practices in innovation ecosystems.

• Education: Ph.D. in Communications (Columbia University), Master of International Affairs (Johns Hopkins), Bachelor's in Asian Studies (Skidmore College)
• Research Interests: Urban Informatics, Science and Technology Studies, Speculative Design, Human-Computer Interaction, Critical Design Methods

Her recent publications explore speculative futures for autonomous vehicles, collaborative cities, and design anthropology. She co-edits books on urban technology and Bauhaus Futures, and leads the Critical Futures Lab (2014–present). Funded by the National Science Foundation, her Design Collaborations as Sociotechnical Systems project analyzes global design networks in New York, Barcelona, and Brisbane.

• Scientific Awards:
  • Newcity Design 50: Who Shapes Chicago (2017)
  • IIT Nayar Prize for The Driverless City Project (2015)
• Projects:
  • Designing Digital Networks for Urban Public Space
  • Breakout! Escape from the Office (exhibited in Toward the Sentient City, 2009)
  • Material Imagination (Fellow at Durham University, 2020)

Forlano teaches and consults on design ethics, urban technology, and critical design futures. She is available for media interviews on Human and Behavioral Science topics.