Monika Hestad

Monika Hestad is a Professor at the Department of Design, Oslo School of Architecture and Design (AHO). Her research focuses on the intersection of design thinking, branding, and sustainable product design, with significant contributions to design pedagogy and innovation management. She has collaborated extensively on topics like craft brewery branding, user-centered design, and design for complexity, publishing in venues such as FormAkademisk and the DMI Academic Design Management Conference. Her work emphasizes collaborative design processes, brand-product integration, and ethical design practices.

Hestad’s publications span design strategy, brand recognition, and design education frameworks, often addressing sustainability and cross-disciplinary innovation. She has developed design thinking workshops, business design methodologies, and brand mapping tools for maritime and creative industries. Her recent work explores forced sustainable design and design for environmental impact, reflecting contemporary challenges in eco-design and design activism.

Hestad has participated in international conferences and exhibitions, including DRS//Cumulus and DMI Design Management Institute events. She has contributed to doctoral colloquia, master class programs, and curriculum evaluations for design education. Her interdisciplinary approach bridges design research, business strategy, and creative industry practices, with a focus on real-world applications of design thinking.