Join us in our conversation series where our SF Chapter Chair Basak Altan will be hosting informal interview discussions with Bay Area Designers and thought leaders with diverse perspectives. In this session, we will be discussing Design Education with our guest Hector Silva, Founder of Advanced Design. After each 30-40 min. interview there will be a moderated Q&A session.
GUEST: HECTOR SILVA
Hector Silva brings over 5 years of teaching experience at both the University of Illinois at Chicago and the University of Notre Dame in their nationally-acclaimed industrial design programs. Recognized for his contributions in academia, Hector was awarded the Young Educator of the Year by the Industrial Designers Society of America (IDSA). An active professional in the field, Hector works as an industrial design contractor through his own studio, H Design, partnering with Crate & Barrel, DesignLab, Nickelodeon, LeapFrog, Foster Grant, Insight Product Development, Lund & Company Invention, as well as various entrepreneurs. Hector is also the founder of the design nonprofit, Advanced Design (AD), an organization awarded the Special Achievement Award by the IDSA for making design education more accessible and through disrupting the mediums through which design education has been traditionally offered. AD continues to grow today, connecting students and working professionals to foster a community of design excellence.
GUEST: MARTIN LINDER
Martin has distinguished himself as a design educator and community actionist. After teaching at the San Francisco Academy of Art and the California College of Art, Martin joined the design faculty at Francisco State University (SFSU). In 2012 he received the prestigious Jefferson Award, a national recognition system honoring community and public service in America and the Core 77 International Education Notable Award. In 2009 Martin received the Outstanding Community Service Learning Award that acknowledges, “Exemplary Practice in Community-Based Teaching and in 2008 received the Sarlo Excellence in Teaching Faculty Award” which is given to a professor who provides “Extraordinary, Meaningful, and Lasting Contributions to Teaching”. He was also named one of the “Most Admired Design Professors” in Academia by Design Intelligence. SFSU awarded Martin Linder Full Professor status in 2012. Recently SF State honored Martin with the establishment the Martin Linder Endowed Student Scholarship.
MODERATOR: BASAK ALTAN
Başak Altan is a Design Strategist, Design Educator, Future Thinker & Connector. She helps her clients reimagine an inspiring future for their organizations through design. As a future thinker and connector, she provides expertise in discovering how the human story of her clients’ innovations connect to technology, environment and future business models. For over 20 years she has been providing leadership on design and strategy services in the intersection of business, technology and education. The teams she helped innovate new ideas and processes to transition to a circular economy have consistently received international awards, and recognition on sustainability and social impact achievement. She is the Chair for Industrial Designers Society of America, San Francisco Chapter.
