Yilan is a kiwi in Cambridge, Massachusetts. She is currently a Master’s in Education student at the Harvard Graduate School of Education and has previously worked for IntusCare, CoWorks, Cas Holman/Heroes Will Rise, KP Design Ltd, Hack@Home, and Hack@Brown. She graduated from RISD with honors with a BFA in Industrial Design and minors in CTC (Computation, Technology and Culture) and NCSS (Nature, Culture, Sustainability Studies).
In the studio, Yilan is interested in design that engages with social systems through provoking self-awareness and critical thought. Because her work tends to exist within greater contexts and stories, Yilan has come to realize that she loves design, but only as a tool. She believes that, without a thorough understanding of how these complex structures work and without the expertise and wisdom of people who experience these structures, truly transformative design cannot take place. Design doesn't take precedence in the pursuit of change, but takes part in transdisciplinary and inter-cultural conversations.
Since moving to Cambridge in 2023, Yilan has become a “climbing bro”. You can catch her at the climbing gym in the calm of the morning before it starts smelling like feet. Yilan’s favourite form of introversion is sitting at a cafe drawing people as they enjoy their cuppa.
Yilan hits big Japanese drums with Gendo Taiko