Communication Design Strategies Using Data for Citizen Activism

PhD candidate in Communication Design, Politecnico di Milano, DensityDesign (IT)

Ángeles Briones is a designer and PhD candidate in Communication Design at Politecnico di Milano, and a collaborator at the university’s DensityDesign Research Lab. She’s interested in the various ways data can be used, especially at the citizen level. Ángeles’ research explores how grassroots activists use data as evidence for advocating their claims, and how they could make use of communication design strategies to reshape their actions. With DensityDesign most recently, Ángeles conducted research and helped create A Field Guide to Fake News and other Information Disorders, a relevant, practical guide for tackling misinformation in the news.

At Visualizing Knowledge, Ángeles will explore how citizen activists are starting to leverage data visualization techniques as part of their data activism communication repertoire. Through a case study analysis of 8 projects, she will present data strategies behind communicative artifacts that pursue citizen collective action. The analyzed cases consider their contexts, audiences and design techniques. The presented data design strategies seek to contribute to the role of designers involved in the communication design of citizen activism projects.

This work will be explored in even greater detail in Ángeles’ workshop, where participants will learn practical approaches to designing for citizen activism.