My name is Hajira Qazi. I am a design researcher, instructor, and scholar with a doctorate from Carnegie Mellon University (CMU) School of Design.
My design work and practice has explored design’s role in the interplay between social, political, spiritual, and material worlds. Although design is often understood to manifest materially, I am fascinated by the more subtle impact of design—that which is enacted in the immaterial and in the in-between—where bonds, actions, ideas, values, and beliefs are enabled or disabled, strengthened or weakened, by design.
My dissertation, entitled “Design and the (Un)Making of Sacred Worlds,” juxtaposes the traditional and modern worldview and the forms of worldmaking that result. Past work and research interests include participatory design, decolonization, and design for political change.
During my time at CMU, I taught both undergraduate and graduate level courses, including “Research Methods for Design;” “Cultures,” a course that considers design through the lens of critical theory; and “Decoloniality: Past, Present, and Future.” In addition, I taught a four-session course entitled “Foundational Theories of Islamic Design” at the Deen Arts Foundation. I have given numerous guest lectures at a variety of institutions, including California College of Arts, Northeastern University, and Parsons School of Design.
As a practitioner, I am a design strategist. I am passionate about coaching institutions on how to align their values with their practices in order to achieve their objectives without compromising the sanctity of human and non-human life.