The Design, Engagement and Facilitation (DEF) Jam is a blog that explores design-based community engagement and what it means to be a design-based facilitator.
We’re a group of design professionals excited about how better designed conversations and engagement processes can change the way we look at complex problems and how we can all play a role in co-designing solutions that are more desirable.
At the heart of this mindset is human-centred design (HCD) – a practice that looks at the world through the eyes of the human user and what real people need in order to most effectively engage with any solution. HCD is practiced around the world and is used in applications such as building more user-friendly technology, designing processes that nudge people towards action, and encouraging people to more effectively participate in the political process.
As practitioners, we often play the role of facilitator or designer in the creation of design jams, hackathons or engagement programs. The DEF Jam is our platform to talk about the issues, techniques and technologies that we use in our world, build a community of practice and share the lessons that we’re learning.
Welcome to our Jam!
Contributors
Howard Tam
Howard Tam, MSc.,BASc. is an Urban Planner and Designer. He holds a Master’s degree in urban planning from the University of Hong Kong and a Bachelor’s degree in computer engineering from the University of Toronto.
As Founder and Principal at the ThinkFresh Group, Howard has consulted with government agencies, private developers and non-profits to facilitate community engagement, co-create urban innovation and design spaces that allow for amazing human experiences.
Previous clients include Westbank Corp., Centre for Social Innovation, Ryerson University, Brookfield Institute for Innovation + Entrepreneurship, Ontario Non-Profit Network (ONN), Metrolinx, Learning Enrichment Foundation, University of Toronto’s Institute on Municipal Finance and Governance and Scadding Court Community Centre.
Raised in Toronto, Howard loves his home town and aspires to make it a better place to live, work and play. Prior to founding the ThinkFresh Group, Howard worked as a Policy Advisor for the Ontario Ministry of Infrastructure and was a Business Analyst with the Ontario Ministry of Finance.
Meghan Hellstern
Meghan is a Toronto-based communicator, facilitator and designer who is dedicated to reimagining the relationship between people and organizations through the power of collaboration and co-creation. Over more than seven years working in both the public and private sectors, her professional experience includes work in process design and facilitation, stakeholder engagement and communications, and training and education, all from a human-centred and design-informed perspective.
Her clients include the Government of Canada’s Innovation Hub at the Privy Council Office, the MaRS Solutions Lab, the Brookfield Institute for Innovation and Entrepreneurship at Ryerson University, and the Framework Foundation. She is also the co-founder of Civic Tech Toronto, an organization that creates space for applying the power of design, data and technology to civic issues. Meghan’s other volunteer experience includes organizing Civic Design Camp Toronto in 2015 and Ottawa GovJam in 2014. She holds an honours Bachelor of the Arts degree in English and History from the University of Ottawa in addition to certifications in user experience (UX) design and digital marketing.