‘Fusionist’ to speak at VCUarts Qatar lecture

Asta Roseway, principal research designer at Microsoft Research’s Urban Innovation Initiative, will be the presenter at the next edition of Virginia Commonwealth University School of the Arts in Qatar’s (VCUarts Qatar) Crossing Boundaries Lecture Series on October 20.
The lecture will be held online at 7.30pm.
In her talk, Roseway will discuss the application of design for innovative solutions and her collaborative efforts to bring researchers, engineers, chemists and government policy makers together, to study and solve pressing global concerns such as urban air pollution and climate change.
Though she works as a research designer at Microsoft Research, Roseway refers to herself as a ‘Fusionist’, or someone who works between disciplines and fields, using design. Her focus lies primarily in building the next wave of emerging solutions that will help address concerns pertaining to the environment, emotional health, social consciousness and sustainability.
In the past, she has created projects such as talking plants, interactive or smart tattoos, wearable light therapy, living architecture, air quality experience and ecological sensing. Each of these experimentations was collaborative models designed to generate a vision of a more positive and inclusive future.
She is also a strong advocate for diversity and inclusivity across cultures, and helped establish Microsoft’s first-ever Artist in Residence programme. The pioneering programme – an intersection between art and technology – enables artists to work with computer scientists. Some of these collaborations have been showcased at venues such as Ars Electronica, SXSW, CES and Biofabricate in New York City.
Roseway co-founded Digigirlz, one of Microsoft’s longest running diversity programmes that aims to educate and inspire high schoolgirls about the tech industry. She is a Parsons School of Design alumna.
For more information on Crossing Boundaries lecture series, one can visit qatar.vcu.edu.