Kate Elton

NEXT GEN JUROR

Kate is a multi-disciplinary designer who is interested in exploring ways we can use design to positively influence people’s lives and the world around us. Curious by nature, she is particularly interested in how values-based design and collaborative design processes can help people navigate complex challenges and create meaningful paths forward.

Kate’s experience and expertise spans the fields of Strategic Design, Service Design, Industrial Design, Visual Communication and design research. Having previously worked as an Industrial Designer, her most recent roles include senior strategic designer at Inkfield, associate service designer with Meld Studios and strategic and social designer at the Design Innovation Research Centre at the University of Technology Sydney (UTS). Over her 14+ years of experience, she has worked with partners across the public sector, academia and industry, including Legal Aid NSW, The Office of Responsible Gambling, UTS Respect.Now.Always., Australian Defence Force, NSW Justice, the Bribery Prevention Network and the Australian Human Rights Commission.

Alongside her design practice, Kate has spent the past decade teaching design and transdisciplinary subjects at UTS. She is also a passionate member of the broader design community, having acted as a jury member for international design awards including the Australian Good Design Awards and the Taiwan International Student Design Awards. In 2021 she appeared as a presenter and expert design judge on Season 4 of Australia By Design: Innovations.

Fostering good mental health and helping people to see their own strength is something Kate is particularly passionate about. In 2015 she wrote and published a pocket-sized book called ‘The Little Book for Big Worries’ for managing anxiety, which has since sold over 600 copies.