The Anthropolist-Designer
I am an anthropologist & regenerative designer, with specialties in community-based participatory action research, exploring the interconnectedness of our human and more-than-human worlds. I am particularly interested in decomposition as a social process, inviting nature to mentor us through an critical exploration of personal identity and social systems. Exploring decentralized ways of being and knowing, read Butterflies, not moon shots to learn more.
Read the full story on #UXRConf Preview: Meet Ariel Sim
A Q&A on her career journey and what researchers can learn from design
March 2019
How did you get started in design research?
I wouldn’t call it an accident, but we definitely weren’t using the words “design research” and “user experience” where I started my career.
I worked for the Bureau of Applied Research in Anthropology (BARA) right out of university. I went to the University of Arizona and had finished an interdisciplinary degree with a mix of course work in business, anthropology, political science, creative arts, entrepreneurship, and economics. Anthropology spoke to me the most of all the disciplines I worked with in my degree and I did most of my thesis through the School of Anthropology.
While in school and then for a few years after, I was a research technician at BARA. We did something called community action research or community-based participatory research. In that model, anthropologists don’t observe and record observations about culture — they participate inside of communities and help to create interventions that lift those communities up. There’s a big focus on agency and on understanding the very specific contexts and dynamics of a community before coming up with solutions (sounds a lot like human-centred design, doesn’t it?).
Past Awards Include
Fast Company Top 10 World Changing Idea: Politics & Policy (2020)
The Artist
A lifelong student of the arts, my practice incorporates music, dance, poetry and visual art. Currently developing a series of poems and sketches (the art of decomposing) exploring decomposition as life’s next great adventure. I released a debut EP in 2021 called Confessions in the Circle Volume I with accompanying music videos described by Canadian Beats as “a series of musical, cinematic reawakenings.”
The arts provide a space to explore personal story, love, and community. Called to soulful and traditional music from people of all walks of life, I'm drawn to music with: (1) confession, (2) harmony, and (3) walls of sound.
ORIGIN
I was born in the Canadian prairies, growing up in the sounds and performances of jazz, folk, and Celtic styles. I moved to Florida at a young age, where I was introduced to gospel, hip hop, and other American music styles. Later moving to the Arizona-Mexico border, I studied West African percussion, dance, and history at the University of Arizona with Praise Zenenga, Barbea Williams, and Mike Vercelli. I’ve been living in Toronto, Canada for the past decade, where my arts practice continues to grow and evolve.
Scottish Highland Games circa 1997, Ariel is featured here with her siblings Morgan and William
