Crossing Borders: Immigrant Women Designers and the Built Environment

(Public Programming, Panel Discussion, Design and Inclusivity)

5:00 - 6:30, 28th Jan 2024
MPavilion, Queen Victoria Gardens

Explore the experiences, challenges, and stories of migrant female built environment practitioners working in Australia. Through discussing the challenges they have faced and overcome, this panel hopes to foster a deeper understanding of the obstacles that female migrant designers encounter in their professional lives as well as how it plays into their interests in the chosen field.

The discussion delved into the complex interplay between design, culture, identity, and migration, considering the diverse stories, tensions, and interactions these designers and academics have within the Australian context. By inviting these culturally and linguistically diverse designers and academics to speak about their experience, this talk aims to provide a platform for these marginalised groups to build communities and bonds, and explore how their cultural backgrounds and identities shape their interests and professional practices.

All photos  © Shelley Xue

This event provided a rare, safe space for unheard stories and profound reflections on the intersection of design, culture, identity, and migration.

Speakers and facilitators shared a diverse range of experience and pathways, navigating through cultural differences and challenges in their respective fields, informing the vitality of this conversation. From embodied knowledge to problem-solving to career trajectory, they shed light on the important role of immigrant designers in the built environment industry. The audience left feeling inspired, seen, and healed by the narratives and journey shared by the speakers.

The curators and speakers genuinely thank the participants who listened, contributed, and shared their ideas, and look forward to continuing the conversation on this topic.

All event graphics designed by Terren Shi.

Special thanks to msdsocial, Parlour, aila.victoria for their support in promoting of this event.