MAKENZIE O’CONNOR

Design Researcher

Makenzie is a designer and design researcher. She holds a Master’s in Design Science from the University of Michigan and a B.S. in Global Health from Allegheny College.

Makenzie is identifying how the built environment may contribute to the collective transdisciplinary efforts of addressing shortcomings in mental health care. Her current research is addressing trauma by exploring a biophilic approach to building soft architecture that provides visceral safety through perceptual emancipation. She is asking how the built environment influences human sensory perception in an effort to better understand the relationship between self-destruction, self-expression, and the built environment.