Convocation Research + Design (CoRD Labs)

Convocation Research and Design (CoRDs) is a research, design, and art agency that combines human rights, technology, activism, advocacy, policy and design together to make complex technology more human readable. CoRD entwines justice, research and design to build provocative tools and creative interventions. With our staff and affiliates we build technology and tech interventions, along with crafting research and research outputs, using design research methods, qualitative research, quantitative research, criticality and technology analysis. Convocation Design + Research catalyzes change by creating innovative public facing research and advocacy work, through campaigns, research publications, consulting, and tool building that pushes for social justice and equity driven technology. We believe in good communication strategies and great design to help tell research and unpack some of technology’s most difficult problems. Some of our work manifests as publications creating frameworks and exploring topics that affect everyday users, such as when to use AI in cities, how online harassment effects journalists and activists, and how to work with emerging technology through an intersectional lens. We think of our work across four areas: weave, entangle, secure and transfer. Weave: designing spaces for and with communities. Making use of participatory design frameworks and connecting people and their future. Entangle: revealing dark patterns, holding tech companies accountable, revealing relationships and connections that aim to remain hidden or obscure — entangling them into their world. Secure: keeping spaces safe, protecting from harm, and mitigating risk. Transfer: transferring information as a means to transfer power. Educational resources, course design, public information campaigns and projects.