Sandra Edwards Email and Phone Number

Founded the organization the National Endowment for the Arts credits with "bringing the issue of design for children to national attention" through lectures, exhibitions, writing, public speaking, consults & design demonstration. The New York Times chose me as the 6-pg featured profile in its 1st ever issue on design for children, thus identifying CHILDESIGN as the leader in the field. The NEA bestowed a Leadership Initiative grant saying, "This is true underdeveloped country. You are doing work that will have lasting impact." When Dwell Magazine took an idea I introduced into the lexicon -- "child-responsive vs. child-proof" -- & put it on the cover of its 1st issue, NEA proved right. CHILDESIGN pioneers new thinking & a new respect for children's environments. An editor-in-chief wrote: "The pioneering design and advocacy work she has performed in the interest of developing, advancing, and promoting child-centered products and environments goes far beyond anything anyone else in this country is doing." Head Start's founder, Dr. Zigler at Yale, credited CHILDESIGN with being "the only focused effort in this field." The Smithsonian's Cooper-Hewitt Museum invited me to give the museum's 1st lecture on design for children, saying "You were the only person I could find with a general knowledge of the field." I've been fortunate to have my ideas & work featured on television and in publications throughout the world, to be invited to speak to diverse audiences / conferences, to consult w major corporations, product manufacturers, architecture/design studios, colleges & programs for children throughout the U.S. I am passionate about my work & grateful to those who make possible vital venues to further CHILDESIGN's mission: to give children a voice in the design process. I vision a better world for children & hope I can continue to consult & help define what it means to produce better child-inclusive /family-supportive products and environments for the benefit of ALL.

As the first Design Editor for Parenting Magazine, I introduced the concept of design as must-have-information for fully informed parenting, speaking about green design before it had entered the public's or even the media's consciousness. I articulated through writing and editorial consultation the vital role that design plays in children's lives, creating content that dovetailed with and complemented the overall focus of each issue of the magazine. I identified, designed, produced and showcased exemplary environments and products. I initiated Design Demonstration Projects for publication (before the advent of HGTV and the like), redesigning homes of selected families whose issues were representative of the widespread design needs of families -- a process I continue today with the CHILDESIGN Design Demonstration Projects. The only article I wrote that was not published in the magazine was my authored ahead-of-its-time piece, "Green Design: What is it?": "We don't want to scare parents," they said. Fortunately now, through efforts like CHILDESIGN and environmental activists, this important topic is widely known. At Parenting, I had the privilege of collaborating directly with Parenting's terrific editor-in-chief, Anne Krueger.

I was one of the founding writers when ELLE Decor was launched in the United States. I served specifically as contributing writer covering the impact of design on children and families, bringing authority in this area from my work with CHILDESIGN. I introduced a new viewpoint with regard to the design of children's environments and products that was not being discussed in any other publication at that time. My design research around the globe for my articles lead me to meet, learn from and ultimately write feature pieces about the design superstars of the day: including a major profile of Italian architecture luminary Gae Aulenti (meeting her at one of her exhibitions at the Palazzo Grassi in Venice, Italy, and then returning to interview her at both her home and her office in Milan); and interviews with the talented and thoroughly entertaining Andree Putnam, Ettore Sottsass, Alessandro Mendini, etc. I am especially grateful for the collaboration with then-Executive Editor, Charles Bricker.

Author / Editor of two books: Product Design 2; Office Systems. Was a contributing editor to ID, the flagship magazine of Design Publications and the oldest product design magazine in the country. Had the pleasure and the privilege of working directly with the publisher, Randolph McAusland, & the editor-in-chief, Steven Holt, two brilliant, innovative and wonderfully supportive colleagues. It always made for thought-provoking discussion, at a time that was very exciting in the design community. I will be forever grateful for the fertile learning ground and collaborative spirit that this job offered to me.

Writer, feature articles.

The I.D. Design Review was the oldest product design competition in the country and the results form the premiere annual issue of the magazine. I worked closely and in coordinated effort with the Editor-in-Chief and Publisher of ID on all facets of this work. As manager, through extensive outreach to the design community, I significantly expanded the number of entries and coordinated these submissions when they came in. I worked in selecting and coordinating the jurors, and then served as Moderator for many of the jury panels. I was then a Contributing Editor helping to organize, write and create this major issue of the magazine. Many of the winners were also later chosen for inclusion in my book, Product Design 2.