Nidhi Singh Rathore is a designer, researcher, and educator who explores the application of design methodologies to civic engagement and social innovation. She is an Assistant Professor of Design at the Corcoran School of the Arts & Design at George Washington University. As a brown foreign-born woman living in the United States, Rathore continually explores her position and privilege, reflecting it in her creative practice. Through her work, she intends to dive deeper into the hidden complexities and economies of the virtual and physical world in order to redefine how we interpret our relationship to the political, cultural, and digital landscapes—grounded in the relationship between the global north and south. With a value-centered approach, her work deconstructs nebulous concepts, brings people together, and breaks down intricate challenges to create better and more equitable interventions.

Rathore also writes, publishes, and forwards the discussion on design’s relationship with power hoarding to critique design practice through a lens of race, gender, and privilege. This understanding comes from her lived experience as a public servant, where she developed an understanding of the ways marginalization and inequity stand in the way of civic participation and the role design can play in activating democracy. She has collaborated with the Stanford Impact Labs, exploring design’s role in addressing societal challenges like housing insecurity, and Cedars Sinai Cancer Research Center for Health Equity—by way of Designmatters at ArtCenter College of Design—to reimagine cancer clinical screening and outreach.