Projects per year
Personal profile
Biography
Melisa is a Research Fellow at the FUTURES Hub at the Emerging Technologies Research Lab, Monash University. Her works sits at the intersection of Design Anthropology, Participatory Design and Everyday Design. Melisa is particularly interested in two areas of research. Designing for revaluing, and design for intergenerational and ageing wellbeing.
Her recent book Designing Homeliness: Everyday Practices of Care (Routledge, 2024), brings together experiences from her past 10 years working with design ethnographic approaches in areas of circular economy (e.g. repair and reuse in charity sector); with smart home technologies (for aged at home services in rural areas), and in contexts of care (e.g. Mental health units). Melisa’s interdisciplinary work is featured in the ethnographic film Smart Homes for Seniors.
Melisa has a PhD from the School of Design at RMIT, a Masters of Design (by research) from Monash University, and she was trained as an Industrial Designer at Universidad Pontificia Bolivariana (UPB) in Medellin, Colombia. She has done design teaching at these three Universities and Design Schools.
Diseñadora e investigadora colombiana viviendo en Naarm, Melbourne, Australia. Interesada en practicas de diseño cotidiano para la revaluación y el bienestar. Trabajando actualmente con temas de salud, tecnología y revaluación.
Expertise related to UN Sustainable Development Goals
In 2015, UN member states agreed to 17 global Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to end poverty, protect the planet and ensure prosperity for all. This person’s work contributes towards the following SDG(s):
Education/Academic qualification
Design Research, Doctor in Philosophy, Everyday Designing for Revaluing, RMIT University
Award Date: 27 Sept 2018
Research area keywords
- design research
- design anthropology
- ethnographic practice
- everyday design
- sustainable design
- design ethnography
- emerging technologies
- design for revaluing
Collaborations and top research areas from the last five years
Projects
- 2 Finished
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CoM P2: City of Melbourne - City Data Futures Prototype
Pink, S., Lanzeni, D., Fridman, I., Duque Hurtado, M., Sumartojo, S. & Vallentine, B.
25/02/21 → 30/06/21
Project: Research
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The Living Lab: Designing the Future of Aged Care
Clark, S., Flynn, D., Joe, K., Pink, S., McCormack, J., Mihelcic, J. & Duque Hurtado, M.
1/12/19 → 30/11/21
Project: Research
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Designing Homeliness: Everyday Practices of Care
Duque, M., 2025, 1st ed. Abingdon UK: Routledge. 158 p. (HOME)Research output: Book/Report › Book › Research › peer-review
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Anticipatory repair: reframing breakage through a futures agenda. Interview with Minna Ruckenstein and Sarah Pink
Ruckenstein, M., Pink, S., Duque, M. & Callén, B., 2024, In: Diseña . 24, p. 1-16 16 p.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › Other
Open AccessFile1 Citation (Scopus) -
The craft of reuse: Making communities at charity second-hand shops
Duque, M. & Podkalicka, A., 2024, Craft Communities . Luckman, S. & Thomas, N. (eds.). London UK: Bloomsbury Academic, p. 154-164 11 p.Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceeding › Chapter (Book) › Research › peer-review
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Círculos y errores: Entrevista con Tim Ingold
Ingold, T., Callén, B. & Duque, M., 22 Oct 2023, In: Diseña . 2023, 23, p. 1-7 7 p.Translated title of the contribution :Circles and Mistakes: Interview with Tim Ingold Research output: Contribution to journal › Comment / Debate › Other › peer-review
Open Access -
Editorial: Repairing Design: Damage, Care, and Fragilities
Callén, B. & Duque, M., 2023, In: Diseña . 23, p. 1-14 14 p.Research output: Contribution to journal › Editorial › Other › peer-review
Open AccessFile1 Citation (Scopus)
Prizes
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2021 9th Asia Pacific Eldercare Innovation Awards, Best Ageing Research - Winner: 'Smart homes for seniors: Intelligent home design for independent living'
Pink, Sarah (Recipient), Duque Hurtado, Melisa (Recipient), Strengers, Yolande (Recipient) & Williams, Citt (Recipient), 2021
Prize: Prize (including medals and awards)
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2021 IoT (Internet of Things) Awards, Diversity, Equity & Inclusion in Action - Winner: 'Smart Homes for Seniors: Intelligent home design for independent living'
Strengers, Yolande (Recipient), Pink, Sarah (Recipient), Duque Hurtado, Melisa (Recipient), Martin, Rex (Recipient), Nicholls, Larissa (Recipient), Mortimer, Michael (Recipient), Horan, Ben (Recipient), Eugene, Alicia (Recipient) & Thomson, Sue (Recipient), 2021
Prize: Prize (including medals and awards)
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2023 Good Design Award, Design Research - Gold Winner: 'City Sensing Data Futures'
Pink, Sarah (Recipient), Vallentine, Bianca (Recipient), Lanzeni, Debora (Recipient), Fridman, Ilya (Recipient), Duque Hurtado, Melisa (Recipient), Sumartojo, Shanti (Recipient) & Lundberg, Robert (Recipient), 8 Sept 2023
Prize: Prize (including medals and awards)
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2023 Good Design Award, Design Research - Gold Winner: 'Smart Homes for Seniors'
Pink, Sarah (Recipient), Williams, Citt (Recipient), Duque Hurtado, Melisa (Recipient), Nichols, Larissa (Recipient) & Martin, Rex (Recipient), 8 Sept 2023
Prize: Prize (including medals and awards)
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Good Design Australia Award for Design Ethnography
Pink, Sarah (Recipient), Fors, Vaike (Recipient), Lanzeni, Debora (Recipient), Duque Hurtado, Melisa (Recipient), Sumartojo, Shanti (Recipient) & Strengers, Yolande (Recipient), 8 Sept 2023
Prize: Prize (including medals and awards)
Press/Media
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IoT: 'Wireless technology helps reinvigorate smart city focus'
Sarah Pink, Bianca Vallentine, Melisa Duque, Ilya Fridman, Debora Lanzeni, Robert Lundberg, Shanti Sumartojo, Lisa Fu, Nicola Hearn & Tegan Kop
4/11/22
1 item of Media coverage
Press/Media: Blogs, Podcasts and Social Media › Blogs
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COUNCIL MAGAZINE: 'New approaches for smart cities public data-gathering'
Sarah Pink, Bianca Vallentine, Melisa Duque Hurtado, Ilya Fridman, Debora Lanzeni, Robert Lundberg, Shanti Sumartojo, Lisa Fu, Nicola Hearn & Tegan Kop
12/09/22
1 item of Media coverage
Press/Media: Article/Feature
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THE FIFTH ESTATE: 'AI is watching you: How to ethically capture urban data for smart cities'
Sarah Pink, Bianca Vallentine, Melisa Duque, Ilya Fridman, Debora Lanzeni, Robert Lundberg, Shanti Sumartojo, Lisa Fu, Nicola Hearn & Tegan Kop
12/09/22
1 item of Media coverage
Press/Media: Article/Feature
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AGED CARE INSITE: 'New film asks if smart home tech enriches older people’s lives?'
Sarah Pink, Melisa Duque, Yolande Strengers & Citt Williams
29/11/21
1 item of Media coverage
Press/Media: Article/Feature
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DIGITAL INNOVATION FUTURES VICTORIA: 'The new future of ageing: Smart homes for seniors'
Sarah Pink, Melisa Duque, Yolande Strengers & Citt Williams
25/11/21
1 item of Media coverage
Press/Media: Other