Strategic designer for institutional transitions. Human + planetary governance, by design

Since 2022 I have been part of UNDP's Digital, AI and Innovation Hub, codifying the organisation's portfolio approach: a way of working that helps governments hold many connected interventions as a long-term mission, rather than a collection of unrelated projects. Over these four years I have co-designed portfolio strategies with country offices in Paraguay, Venezuela, Chile, Mexico, Mozambique, and São Tomé and Príncipe, mentored local teams across Latin America and Africa, led the UNDP partnership with Apolitical on a course for public servants worldwide, and acted as creative director for Blue Marble, a speculative exhibition on multi-species governance shown at the Summit of the Future, Istanbul Innovation Days, and Future Days. Also in 2021, I co-founded Próxima Geração in Portugal, a leadership programme for emerging political leaders, where I helped design the learning experience and teach modules on deep listening and systemic design.

I am Brazilian, trained as a designer at UFRGS with an exchange at NSCAD in Canada, and hold a Cum Laude MSc in Strategic Product Design from TU Delft. Before UNDP I was a service and visual designer at NoOne Consultancy in Brazil, a product designer at CoachHub, and a graduate program lecturer in co-design practice at UFRGS. My academic work includes "Design experiments for a development organisation in the Brazilian Amazon rainforest" (DRS 2022).

For nearly a decade I founded and ran "Adoção Tardia" a Brazilian initiative working to change public discourse on older child adoption. The project produced content for adoption candidates, ran three crowdfunding campaigns, and co-created practices with adoption support groups and shelter homes across six states. The documentary "Quando nós nos adotamos" premiered in 2023.

Career journey, from personal experience

The success of public policies and services shaped my life. A substitute family, free quality education, the chance to study abroad. That experience is the through-line of my work, and the reason I am committed to helping public services, businesses, and civic initiatives address social inequalities and safeguard human rights.

Professional Experience

2022–Present Innovation and Design Specialist
System Transformation and Innovation Pillar at Digital, AI, Innovation Hub - Türkiye
Codyfing UNDP system and portfolio approach methods and tools, creating branding and modular process;
Facilitating workshops (sensemaking and portfolio co-design) with UNDP country offices and its partners to develop a system portfolio in complex policy areas. Paraguay, Venezuela, Chile, Mexico, Sao Tome and Principe and Mozambique;
Mentoring regional innovation teams in customization of the portfolio process;
Managing and content creation of an introductory course about system and portfolio approaches in partnership with Apolitical;
Creative directing and hosting of the Blue Marble Exhibition, speculative organisation built on existing signals of change. Showcase at Summit of the Future; Istanbul Innovation Days and Future Days;
Managing and mentorship of external design consultants and design agency partners;
Developing visualisations, slide decks and creative direction of knowledge products such as “Modernizing Development - Introducing Portfolios” (2025).
2021 Product Designer
CoachHub, The Netherlands | coachhub.com
Developed all design stages: from product research to technical interface hand-off;
Produced user personas, journey maps, process flows, and storyboards to communicate research findings and business opportunities;
Managed internal stakeholders’ collaborations.
2021 TU Delft Graduate Researcher
Client: Foundation for Amazon Sustainability - FAS | fas-amazonia.org
Co-created advocacy strategy with Public Policy Team while introducing design methods and mindsets to the organisation;
Monitored and measured the impact of adopting design practices in enhancing collaboration between departments and managerial levels.
Publication: Design experiments for a development organisation in the Brazilian Amazon rainforest. download here
2016–2019 Service and Visual Designer Consultant
No One Design-led Consultancy, Brazil | noone.is
Monitored project development, contacted clients, and presented proposals;
Involved in end-to-end innovation strategy and product/service development;
Recruited research participants and external expert consultants;
Created digital products, educational programs and strategy for omnichannel user experience in collaboration with Sicredi, Financial Institution;
Created physical and digital prototypes to test business and product opportunities.

Education

2019-2021 MSc in Strategic Product Design
Delft University of Technology - TU Delft, The Netherlands
Final Project: Embedding Design Practices in a Non-profit Foundation for the Brazilian Amazon Rainforest
Honors: Cum Laude
2008–2014 BA Design
Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul - UFRGS, Brazil
2013 Exchange Student - Interdisciplinary Design
Nova Scotia College of Art & Design - NSCAD, Canada

Presentations
& Training

2019–2023 Lecture + Workshop: Let’s Co-design
Teaching co-design theory and practices + facilitating a workshop for design graduate students at UFRGS | Brazil
2016–2024 Talk: Child-Centred Adoption Process
Raising awareness about older child adoption in adoption support groups and events concerning parenting and social issues | Brazil
2016–2019 Design Thinking Training | Brazil
Facilitated design thinking workshops at Brazilian-American Chamber of Commerce and Private Universities.
2015 TEDxUFRGS Speaker | Brazil
Title: “Older Child Adoption: Good News to Spread out” | Brazil

Projects and other professional experience

2021–Present Co-Founder, Teacher
Proxima Geração, Portugal | proximageracao
Facilitating the creation of an educational program for supporting the next generation of transformational political leaders (Defining structure, content, and activities) Delivering the module on deep listening and systemic design (still ongoing for each edition)
Developing comms material for the launch of Proxima Geração Interviewing candidates and helping of selecting of first cohort
2015–2025 Founder, Co-Manager and Filmmaker
“Adoção Tardia” Older Child Adoption Project, Brazil | adocaotardia.com
Co-creating content with foster care institutions, public prosecutors and judges from the child protection section to increase the number of successful child adoptions;
Manager of three successful crowdfunding campaigns;
Documentary film producer (premiere in 2021/2). Coordinating donor relationships and filming contractors. Defining script, recruiting participants, creating documentary branding and distribution strategy;
Creative director: producing, filming and editing instructional videos that guide discussions in adoption support groups organised by 11 organisations in six states in Brazil;
Speaker of foster care children’s rights in adoption events to raise awareness about the misconceptions about older child adoption.
2016–2019 Global Shaper and Vice Curator of Porto Alegre Hub
Global Shapers Community | globalshapers.org
Organized discussions about sustainable development in Porto Alegre city.
Represented Global Shapers Community in local events;
Represented Porto Alegre Hub at World Economic Forum - Latin America
in Argentina (2017);
2009–2011 Administrative Director
NGO Vidanova, Brazil
Organized veterinary care calendar;
Purchased veterinary medical supplies;
Visited socioeconomic districts and interviewed community leaders to assess the needs in terms of animal welfare;
Planned and conducted NGO’s volunteer’s meetings.

Languages

Portuguese
Native Level
English
Fluent
Spanish
Fluent
French
Intermediate Level (B1)

Honors & Awards

2019-2021 Industrial Design Engineering Faculty Scholarship
+ Holland Scholarship
Delft University of Technology
2016 1st place - Visual Identity - Student Category
6th Bornancini Award, Brazil - Project: “Adoção Tardia” Older Child Adoption
2016 Honourable Mention - Mobility - Professional Category
6th Bornancini Award, Brazil - Project: Sivi, Charging Station for Electric Cars
2015 Top Citizenship Prize - Student Category
The Brazilian Human Resources Association sectional Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil. Graduation Project: “Adoção Tardia” Older Child Adoption
2012 Honourable Mention - Packaging Category - Student Category
4th Bornancini Award, Brazil - Project: Romeu & Julieta
2012-2013 Science Without Borders Scholarship
Brazilian National Council for Scientific and Technological Development

Work/Academic inquiries? Reach me on Linkedin

“I am not free while any woman is unfree, even when her chains are very different from my own.” Marielle Franco