Homepage - Lisa Elzey Mercer

Hello! I am an academic, industry, and community designer currently working toward a Ph.D. in Design at the University of Edinburgh. My interests are in researching, developing, and executing design interventions that fuel and sustain ethical practices in design. The frameworks and tools I develop or co-develop are intended to create a space for participants to collaborate on innovative solutions.

I have worked in industry for over twenty-five years. I am a designer and researcher with Blackbird Revolt, a co-founder of Racism Untaught and the non-profit Hatch & Flock. I enjoyed working as an Assistant and Associate Professor in the School of Art and Design at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, from 2017-2023.

Personal Narrative: I identify as a cisgender woman of Mexican descent and take great pride in my ethnically mixed-race family. I am a Sagittarius sun, Taurus rising, and Aquarius moon. My older sister Maria and I were raised by my Mom, Jeannie, a first-generation Mexican immigrant. My Dad, Mark, contracted polio as a baby and, as a result, has a facial disfigurement. I am also a Mom to three young adults. These identities have shaped my worldview and have carried me through my work.