Strategy + Research + Design
CONTACT: dara.benno@gmail.com
As a transdisciplinary designer, I dedicate my practice to addressing the critical challenges of today and imagining how we can create regenerative models for the future that benefit humans, non-humans, and the natural world alike. Through this life-centered approach, my work is rooted in extensive research and critical strategy to develop impactful interventions that confront what is now known as the ‘Polycrisis’—encompassing global risks that range from environmental threats to societal struggles and technological advancement.
With a Master of Industrial Design from RISD and a background in sculpture and linguistics, my practice lies at the intersection of applied art and design thinking—combining my passion for hands-on making with my dedication to systems change. My current projects are focused on the advancement of sustainable systems in evolutionary lifestyle dynamics as informed by natural disasters, human behavior, and modes of communication. This work investigates climate adaptation, everyday living, and community resilience, and has been exhibited at international design events including Dutch Design Week and FASHIONCLASH Festival, as well as gained notable recognition at the Core77 Design Awards.
CURRENTLY:
As a Strategic Design + Research Fellow at RISD's Center for Complexity (CfC), I am collaborating on the development of a design manual for the Polycene—pulling from and expanding on my extensive research in climate risk and collaborative response, as well as joining an effort utilizing art and design to envision the roles, norms, and values necessary for humanity to flourish. I have also joined the collaborative efforts of the CfC and community partners to combat the opioid epidemic and work toward designing care spaces free of stigma.
As a design consultant and sustainability lead, I work with brands like Quiet Town to create circular models of production—considering what “sustainability” actually means while taking the necessary steps to improve processes, build community, and craft beautiful products with impactful narratives.
As an educator, I have partnered with The Level Up Project in NYC and the Genesis Center in Providence to work with and empower high school students and adults through a hands-on practice of art and design. My workshops range in theme from reuse and disobedient practice to material research and curation of information itself as a creative body of work.
Awards + Recognition
Leadership
2024 Project Drawdown Climate Action Feature, Job Function Action Guide Campaign
2023 Student Runner-Up Lifestyle Accessories Award, Core77 Design Awards
2023 Student Notable Speculative Design Award, Core77 Design Awards
2023 Circularity Champion Nominee, Barnard College · Columbia University
2022 Marc Harrison Design Excellence Award, Rhode Island School of Design
2022 Semi-Finalist Student Merit Awards, Industrial Designers Society of America
2020 - 2022 Leopold Schepp Scholar
2020 - 2022 Fred M. Roddy Memorial Scholarship, Rhode Island School of Design
2020 - 2021 Industrial Design Health Grant, Rhode Island School of Design
2020 - 2022 Graduate Merit Fellowship Award, Rhode Island School of Design
2008 Magna Cum Laude Bachelor of Fine Arts, Binghamton University (SUNY)
2008 Undergraduate Research Award, Binghamton University (SUNY)
2008 University Art Museum Sculpture Award, Binghamton University (SUNY)
Exhibitions + Residencies
2025 Industrial Design Biennial, Rhode Island School of Design
2024 PORT Sustainable Fashion Show, Philadelphia, PA
2024 Project Blue Sky Climate Designer Residency, New Cuyama, CA
2023 Woods Gerry Gallery Group Exhibition, Rhode Island School of Design
2022 Dutch Design Week, Eindhoven, Netherlands
2022 FASHIONCLASH Festival, Maastricht, Netherlands
2022 MID Graduate Showcase, Rhode Island School of Design
2021 Industrial Design Gallery Group Exhibition, Rhode Island School of Design
2023 - Present Guest Critic + Lecturer, Rhode Island School of Design
2025 IDSA Student Merit Awards Judge, Providence Chapter
2025 Compost Conference Panelist on Food Recovery
2022 Speaker at Industrial Design Lecture Series, Rhode Island School of Design
2020 - 2022 Graduate Community Representative, Rhode Island School of Design
2020 - 2022 Industrial Designers Society of America Board Member, Rhode Island School of Design
2020 - 2022 Graduate Admissions Team, Rhode Island School of Design
2021 Humanitarian Design Teaching Assistant, MIT-D Lab/Rhode Island School of Design
Community
2024 - Present Food Recovery for Rhode Island
2023 - Present Global Party of Climate Designers
2022 - Present Female Design Council
2022 - Present Women and Climate
2017 - Present NYC Fair Trade Coalition
2020 - 2022 Industrial Designers Society of America
2017 - 2018 Brooklyn Fashion + Design Accelerator
2010 - 2011 Chicago Public School Art Teacher
2009 - 2011 Milk Factory Gallery Founder + Curator, Chicago