Tech Solidarity Lab Logo that shows a green and gold motif of a flower garden

About Our Lab

Tech Solidarity Lab seeks to open new opportunities for community-driven technology development and extend theoretical frameworks that further our understanding of design, politics, and justice. We draw together techniques of design inquiry and participatory research to respond to systemic inequities embedded in emerging technologies and collectively imagine more accountable and liberatory alternatives.

The Tech Solidarity Lab is a part of the Human-Computer Interaction Institute at Carnegie Mellon University.

Our Work

Futures of Work

Our work investigates the social, political, and material conditions driving the deployment of AI and automation technologies within essential sectors (waste, care, hospitality, and transportation), with a focus on how such decisions affect frontline staff.

Emergent Mobilities

We examine the impacts of emergent mobility technologies on sidewalks and public transit, and contribute to the design of community-driven transportation systems infused with access and equity.

Community Governance of Tech

Public technology cannot be designed or implemented in a way that is purposeful and ethical without meaningful community involvement. Our work seeks to define design and regulatory strategies that ensure equitable outcomes over the long term.

Team

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Sarah Fox | Lab Director

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Franchesca Spektor | PhD Student, HCII

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Cella Sum | PhD Student, HCII

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Jordan Taylor | PhD Student, HCII

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Shivani Kapania | PhD Student, HCII

Alumni

Hunter Akridge | PhD Student in the Department of Anthropology, Princeton University

Bobbie Fan | Data Justice Coordinator at the Black Equity Coalition; Board Member of Pittsburgh Regional Transit

Esther Kang | Assistant Professor of Design Studies, University of Wisconsin Madison

Chinar Mehta | PhD Candidate in the Department of Communication, University of Hyderabad

Alex Ahmed | Front-end Developer at Sassafras Tech Collective

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Work With Us

If you are interested in a research position:

If you are a current student at CMU, you can apply to the lab via this form. If you are interested in a PhD with us, please apply to CMU.

If you are interested in partnering in research:

Please reach out if you have ideas on how our team could contribute research expertise to local grassroots initiatives or broader coalitions promoting more equitable, just, and accessible futures.