What can our relationships to home, body, and environment teach us about becoming conscious creators of our lives? In this episode of Design Deep Dive, design psychologist Dr. Suzan Ahmed dives in with Desirée Gonzalez, a Social Psychologist and Designer specialized in Community, Liberation, Indigenous, and Ecological Psychologies, to discuss the importance of creating restorative environments that promote liberation and social justice, as well as the role of design psychology in fostering a sense of groundedness and embodiment – inside and out.

Desirée is a Social, Economic, and Environmental Design Accredited Professional, a Trauma-Informed Design Practitioner, and a Design Fellow at both the Centre for Conscious Design (the CCD), as well as Design Corps where she is also a Project Manager in Public Interest Design working with Indigenous Architects and Designers.

Desirée shares her unique journey as a designer and social psychologist, as she reflects on her personal connection to place and the significance of viewing the body as a sanctuary and symbol of the unconscious. The conversation explores the empowerment that comes from conscious creation and the responsibility to shape a future that honors both individual and collective identities.

In this episode:

• The importance of integrating restorative practices into the built environment.
• The symbolism of home, the unconscious, and the body through the lens of depth psychology.
• Empowerment in design as particularly significant for women of color.
• Conscious creation as a process of also dismantling harmful belief systems.

Connect with Desirée:

Centre for Conscious Design

Reimagining Worlds Without Whiteness Podcast

Indigenous Public Interest Design Institute

Hausense Consultancy

Connect with Dr. Za:

Instagram: ⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/designwithdr.za/⁠⁠

Book a Design Psychology Consult Call

Chapters

00:00 Introduction to Design and Psychology

03:14 Desirée's Journey into Design

06:07 The Importance of Design Psychology

09:39 Conscious Creation and Personal Reflection

12:38 The Body as Home and Sanctuary

15:41 Empowerment through Design and Identity

18:32 Future of Design Psychology

21:40 Legacy and Honoring the Past

A heartfelt thank you to listeners for a great first season of Design Deep Dive!

In this episode, I discuss what's ahead for the podcast, as well as announcing a brief pause before launching Season 2. Be sure to catch up on Season 1 episodes in the meantime, and stay tuned for more engaging, inspiring conversations!

Chapters

00:00 Introduction to Design Deep Dive

01:12 Understanding Design Psychology

02:36 Looking Ahead to Season Two

Connect with Dr. Za:

Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/designwithdr.za/⁠⁠⁠

Book a Design Psychology Consult Call: ⁠⁠⁠https://designwithdrza.com/place

Can our past experiences of place influence our present relationship to home? In this episode of Design Deep Dive, I offer a 15-minute guided visualization exercise to connect with a favorite place in childhood or another period of your life.

Through engaging in this reflective practice, you can reveal important aspects of home or place that can support you at your current stage of life. Dive into the magic of your imagination and lived experiences with this simple, yet powerful meditation to clarify your relationship to place.

In this episode:

• Guided meditation to connect with a favorite past place
• Suggested practices for integrating these insights into your understanding of relationship to place
• The reality of home carrying different emotional meanings for different people
• The potential for past memories of place to facilitate action towards aligning with a supportive home space

Chapters

00:00 Exploring Design Psychology and Its Importance

04:14 Guided Meditation: Journey to Your Favorite Place

19:41 Reflecting on Your Experience and Next Steps

Connect with Dr. Za:

Instagram: ⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/designwithdr.za/⁠⁠

Book a Design Psychology Consult Call: ⁠⁠https://designwithdrza.com/place

How do we create spaces that reflect our authentic selves, especially during periods of transition in life? In this episode of Design Deep Dive, I chat with June Reese, a creative strategist, experience architect, and designer, about navigating our emotional connections to place, authenticity, and designing spaces that feel true to who we are.

June shares her unique journey as a designer and the process of creating her NAACP-nominated book Iconic Home, celebrating Black designers and providing accessible ways to engage with interior design. We also discuss June’s experience of engaging in the design psychology process, the importance of mentorship and community in the design industry, her evolving professional identity, and the power of creating a home that supports your current phase of life.

In this episode:

• Navigating working with design clients and supporting their emotional needs
• Embracing one's unique journey and allowing your home to reflect that
• The importance of being true to yourself in making design choices
• The potential for collaboration between psychologists and designers to enhance our understanding of how we relate to spaces

Connect with June:

Website: ⁠⁠https://junereese.com⁠⁠

Instagram: ⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/thejunereese__⁠⁠

Book: Iconic Home

House of June Interiors

Black Interior Designers, Inc.

Connect with Dr. Za:

Instagram: ⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/designwithdr.za/⁠⁠

Book a Design Psychology Consult Call: ⁠⁠https://suzan-ahmed.clientsecure.me

How does our personality influence the design choices we make? In this episode of Design Deep Dive, I chat with Sophia Trinh, an artist based in Seattle, WA, about personality, social-emotional needs, and designing spaces that reflect and support our authentic selves.

Sophia shares her journey of self-discovery through her art and engaging in the design psychology process. We discuss navigating cultural influences in creating a comfortable home, the importance of communicating our needs when sharing space with others, the power of space to enhance creativity, and why understanding one's personality is essential for creating a home that truly supports us.

In this episode:

• The value of personality assessment in creating spaces that reflect identity and emotional needs
• How to navigate different social and other personality needs in shared spaces
• The importance of allowing our environments to evolve as we do

• The role of design psychology in helping us align our internal world with our external environment

Connect with Sophia:

Website: ⁠https://sophiatrinh.com⁠

Instagram: ⁠https://www.instagram.com/philosophiatrinh⁠

Connect with Dr. Za:

Instagram: ⁠https://www.instagram.com/designwithdr.za/⁠

Book a Design Psychology Consult Call: ⁠https://suzan-ahmed.clientsecure.me

How do we navigate our identity and healing journeys in a new place? How can we relate to our spaces as sacred tools for alchemy and growth? In this episode of Design Deep Dive, I chat with Nicky Macaluso, a somatic therapist and multidimensional healer, to explore the deeper connections between space, identity, privilege, and healing.

Nicky shares his relocation journey from New York to Hawai’i, how living in a new place has impacted his personal and professional work, navigating privilege and sacredness as he relates to this new environment, and what home means for him.

Content Warning: Brief mention of suicide in guest's bio at beginning of episode (1:48-1:50)

In this episode:

• The role of the environment in understanding our identity and other relationships
• How new environments can create an opportunity for deep healing and transformation
• The importance of acknowledging privilege in relation to new cultural spaces
• The power of design psychology to help us explore our inner and outer environments

Connect with Nicky:

Website: ⁠https://resilientrelief.com

Email: namacaluso@gmail.com

Instagram: ⁠https://www.instagram.com/nicky.mac.somatics

Conversation with Ghylian Bell

Connect with Dr. Za:

Instagram: ⁠https://www.instagram.com/designwithdr.za/⁠

Book a Design Psychology Consult Call: ⁠https://suzan-ahmed.clientsecure.me

When we think of interior design, we often focus on aesthetics—but what about the psychological needs that shape how a space truly feels? In this episode of Design Deep Dive, I chat with Dr. Sarah Seung-McFarland, a licensed psychologist specializing in design and fashion psychology, to explore the deeper connections between space, identity, and well-being.

Dr. Sarah shares her journey from counseling psychology to design psychology, how she integrates environmental autobiographies into her interior design work, and why understanding emotional connections to space is essential for creating a home that truly supports us.

In this episode:

• The role of design psychology in creating spaces that reflect identity and emotional needs
• How environmental autobiographies help uncover past, present, and future relationships to place
• Why a home’s emotional impact is just as important as its visual appeal
• The future of design psychology and the importance of interdisciplinary collaboration

Connect with Dr. Sara:

Website: https://trulery.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/trulery_/

Connect with Dr. Za:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/designwithdr.za/

Book a Design Psychology Consult Call: https://suzan-ahmed.clientsecure.me

How do our spaces shape our emotions, behaviors, and well-being? In this episode of Design Deep Dive, Dr. Za welcomes Dr. Klarissa Castro, founder of Design Shrink Studios, to explore the emerging field of design psychology.

Dr. Castro blends her background as a clinical therapist with her passion for interior design, helping individuals create spaces that reflect their identity, history, and emotional needs. Through her work in residential and commercial design, she applies a trauma-informed approach to ensure that spaces are not only aesthetically pleasing but also psychologically supportive.In this episode:

• How design psychology integrates therapy and interior design
• The importance of a trauma-informed approach when creating spaces
• How our past environments shape our sense of home
• The process of spatial case conceptualization to design emotionally supportive spaces
• Why collaboration between designers and psychologists is essential for holistic design

Connect with Dr. Castro:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/designshrink_studios/

Website: https://www.designshrinkstudios.com/

Connect with Dr. Za:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/designwithdr.za/

Book a Design Psychology Consult Call: https://suzan-ahmed.clientsecure.me