SFSU School of Design Students Take Climate Innovation to Global Stage

The SFSU team that earned the BDC spot did so through a semester-long effort in Associate Professor Fernando Felicio dos Santos de Carvalho’s “Product Design II” class, dedicated to developing new, sustainable ways to solve a problem on California’s North Coast tinted by climate-change: overpopulated sea urchins that are preying on the bull kelp and destroying the ecosystem.

Funding from the supporters allowed for travel arrangements, fieldtrips, and other events that provided critical learning opportunities for the team, chosen from among eight SFSU competing teams by a juried panel to travel to New York for the competition.

The MillerKnoll Foundation focuses on engaging young people through art and design, promoting equity, and building a sustainable future. These priorities reflect the organization’s deeply held belief in the power of design to transform lives and create lasting impact.

Team Urbon students Huan Chang, Luke Seeley, Xin Zhang, and Elliot Ostergaard showed phenomenal engagement and effort in the weeks leading up to the trip, working on refinements and improvements stemming from the jury panel's comments, producing posters, models, videos, and working on their final live presentation that focused on supporting the recovery of Northern California’s bull kelp forests. The team collaborated on the project with The Nature Conservancy, the Noyo Center for Marin Science, and Above/Below, bringing real-world relevance to the endeavor.

While in New York, the students were professional, involved, effective, and enthusiastic as they delivered stellar presentations, representing SFSU with pride on an international stage, said Carvalho, who teaches courses in SFSU’s School of Design within the College of Liberal and Creative Arts.

“The awards, grants, and donations we received were fundamental in a number of complementary ways,” said Carvalho. “For example, covering our registration fee to participate in the competition and the costs associated with fieldwork, which entailed taking 33 students and two faculty to site visits in Mendocino and Fort Bragg, including the Kelp Restoration site, the Noyo Center for Marine Science, and the Mendocino Art Center.

“The awards, grants, and donations we received were fundamental.” 
—Associate Professor Fernando Felicio dos Santos de Carvalho

“Importantly, the funds also made it possible for us to pay for transportation and accommodation of four students and two faculty attending the Biodesign Challenge competition in New York this past summer.”

Carvalho was also quick to call attention to lecturer Josie Iselin, referring to her as a fundamental piece of all the effort who has been with him on this journey to the BDC since before the spring semester.

“Josie was the one making the connection with the Nature Conservancy in order to provide the class program with a focused topic,” Carvalho said. “She was also instrumental in facilitating the field trip activities, and supporting our students in New York City with me. I wish to acknowledge her invaluable, critical contributions.”

SFSU’s team included students who had never been to New York and had never participated in an international design event such as the Biodesign Challenge that gathered more than 40 teams from across the globe.