C. Zaga PhD (Cristina)

Dr. ir. Cristina is an assistant professor of Human-Centred Design group and DesignLab at the University of Twente.

Cristina holds a Ph.D. (cum laude) in Computer Science and a double MSc (cum laude) in Cognitive Science and Human-Media interaction. She carried out her doctoral thesis on "robothings" with Prof. Vanessa Evers (Human-Media Interaction group, University of Twente) and with Prof. Malte Jung (Robots in Groups Lab (Cornell University, USA).

With colleagues at DesignLab of the University of Twente, she co-develops Responsible Futuring, a transdisciplinary approach to tackle societal challenges with academic and non-academic communities. To this end, Cristina merges critical theories, speculative and post-human/more-than-human design, creating methods and tools to make thoughts, ideas, and reflexivity from concrete to tangible through visual scenarios and prototypes and, in so doing, challenging status-quo.

Cristina also leads the Social Justice and AI networks, a Dutch network of academics, students, and activists committed to mitigating and overcoming the dehumanizing and oppressive effects of AI and embodied AI technology and fostering social and environmental justice.

Her award-winning work has received many accolades, including the NWO Science Prince for DEI initiatives (2022), the Dutch High Education Award (2022), and the Google Women Techmaker Award and scholarship (2018). She is regularly invited as a speaker at events (e.g., TEDx), symposia, and international conferences. Cristina regularly publishes papers in top-tier conference venues (CHI conference, HRI conference, DIS, CSCW conference) and is heavily involved in academic service for ACM SIGCHI and Design Research Society.

Faculty of Engineering Technology (ET), Human Centered Design (HCD)

Cristina's research is committed to developing methods, tools, and technology that support societal transitions towards futures of justice, care, and solidarity between communities, nature, and artificial agents. Cristina focuses on developing methodology inspired by design research that can support societal transitions through transdisciplinarity, considered a value-driven, pluralistic approach that promotes emergent embodied social learning between communities to tackle societal challenges and bring out social change. With colleagues at DesignLab of the University of Twente, she co-develops Responsible Futuring, a transdisciplinary approach to tackle societal challenges with academic and non-academic communities. To this end, Cristina merges critical theories, speculative and post-human/more-than-human design, creating methods and tools to make thoughts, ideas, and reflexivity from concrete to tangible through visual scenarios and prototypes and, in so doing, challenging status-quo. Her research's main fields of application are societal challenges related (health)care and technology, the future of work in times of automation and digitalization, health-transitions and technology.

Zaga, C., Lupetti, M. L., Forster, D., Murray-Rust, D., Prendergast, M., & Abbink, D. A. (2024). First International Workshop on Worker-Robot Relationships: Exploring Transdisciplinarity for the Future of Work with Robots. In HRI '24: Companion of the 2024 ACM/IEEE International Conference on Human-Robot Interaction (pp. 1367-1369). ACM Press. https://doi.org/10.1145/3610978.3638156

Matos-Castaño, J. , Zaga, C. , Visscher, K., Baibarac-Duignan, C., Wildevuur, S. , & van der Voort, M. (2023). A Responsible Futuring Approach to Create Spaces of Transdisciplinary Co-Speculation. Journal of Futures Studies. Advance online publication. https://jfsdigital.org/a-responsible-futuring-approach-to-create-spaces-of-transdisciplinary-co-speculation/

Toso, F. , Zaga, C. , den Haan, R.-J. , & Aizenberg, E. (Accepted/In press). Do Not Believe the Hype: Critically discussing the role and pedagogical implication of generative AI in Human-Centred and Transdisciplinary Design Education. In D. Jones, N. Borekci, V. Clemente, J. Corazzo, N. Lotz, L. Merete Nielsen, & L.-A. Noel (Eds.), The 7th International Conference for Design Education Researchers https://doi.org/10.21606/drslxd.2023.035

Zaga, C., Lupetti, M. L., Cila, N., Lee, M., Huisman, G. , Fosch Villaronga, E., & Arzberger, A. (2023). Towards Transdisciplinary and Futuring Tools for DEI and Social Justice in HRI. In DEI HRI Workshop - ACM/IEEE HRI Conference (pp. 1). ACM SigCHI.

Lupetti, M. L. , Zaga, C., Cila, N., Luria, M., Hoggenmuller, M., & Jung, M. F. (2022). 2^ndInternational Workshop on Designerly HRI Knowledge: Reflecting on HRI practices through Annotated Portfolios of Robotic Artefacts. In 2022 17th ACM/IEEE International Conference on Human-Robot Interaction (HRI) (pp. 1269-1271). (ACM/IEEE International Conference on Human-Robot Interaction; Vol. 2022-March). IEEE. https://doi.org/10.1109/HRI53351.2022.9889569

Mohan, M., Neerincx, A. , Zaga, C., & Fitter, N. T. (2022). Workshop YOUR study design! Participatory critique and refinement of participants' studies. In 2022 17th ACM/IEEE International Conference on Human-Robot Interaction (HRI) (pp. 1281-1283). (ACM/IEEE International Conference on Human-Robot Interaction; Vol. 2022-March). IEEE. https://doi.org/10.1109/HRI53351.2022.9889396

Mandemaker, L. , & Zaga, C. (2022). Motherhood: Monuments for future: artificial wombs and our reproductive futures. University of Twente. https://doi.org/10.3990/1.9789036554893

La Fors, K. , & Zaga, C. (2022). Children’s meaningful participation in AI: Co-design scenarios with culturally diverse children toward intercultural, children-centric AI.

Zaga, C., & Lupetti, M. L. (Eds.) (2022). Diversity Equity and Inclusion in Embodied AI: Reflecting on and Re-imagining our Future with Embodied AI . 4TU.Federation. https://doi.org/10.3990/1.9789036553599

Lee, M., Noortman, R. , Zaga, C., Starke, A. , Huisman, G., & Andersen, K. (2021). Conversational futures: Emancipating conversational interactions for futures worth wanting. In CHI 2021 - Proceedings of the 2021 CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems: Making Waves, Combining Strengths Article 298 Association for Computing Machinery. https://doi.org/10.1145/3411764.3445244

Lupetti, M. L. , Zaga, C., & Cila, N. (2021). Designerly ways of knowing in HRI: Broadening the scope of design-oriented HRI through the concept of intermediate-level knowledge. In HRI 2021 - Proceedings of the 2021 ACM/IEEE International Conference on Human-Robot Interaction (pp. 389-398). Article 3444668 (ACM/IEEE International Conference on Human-Robot Interaction). IEEE. https://doi.org/10.1145/3434073.3444668

Cila, N. , Zaga, C., & Lupetti, M. L. (2021). Learning from robotic artefacts: A quest for strong concepts in Human-Robot Interaction. In DIS 2021 - Proceedings of the 2021 ACM Designing Interactive Systems Conference: Nowhere and Everywhere (pp. 1356-1365). Association for Computing Machinery. https://doi.org/10.1145/3461778.3462095

Cheon, E. J. , Zaga, C., Lee, H. R., Lupetti, M. L., Dombrowski, L., & Jung, M. F. (2021). Human-Machine Partnerships in the Future of Work: Exploring the Role of Emerging Technologies in Future Workplaces. In CSCW 2021 - Conference Companion Publication of the 2021 Computer Supported Cooperative Work and Social Computing (pp. 323-326). Association for Computing Machinery. https://doi.org/10.1145/3462204.3481726

Lee, M., De Castro Leal, D., Krüger, M., Strohmayer, A. , & Zaga, C. (2021). Activated: Decentering activism in and with academia. In CSCW 2021 - Conference Companion Publication of the 2021 Computer Supported Cooperative Work and Social Computing (pp. 343-346). Association for Computing Machinery. https://doi.org/10.1145/3462204.3481723

Zaga, C. (2021). The Design of Robothings: Non-Anthropomorphic and Non-Verbal Robots to Promote Children’s Collaboration Through Play. [PhD Thesis - Research UT, graduation UT, University of Twente]. University of Twente. https://doi.org/10.3990/1.9789036551380

Vroon, J., Kortuem, G. , Zaga, C., Rozendaal, M., Lupetti, M. L., & Van Beek, E. (2020). Expressive/Sensitive: Full day workshop at DIS 2020. In DIS 2020 Companion - Companion Publication of the 2020 ACM Designing Interactive Systems Conference (pp. 421-424). Association for Computing Machinery. https://doi.org/10.1145/3393914.3395919

Eggink, W. , Ozkaramanli, D. , Zaga, C. , & Liberati, N. (2020). Setting the Stage for Responsible Design. In S. Moes, M. Cheung, & R. Cain (Eds.), Proceedings of DRS 2020: Volume 2: Synergy (pp. 713-730). Design Research Society. https://doi.org/10.21606/drs.2020.116

Zaga, C. (2019). Designing the future of education: From tutor robots to intelligent playthings. Tijdschrift voor human factors, 44(3), 5. https://www.humanfactors.nl/tijdschrift/download/nummer-3-oktober-2019/190

Lee, H. R., Cheon, E. , De Graaf, M., Alves-Oliveira, P. , Zaga, C., & Young, J. (2019). Robots for Social Good: Exploring Critical Design for HRI. In 14th ACM/IEEE International Conference on Human-Robot Interaction (HRI) (pp. 681-682). Article 8673130 IEEE. https://doi.org/10.1109/HRI.2019.8673130

Lee, W. Y., Hou, Y. T. Y. , Zaga, C., & Jung, M. (2019). Design for Serendipitous Interaction: BubbleBot - Bringing People Together with Bubbles. In 14th ACM/IEEE International Conference on Human-Robot Interaction (HRI) (pp. 759-760). Article 8673265 IEEE. https://doi.org/10.1109/HRI.2019.8673265

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