Wix and It’s Nice That team up for an event all about creativity and good causes

It’s Nice That will be touching down in New York next month! After an inspiring and insightful event in January centred on the way designers are making use of emerging technologies and new digital tools, we’ve teamed up with website-building platform Wix once again for a second event in the Big Apple.

This time we’re taking an in-depth look at creativity for good and will be joined by four speakers who are all using their brilliant creative minds to promote social, environmental and ethical causes. Join us on Thursday 16 May at the Wix Playground space in Chelsea for an evening packed with great creative work and lively discussion.

Part of the Wix Playground Presents series, the evening will be hosted by It’s Nice That and will feature talks from some of the city’s leading creatives: Gail Anderson, Rod Stanley, Hana Tanimura and Shaina Garfield (you’ll find more information on all these guest speakers below). Each of them is using their creativity to further good causes, whether that be designing products for people with disabilities or championing the role of activism in society or taking design to the masses. Before and after the talks, all the speakers (as well as the It’s Nice That team) will be sticking around, so you’ll have a chance to meet them over a beer. Read on to learn more about the speakers and what they’ll be talking about, or click on the link below to get hold of your free ticket.

Hana Tanimura

Hana is a designer at Google Creative Lab in New York, where she designs innovative experiences in both the physical and digital worlds. Her work has won D&AD pencils, Lovies, FWAs, Webbys and a Grand Prix at Cannes. She is a strong advocate for the pursuit of a more open, more inclusive playing field in the creative industries and beyond, and aims always to make things that have a real purpose. She will be joining us to talk about her project Notable Women, an AR experiment that lets anyone see 100 historic American women, where they’ve historically been left out: on US currency bills. Plus, she’ll be revealing a new project that’s coming fresh out of the Google Creative Lab.

Gail Anderson

A designer, writer and educator, Gail is the creative director at Visual Arts Press at the School of Visual Arts, where she has taught for over 25 years. Anderson is incoming chair of the BFA Advertising and BFA Design departments at the college and is a partner at Anderson Newton Design. The recipient of the Cooper Hewitt National Design Award for Lifetime Achievement as well as an AIGA Medalist, she is co-author (along with Steven Heller) of 16 books on design, typography and illustration, and her work is in the collections of the Library of Congress and the Milton Glaser Design Archives at the School of Visual Arts. She will be talking about how her work in education across various age groups from high school up encourages the next generation to create socially responsible design.

Roderick Stanley

Roderick Stanley was editor of influential British fashion and culture magazine Dazed & Confused for seven years (2005–12), has written for a variety of other magazines and newspapers, and two years ago launched Good Trouble, an annual broadsheet newspaper about the intersection of arts and culture with protest and activism. Designed by Richard Turley, the first issue won a D&AD award in 2017 and the second issue won Magazine of the Year at the 2018 Stack Awards. Roderick will be joining us on the 16 May to discuss the reasons behind his decision to launch Good Trouble in 2016, and to give the audience a sneak peek at what he’s planning for the hotly anticipated third issue.

Shaina Garfield

Shaina is a designer, researcher and advocator. In her early twenties, she experienced being disabled after being diagnosed with a chronic illness; this gave her a unique perspective and a greater sense of empathy for not only her community but for all minority groups. Shaina holds an industrial design and sustainability degree from Pratt Institute, and has exhibited and spoken around the world including at South Africa’s Design Indaba, Dutch Design Week, Dubai Design Week, and The Cooper Hewitt Smithsonian Design Museum. Her talk at the Wix Playground will focus on two projects: Leaves, a coffin made from biodegradable materials that mean it’s more sustainable than traditional burial methods; and Spry, a colourful, ergonomic walking stick for people with disabilities.