Zion Michael

Zion Michael

Biography

Zion Michael is a designer, transdisciplinary researcher and engineer working at the nexus of climate, ecology, and social systems. She is currently pursuing a BS in MechanicalEngineering at Florida International University. The goal of her research is to gain a systems-level understanding of how technological, material, ecological, and social infrastructures interact—and to use that understanding to develop robust design and engineering solutions that address critical issues in climate such as disaster preparedness, waste production and biodiversity loss. Past work includes explorations in cellulose biocomposite design (UPenn,FIU), chemical analysis of water disinfection byproducts (MIT), risk adaptive design across scales (MIT) and the behavioral ecology of subterranean termites (UF). Outside the lab, Zion enjoys building creative projects, liming around Antigua and blasting music way too loud.

Abstract

Composite Ecologies: Mapping Relational Dynamics in Complex Stakeholder Systems

Coral reefs are vital ecosystems under severe threat from climate change, pollution, and disease. While developments from synthetic biology like coral probiotics mitigate these impacts, technical innovations alone are insufficient for designing and implementing effective intervention strategies. Stakeholders, including local community groups, conservation scientists, government officials, and policymakers, all must be engaged and effectively organized to not only develop and deploy technical innovations, but also to design and implement other myriad approaches to coral conservation and regeneration. New design tools are needed to make relational dynamics visible, legible, and actionable. We present here a new‘Relational Design Language’: a visual system that renders the often-invisible architecture of power, values, and interdependence within conservation contexts. Informed by social science and systems mapping, this approach enables organizers and community leaders to see the dynamics of their ecosystems, identify leverage points, and act with greater clarity and autonomy. Visual tools are essential not only for representing complexity, but for enabling organizers to form mental models that support decision-making, conflict resolution, and collective strategy. As design theorists and systems thinkers have long argued, the ability to see a system is often a precondition for transforming it.