Profile
Oli joined Shift in 2022 to lead on strategic and participatory design. His work combines participatory, research and design practices to tackle systemic challenges through community-led innovations. This involves facilitating research and design activities carried out with and by the communities that are impacted.
Oli’s experience has centred on shifting power and agency over the design of public spaces, services and policy to the communities they intend to serve. This has included leading democratic innovation research in Nesta where he was exploring how institutions can utilise new forms of participation and deliberation to drive public decision-making. Prior to that, Oli was a strategic design lead in the Arup Studio where his work focused on amplifying the voices of communities in the design of the built environment.
Outside of work, you can find Oli in his local community-owned pub, cooking cooperative grown veg or any other people-powered pastime!
oli.whittington@shiftdesign.org