i + D - January/February 2021 - 41

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i+D: Design futurist sounds like an officer on Star Trek:
Enterprise. What is it?
Paron: (Laughing) It's a combination of several things. It's looking
at different trends in society, including economics, social norms,
even fashion. But not just trends. Also research in bioscience and
into the neurological aspects of individuals-taking all that and
thinking about how it can affect design. A futurist, for example,
has to be aware of the spectrum of responses to the pandemic.
Some people say, 'Oh, it's all going to go back to normal; I'm not
changing anything.' And that might be a leader of a company
speaking, enforcing that thought across the whole company. Or
another leader saying, 'Everything has changed. We're not doing
anything the same.' You can't pontificate. You have to put the
whole range of responses into consideration.
i+D: Can you give an example?
Paron: Thinking about the future of wellbeing and wellness, you
have to work on spaces where you give people a place to restore
themselves. COVID has added a dimension, with people dealing
with heightened anxieties. Airports, for example, need restorative
spaces, same with any location where there are a lot of people. For
the last 20 years I've been designing for neurodiverse people and
their needs. I thought then, 'Who is going to pay attention to me?'
Now, I feel like everyone has caught up.
i+D: Are more people afraid of the future than welcome it?
Paron: It comes down to personalities. People I work with
who are positive are positive about the future. People who are
half-empty-glass-people are really nervous. But what's grown
lately for all people is uncertainty. That's a big change.
i+D: Do people tell you that you work too hard?
Paron: All the time.
i+D: Do you believe them?
Paron: Sometimes. Because sometimes I do work too hard. But
the most successful people I know are those who have rigor and
diligence. People talk about talent. But talent is only there because
of hard work. You get rusty if you don't keep practicing.

Image: Amanda Mocci

i+D: You're in a lot of meetings. Why do people hate them?
Paron: Most often they take too long. When we go to meetings
at stand-up islands, where people make sure things get done in
15-30 minutes, that works. When you sit and get cozy and ask
how the holidays were and the kids, 20 minutes are gone. I've
been in Zoom roundtables that took 35 minutes for everyone to
be introduced. I take a group of people and have them give their
names and a one-word description of something, like, 'What's the
future of commercial work?' Just one word. It gets everyone into
the meeting right away. I also do a lot of games when people have
to learn something, with prizes and really bad game show music.
It's fun, engaging, and you have to be paying attention.

i

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i+D: (Laughing) You must have seen me.
Paron: That's why anytime I have a one-on-one, we do it
on the phone.
i+D: You've spoken about design empathy. What is that?
Paron: Trying to understand the user you're designing for-what
they'll be experiencing in a space, and what will trigger them.
When my son was little, with no verbal or communication skills,
he would place objects where he'd seen them before. It was
comforting to him. I realized the environment was his language.
For example, something good would happen if a toy car was at the
side of a bed. So we have to be aware of our environments all
the time and look for clues. I worked with a couple of adults with
autism who were high functioning, and I took them to the Mall of
America. On the third floor they told me the mall was vibrating.
Until they told me, I didn't experience the vibrations, but they
were there. As designers, we design for people's good behavior-as
in: They'll be here, and then they'll move over here, and then go
this way. But we haven't planned for bad behavior. What's going to
happen when someone with schizophrenia has a violent reaction,
whether it's in a police station or a psychiatric unit? Design
empathy has to look at that.
i+D: You've credited art, creativity, and design with helping
Devin progress. How has that translated to your work?
Paron: As designers we often forget how art can really change
people. We're ambitious. So many times we're stuck on the
analytical and the return on investment. When you look at a space
that fuels a person, or art that inspires someone, that power is way
more than we take for granted. Look at everyone stuck in their
houses saying, 'I want to make it better. I want to feel better.' Or in
an office, the idea is that if I'm working here, I want to feel better.
People are looking for meaning. They want a space to be nurturing
and positive. Devin, for example, will have a picture and make it
more beautiful by changing the angle, changing perspective, and
changing the interpretation. We have to always think creatively.
i+D: What advice are you most proud of rejecting?
Paron: When Devin was little, I was fighting with an insurance
company over medical coverage. A counselor told me to stop and
put my energies into something else. I ended up working with the
attorney general of Minnesota and suing the insurance company
for not covering autism and children's health issues and disorders.
We changed the law here and on a national level.
i+D: What was your first job?
Paron: From when I was 13 until I started college, I was a nanny
for four little boys. Chaos! It was exhausting trying to keep them
occupied-and not killing each other.
i+D: Lessons learned?
Paron: Patience. Lots and lots of patience.

i+D: Zoom meetings can be brutal.
Paron: Everyone gets exasperated looking at themselves all day
long. It's like staring into a mirror. You're thinking: Does my hair
really look like that? Why am I moving all the time? Oh, no,
I have this weird mannerism with my hand.

i+D - January/February 2021

378_027_i+D_Jan_Feb 2021_v3.indd 41

l

AMBROSE CLANCY
is the editor of the Shelter Island Reporter
and a novelist, nonfiction author, and
journalist. His work has appeared in GQ,
The Washington Post, and Los Angeles Times.

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