Faculty

Pinar Guvenc is a National Design Award winner and a recognized leader in inclusive innovation. As Partner at SOUR, a global design innovation studio addressing social and urban challenges, she leads participatory research and design for Fortune 500 clients and local governments worldwide. Through her academic roles at Columbia University, Parsons School of Design and the School of Visual Arts, she educates on design innovation, ethical design leadership and co-design methodology, and has led industry collaboration studios with partners including Microsoft, Amazon One Medical, and Google. Pinar also contributes to the broader design and innovation ecosystem as a board member of the MIT-originated nonprofit Open Style Lab and as an advisor to New York City's maker economy through the Pratt Center for Community Development.

Pinar is a frequent speaker at international conferences and the host of What's Wrong With: The Podcast, a discussion series that brings together progress-makers from around the world to examine the root causes of the problems we see today and imagine solutions for tomorrow.

Prior to SOUR, Pinar co-founded several ventures, guiding them from incubation to growth and earning international recognition and funding from innovation centers and accelerators such as Plug and Play and Climate-KIC.

Pinar holds an M.S. in Economics and Finance from Southern Illinois University and a B.Sc. in Industrial Engineering from Bilkent University.