Media Archive
A collection of talks, workshops, publications, and media appearances exploring design, ethics, and the relationships between humans, animals, and the shared world around us.
From classrooms to conferences, podcasts to peer-reviewed journals, these works reflect a commitment to reimagining how we design — across species, systems, and stories.
Most of my public work paused in late 2023 as I welcomed my child — and I’m now returning to the stage, bringing new perspectives shaped by this life chapter.
Talks & Guest Lectures
Introducing Animal-Centered Design to Emerging Designers
Guest lectures tailored for design students and early-career creatives. Through storytelling, case studies, and interactive discussion, I introduce the principles of Animal-Centered Design (ACD) and its applications across industries. Participants leave with fresh perspectives on ethics, empathy, and multispecies futures, as well as actionable ways to integrate ACD into their own design practice.
Delivered at:
2023 – Design Seminar 4, BA in Design, Universidad de los Andes, Bogotá
2023 – Advanced Seminar, M.DES in Interaction Design, Technological University Delhi
2022 – Graduate Thesis Seminar, BA in Design, Universidad de los Andes, Bogotá
2021 – Special Topics, MS in Human-Computer Interaction, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta
2021 – Design Seminar 3, BA in Industrial Design, Academy of Art University, San Francisco
2021 – Graduate Thesis Seminar, BA in Design, Universidad de los Andes, Bogotá
Animal-Centered Design – I’d Never Thought About It, But …
Talks for curious, non-specialist audiences, sparking fresh perspectives on the relationships between humans and animals.
Using accessible stories, surprising facts, and thought-provoking examples, I invite participants to view the world through a multispecies lens — leaving them with a sense of awe, inspiration, and renewed curiosity about the everyday lives we share with other species.
Delivered at:
2024 – Science Cafe, Bogotá
2020 – Nerd Nite, London
Ethics in Animal-Centered Design for Technology & AI
Sessions for computer science, AI, and technology professionals exploring the ethical dimensions of designing with animals in mind.
I unpack how emerging tools — from machine learning to sensor technologies — are shaping our understanding of other species, and why omitting the animal’s perspective risks producing biased data and flawed insights. Participants leave with actionable frameworks for integrating multispecies ethics into their research and development.
Delivered at:
2025 – Earth Species Project, Monthly Discord Community Deep Dive
2019 – Tech(K)Now Conference, London
Workshops & Interactive Labs
Equipping teams and practitioners to design from a broader perspective, with ethics, care, and creativity at the core.
These participatory workshops use Animal-Centered Design (ACD) to foster collaboration, deepen practice, and connect people across disciplines.
From workplace sessions that bring colleagues together, to hands-on intensives for animal welfare professionals, each experience is tailored to spark reflection, build shared language, and empower participants to shape more ethical, inclusive, and connected futures.
Selected workshops include:
2023 – Empathy Through Animal Centered Design, Climate Focus & Ganso, Villavicencio, Colombia
2019 – Animal Centered Design for Human Behavior Change, as part of the From Principle to Practice workshop event with EASE (Exeter Anthrozoology as Symbiotic Ethics) at the University of Exeter, UK
Podcasts
Animal-Centered Design
2023 – Revolución by Lakuna Studio
2021 – Computing Crossroads: Highlighting Career Diversity in Computing
2021 – Mella Petcare
2020 – Forms of Intelligence #08 – The Knowle West Media Center
Autonomous Motherhood
2025 - Malabaristas
2025 - 2024 – Maternidades Re-Imaginadas
2024 - Single Greatest ChoiceEquipping teams and practitioners to design from a broader perspective, with ethics, care, and creativity at the core.
Research & Publications
My research explores the intersection of design, ethics, and the lived experiences of non-human users - with a particular focus on animal-technology interactions. Each publication includes a plain-language summary alongside the original research title and citation, with many also presented at international conferences.Animal-Centered Design
“An Ethics Toolkit to Support Animal-Centered Research and Design.”
Luisa Ruge & Clara Mancini
Frontiers in Veterinary Science, Volume 9, 2022.
🔗 Access publication
Research involving animals requires more than following established ethical guidelines — it demands the ability to respond thoughtfully to unanticipated, ethically complex situations. In the emerging field of Animal-Computer Interaction (ACI), this challenge is especially relevant. This paper presents an Ethics Toolkit developed during a project designing dog-friendly controls for MADs. Drawing inspiration from ethics approaches used when working with vulnerable human populations, the toolkit consists of three templates that help researchers articulate their ethical baselines, define the ethos of a project, and create guiding statements for decision-making.
Its use encouraged active reflection and consistent ethical practice within the team, ensuring that dogs, trainers, and human partners were treated in accordance with clearly defined values. Beyond ACI, the toolkit has potential application for any discipline involving animals, providing a practical means to maintain ethical integrity in dynamic and unpredictable research contexts.
“Designing for the Animal User: Smart Controls for Mobility Assistance Dogs”
Luisa Ruge
PhD thesis The Open University, 2021.
🔗 Access publicationMobility Assistance Dogs (MADs) perform a wide range of tasks using devices and controls that are often designed for humans rather than canine users. This research investigated how these tools could be redesigned to better meet the needs of MADs. Over five phases and six empirical studies, researchers observed MADs interacting with both existing and prototype smart controls, gathering data from the dogs themselves, their trainers, and human partners.
The work resulted in several contributions: a tail wagging ethogram for assessing affective responses to technology; the Method for Evaluating Animal Usability (MEAU); a way to measure canine confidence during interaction; an Ethical Toolkit for guiding research practice; an animal-centred design framework; and a set of smart controls proven to improve canine user experience. Together, these outputs offer a robust foundation for designing more intuitive, comfortable, and effective tools for working dogs.
“Understanding Dogs’ Engagement with Interactive Games: Interaction, Style, Behaviour and Personality”
Elizabeth Cox, Clara Mancini & Luisa Ruge
ACI '20: Proceedings of the Seventh International Conference on Animal-Computer Interaction, 2020.
🔗 Access publication
As interactive technology for pets becomes more common, researchers are beginning to study how dogs respond to playful, technology-enabled experiences. This study involved 60 dogs, each of whose personality was assessed using a standard test before they engaged with a novel physical game. Their interactions were observed in detail to identify patterns in behaviour and play style.
Results revealed that dogs display distinct interaction styles that often correlate with specific personality traits. These findings suggest that games could be designed or adapted to align with individual dogs’ natural preferences, potentially improving engagement, enjoyment, and the effectiveness of play as enrichment.
Presented at the ACM Conference on Animal-Computer Interaction, 2020
“A Method for Evaluating Animal Usability (MEAU).”
Luisa Ruge & Clara Mancini
ACI '19: Proceedings of the Sixth International Conference on Animal-Computer Interaction Article No.: 14, Pages 1 - 12, 2019.
🔗 Access publication
Measuring user experience (UX) in technology is well established for human users, but assessing usability for animals requires new approaches. The Method for Evaluating Animal Usability (MEAU) was developed to address two main challenges: the differences in cognitive, physical, and sensory capabilities between human evaluators and animal users, and the human-centred bias of most existing usability methods. Tailored for Mobility Assistance Dogs, MEAU uses structured behavioural observation to evaluate how effectively and comfortably animals can interact with devices.
A case study comparing different access controls demonstrated MEAU’s value in identifying canine-friendly designs. This method provides ACI researchers with a consistent, repeatable approach for ensuring that technologies match the abilities and needs of animal users, ultimately leading to better functionality and comfort for working dogs.Presented at the ACM Conference on Animal-Computer Interaction, 2019
“User Centered Design Approaches to Measuring Canine Behavior: Tail Wagging as a Measure of UserEexperience.”
Luisa Ruge, Elizabeth Cox, Clara Mancini & Rachael Luck
ACI '18: Proceedings of the Fifth International Conference on Animal-Computer Interaction Article No.: 1, Pages 1 - 1, 2018.
🔗 Access publication
Accurately assessing how animals experience technology is difficult without intrusive methods, and behaviour varies widely between individuals. This study explored tail wagging — a natural, communicative behaviour — as a non-invasive indicator of canine user experience. Observational analysis of three MADs revealed that the way a dog wags its tail correlates with both emotional engagement and personality traits.
Using a tail wagging ethogram, researchers were able to establish a behavioural baseline for evaluating canine interactions with technology during task training. This approach offers a humane, repeatable, and scientifically grounded way to assess animal-centred design, allowing for better alignment between technology design and dogs’ emotional and behavioural responses.Presented at the ACM Conference on Animal-Computer Interaction, 2018
“Requirements Engineering Elicitation for Mobility Assistance Dogs: Meeting Canine User Needs Through Technology Enabled Interpretation.”
Luisa Ruge, Clara Mancini & Rachael Luck
26th International Conference on Requirements Engineering Foundation for Software Quality workshops. , 2018.
🔗 Access publication
Requirements engineering — the process of identifying and documenting user needs — typically relies on verbal communication, making it inaccessible for non-verbal stakeholders such as MADs. A pilot study at a MAD training facility found that trainers rely heavily on their own interpretations when assessing canine needs.
This paper argues for technology-enabled methods, informed by Animal-Computer Interaction, that can help capture more accurate, objective insights into canine behaviour and preferences. Such tools could reduce reliance on human interpretation, supporting the design of devices and systems that better serve working dogs and improve their wellbeing and performance.Presented at the REFSQ workshops 2018
“Dog-Smart Homes: Portable Controls for Mobility Assistance Dogs.”
Luisa Ruge
ACI '17: Proceedings of the Fourth International Conference on Animal-Computer Interaction Article No.: 19, Pages 1 - 6, 2017.
🔗 Access publication
The Dog-Smart Homes project examines how portable, canine-optimised controls could enhance both performance and wellbeing in human–dog mobility assistance partnerships. The research takes into account dogs’ sensory, cognitive, and physical characteristics, aiming to reimagine everyday objects so they are more accessible to canine users.
The proposed Canine-Centred Design Framework offers a structured way to establish requirements for production-ready portable interfaces, ensuring that dogs are recognised as legitimate stakeholders in the design process. By rethinking the relationship between function and design, this work aims to improve daily interactions between dogs and their environments.Presented at the ACM Conference on Animal-Computer Interaction, 2017
“Human Centered Design as a Framework for Successful Canine Treatment Plan Implementation.”
Luisa Ruge
International Association of Animal Behavior Consultants Foundation Journal, 2016.
🔗 Access publicationBehavior consultants often face challenges when implementing canine treatment plans, as success depends on how well human clients can integrate recommendations into their daily lives. This paper explores how human-centred design and design thinking methodologies can improve implementation rates by taking into account each client’s unique environment, circumstances, and needs.
By applying these principles, consultants can create treatment plans that are both scientifically sound and practically achievable. This collaborative approach fosters better communication between consultant and client, increasing the likelihood of long-term behavioural success for the dog.
“MIKUY: Unit for Food Preparation in Space.”
Luisa Ruge
International Conference on Enviornmental Systems, SAE International, 2014.
🔗 Access publication
MIKUY is a concept for a space food preparation unit developed over a 15-week design project. Intended for the International Space Station, it fits within a standard ISPR rack and combines a workstation with storage, enabling astronauts to prepare meals and create new recipes in microgravity. The design considers both functional constraints and the psychological value of shared meals, aiming to strengthen crew cohesion and wellbeing on long-duration missions.
The project takes a holistic approach to mealtime in space, integrating cooking, recipe creation, and social interaction into a single environment. By rethinking the role of food in space life, Mikuy demonstrates how design can contribute to both the practical and emotional needs of astronauts.