Prof. Avani Chaturvedi

Prof. Avani Chaturvedi is an Academic Specialist FLAME University. She holds a Master of Design (MDes) in Design Research & Strategy from the Institute of Design, Chicago. She also holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Accessory Design from the National Institute of Fashion Technology, Bangalore.

Prof. Avani Chaturvedi’s practice spans food systems, financial inclusion, and rural development across India and the United States prior to and alongside her academic journey. She has collaborated with various notable organizations, including the City of Chicago, Food for Climate League, and SELCO Foundation. In addition to her professional experience, she has been actively involved in research that sits at the intersection of systems thinking, participatory design, and social innovation.

Her research centers on an inquiry into the critical examination of power, participation, and knowledge production within design. Her work seeks to investigate how institutional frameworks shape patterns of exclusion in vulnerable communities and aims to identify leverage points for redistributing power through participatory practices to foster inclusive systems. 
Her research interests include Indian crafts, systems thinking, participatory design, social innovation, decolonizing design, and pluriversal design frameworks.