Designing for Dignity: Elements of Practice

Dignity is a state of being, a quality of humanness inherent to each individual.

It describes a sense of value, worth, honor, and respect for one's personhood—how we all individually navigate, independently experience, and uniquely perceive the world around us. It is the ultimate quality of being, a celebration of the human spirit, and the potential of each of us to live as fully as we define and determine. Dignity in design, therefore, requires an intentional examination of the human experience—how we process information and connect with the world around us, how we fundamentally seek survival and pleasure in all we do, how we react in the presence of adversity and stress, surprise and delight. And with this understanding comes empathy for what it means to navigate the world as a complex, conscious, affectable human beings.

Dignified Design recognizes the role of our built environment in supporting and fostering the health of individuals, neighborhoods and communities. It acknowledges that nothing we design is neutral and that the places we inhabit shape our ideas about who we are and what we deserve. Drawing on broad multidisciplinary evidence and more context-specific lived expertise of end users in the spaces we design, Dignified Design aims to create places that protect, promote, and celebrate the dignity of life.

Dr. Daniel Brisson is a Professor and the Director of the Center for Housing and Homelessness Research (CHHR) at the Graduate School of Social Work, University of Denver. His research focuses on poverty, high-poverty neighborhoods, affordable housing, and homelessness.

Tom Otteson studied architecture at Lawrence Technological University and the University of Oregon and is a licensed architect with experience across a broad range of professional roles and project types. Since joining Shopworks, Tom's focus has been on serving his local community through the design of people-centered affordable housing and community serving projects and using this work to advance the theory and practice of housing design.

Laura Rossbert has been leading non-profits and organizations for the last decade with a commitment to her communities. As Shopworks’ COO, she brings her expertise and knowledge in best practices in homelessness and supportive housing to inform building design and find solutions to barriers to affordable housing, with special attention to trauma, resiliency, and equity.

Dr. Stephanie Rachel Speer is a licensed clinical social worker with over 10 years of experience in clinical practice, research, and teaching. She is an assistant professor at Bryn Mawr College where her work focuses on healing trauma through trauma-informed, equity-centered approaches.

Stacey Twigg is an architectural designer specializing in housing and community-based projects that prioritize trauma-informed and inclusive design principles. Stacey works closely with communities to create environments that foster connection and well-being, blending functionality with thoughtful aesthetics that emphasize local context and materiality. An alum of the Rocky Mountain College of Art & Design, Stacey became a founding member of Shopworks Architecture in 2012.