Issue #02: Ponder x Evey Kwong

April 26, 2024

Ponder: Hi Evey, how would you describe your role?

Evey: 👋🏼 A human being, a designer, a researcher, an educator, and a creative with a restless spirit. More practically, my work focuses on understanding how design can be used as a strategic tool in times of crisis and on developing design practices that are both effective and ethical.

P: How do you see yourself and your situation?

E: Born as a millennial, I have witnessed the evolution of social interactions, digital technologies (from 56kbps modem connectivity to AI) and data privacy (from being anonymous to being a data-collected individual). This has created a complex landscape that requires a high level of vigilance in all our decisions and ways of working. On the other hand, I think it is important to focus on our strengths and work with people who share the same values as ours. As an independent designer, I practise strong values, high efficiency and have a strong structure in my work.

P: Why do you work in our industry and how do you like it?

E: In addition to having the opportunity to work with a diverse range of clients and projects, I enjoy the challenge of shaping and imagining identities for individuals, corporations and institutions.

Working in the design industry also allows me to practise many transferable skills. For example, when working on a project or in a team, you are automatically challenged with problem-solving, critical thinking, project management and conflict-handling skills. My experience also repeatedly made me feel the impact that design can have on society. There is so much potential to initiate discussions, reduce political polarisation and conflict, and act as a mediator and catalyst for change.

P: What values are important for you in your work?

E: I value transparency, trust, and inclusivity. I often accompany my clients and project teams through all project phases and take care of not only technical and operational tasks but also communication and advisory capacity. It is important to feel a sense of ownership in a project, and this is often achievable only through a clear understanding of decisions made collectively, professionally and, to a particular extreme, finding compromises through pragmatism.

P: How do you choose a project or agency to work with?

E: As the global political and ecological landscape evolves, so too do our perspectives and how we approach our work. I consistently seek meaningful avenues for collaboration and strive to remain up-to-date with the latest developments in design and technology from a socio-political and ethical perspective. This outlook guides my approach to and working relationships with agencies like Ponder.

P: What do you do outside of work?

E: I run a social design initiative, futurprimitiv, which connects me with people (craftspeople, designers, local residents), hidden knowledge and intellectual capital, material resources and place. Under this premise, I conduct various actions in knowledge exchange, workshops, lectures, field trips and exhibitions in collaboration with public and private institutions. I also run workshops to share my craft technologies expertise with art and design school students. 

Visit website ⭢

Teamwork makes the dream work – impressions from the project.

P: How was the collaboration between Ponder, yourself and the client?

E: Ahhh-ma-zing on every level! The exchange and transparency and strong synergy between Peter, Moritz, the Green Party team and myself. It was inspiring to see such collaboration in action, especially given the eye-level constellation I observed.

I particularly enjoyed that there was always clarity in the team about everyone’s individual contribution and accountability. And there was a great balance between autonomy and collaboration. This meant we could move quickly and easily adapt to new circumstances and consult with or delegate to others when they were experts on a specific question.

Another aspect of collaboration is helping individuals and teams to grow and develop (not just in the project but also in a professional and personal sense). This is often overlooked, but it was also a key aspect of the team dynamic in our project.

Read case study here.

Ponder: How would you describe your role?

Evey: 👋🏼 A human being, a designer, a researcher, an educator, and a creative with a restless spirit. More practically, my work focuses on understanding how design can be used as a strategic tool in times of crisis and on developing design practices that are both effective and ethical.

P: How do you see yourself and your situation?

E: Born as a millennial, I have witnessed the evolution of social interactions, digital technologies (from 56kbps modem connectivity to AI) and data privacy (from being anonymous to being a data-collected individual). This has created a complex landscape that requires a high level of vigilance in all our decisions and ways of working. On the other hand, I think it is important to focus on our strengths and work with people who share the same values as ours. As an independent designer, I practise strong values, high efficiency and have a strong structure in my work. 

P: Why do you work in our industry and how do you like it?

E: In addition to having the opportunity to work with a diverse range of clients and projects, I enjoy the challenge of shaping and imagining identities for individuals, corporations and institutions. Working in the design industry also allows me to practise many transferable skills. For example, when working on a project or in a team, you are automatically challenged with problem-solving, critical thinking, project management and conflict-handling skills. 

My experience also repeatedly made me feel the impact that design can have on society. There is so much potential to initiate discussions, reduce political polarisation and conflict, and act as a mediator and catalyst for change.

P: What values are important for you in your work?

E: I value transparency, trust, and inclusivity. I often accompany my clients and project teams through all project phases and take care of not only technical and operational tasks but also communication and advisory capacity. It is important to feel a sense of ownership in a project, and this is often achievable only through a clear understanding of decisions made collectively, professionally and, to a particular extreme, finding compromises through pragmatism.

P: How do you choose a project or agency to work with?

E: As the global political and ecological landscape evolves, so too do our perspectives and how we approach our work. I consistently seek meaningful avenues for collaboration and strive to remain up-to-date with the latest developments in design and technology from a socio-political and ethical perspective. This outlook guides my approach to and working relationships with agencies like Ponder.

P: What do you do outside of work?

E: I run a social design initiative called futurprimitiv, which connects me with people (crafts people, designers, local residents), hidden knowledge and intellectual capital, material resources and place. Under this premise, I conduct various actions in formats of knowledge exchange, workshops, lectures, field trips and exhibitions in collaboration with public and private institutions. I also run workshops to share my expertise in craft technologies with students in art and design schools. 

Which part of the final product sticks out for you?

I believe we have achieved a significant milestone by enabling the visual elements and (most importantly) content to take centre stage. In the project, we successfully enhanced the information architecture and navigation flows, incorporated smart visibilities, and developed impactful ways to implement the updated Green Party style guide. Additionally, I am delighted that we have expanded the official colour scheme’s use cases beyond its print use case limits.

Teamwork makes the dream work – impressions from the project.

P: How was the collaboration between Ponder, yourself and the Green Party?

E: Ahhh-ma-zing on every level! The exchange and transparency and strong synergy between Peter, Moritz, the Green Party team and myself. It was inspiring to see such collaboration in action, especially given the eye-level constellation I observed.

I particularly enjoyed that there was always clarity in the team about everyone’s individual contribution and accountability. And there was a great balance between autonomy and collaboration. This meant we could move quickly and easily adapt to new circumstances and consult with or delegate to others when they were experts on a specific question.

Another aspect of collaboration is helping individuals and teams to grow and develop (not just in the project but also in a professional and personal sense). This is often overlooked, but it was also a key aspect of the team dynamic in our project.

Read case study here.

Random Order is a newsletter with the intention to provide readers insights, case studies and observations. Random order is an oxymoron in that the two words are an apparent contradiction in terms: order suggests organization while random suggests a lack thereof. However, like many oxymora, the contradiction is incidental and resolvable by careful consideration.

In the world of polarized opinions and chaos of natural order, the socio-cultural-political incidents have become random; unpredictable. Experts and policy makers have been trying to introduce deliberate order. The intention here is to bring a line of thoughts on design, and how design can shape policies, tackle complex human and more-than-human issues; to bring order. Sign up here.