Dr Valerie Mace

Biography

Valérie works in the interdisciplinary field of experiential design where she contributes to the study of how attachment, belonging and wellbeing are shaped by the way the body engages with its environment. Her research is distinguished by its focus on sensory ecologies to offer critical insights into physical, social and cultural worlds; her PhD contributed a framework for sensory practices to cultivate people’s ability to form emotional connections to place.

She is a Senior Fellow of Advance HE, a recognition of my sustained commitment to excellence in teaching and academic leadership, and she has played a key role in shaping several innovative design programmes. Her contributions to pedagogy have been recognised with three UAL Outstanding Teaching Awards.

Her commitment to collaborative learning enables her to lead cross-institutional projects. These include a partnership with Malta’s National Art Museum, where UAL students created site-specific interventions addressing climate change, and a sensory study in a dementia care setting in Milan, which enabled MA Interior Design students at Politecnico di Milano to engage with empathy-driven design practices. She is also an active member of the Cumulus Design for Placemaking working group.