As both the coordinator and an instructor in Product Design at Kwantlen Polytechnic University, Iryna Karaush splits her time between teaching, and supporting and developing the program. Iryna is passionate about the multidisciplinary nature of human-centered design that provides immense opportunities to improve the quality of everyday life all around the world. Together with the faculty team, she tests the potential of design to make positive, long lasting social change.

With over 15 years experience in architectural design, Iryna learned how to apply design methods across different media. Her portfolio includes spatial design and research, tennis apparel design, and her passion, food design, a field that explores the relationship between people and food from wide-ranging design perspective.

Iryna organized D+FA, the food design research group, in 2016. Applying design thinking methodology, Iryna investigates the local foodscape for opportunities to reconnect local producers and communities. The research project The Resilient Link is an ongoing endeavour focusing on Southwest BC context, and more specifically on the Southlands development.

Along with her research projects, Iryna leads workshops in food design, teaching how to build prototypes — that you can eat!

Iryna holds a Masters in Advanced Studies in Architecture from UBC. In her spare time, she enjoys playing tennis, practising yoga, and swimming. If you cannot find her on the tennis court, she must be eating chocolate and plotting the next food intervention for Design+ Food Atelier (open to new chocolate addicts or anyone interested in Food Design).