Role
Emily is the Course Leader for BA (Hons) Product Design and a Senior Lecturer in the School of Architecture, Design and the Built Environment, teaching across all three year groups on the BA Product Design program. As the Year Lead for 1st Year BA Product Design students, Emily focuses on creating a sense of community and belonging among student cohorts. She is a strong advocate for equality, diversity, and inclusion within the department, serving as the representative for these values. In her role as Athena Swan Representative, she promotes gender equality and inclusivity in higher education. Emily is also a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy and a member of the Institution of Engineering Designers (MIED). Through her teaching and advocacy, she aims to empower future designers to drive positive change and promote inclusivity in their work.
Career overview
Emily holds a BA (Hons) in Product Design from Leeds Beckett University, where she concentrated on Maternal Healthcare Products. Her notable project, "Bloom," won both the RSA Student Design Award and a Creative Conscience Award in 2017, leading to a work opportunity at GlaxoSmithKline (GSK), where she focused on packaging and graphic design. She furthered her studies with an MA in Product Design: Products and Furniture at NTU, continuing her focus on Maternal Healthcare Products. Since 2018, Emily has been a lecturer at NTU, beginning by working with first-year students in both studio and CAD sessions. Emily's commitment to excellence in education and design is reflected in her ongoing professional development and active engagement with the broader design community.
Research areas
Research Interests: Community Building, Belonging, Ideation Principles, Maternal Healthcare
External activity
Member of Institution of Engineering Designers (MIED)
RSA Student Design Award 2017 - Winner
Creative Conscience Award 2017 - Highly Commended
Publications
Brook, E.E. & Pownall, M.J. (2023) Matchstick Men -Teaching 1st Year Design Students Empathy Through Design for Prison Life. In Proceedings of the International Conference on Engineering and Product Design Education, E&PDE 2023, doi:10.35199/EPDE.2023.68
Siena, L.S., Russell, S., Malcolm, R., Brook, E.E., Cutts, A., Martin, L., & Naik, K. (2022) Successes & Challenges or Supporting Product Design Education for Deaf & Hard of Hearing Learners During a Pandemic: A Case Study. In Proceedings of the International Conference on Engineering and Product Design Education, E&PDE 2022, doi:10.35199/EPDE.2022.38
Pownall, M.J., Brook, E.E., & Pashley, K. (2021). H.I.I.T. High Intensity Ideation Training - Facilitating Group Design Ideation in a Digital Teaching Space. In Proceedings of the International Conference on Engineering and Product Design Education, E&PDE 2021, doi:10.35199/EPDE.2021.14