I am an interdisciplinary design researcher specialising in labour, technology and industries in transition. My current role is Senior Lecturer and Director of Design Studies, at the School of Design (Design Studies unit), University of Technology Sydney (UTS). My research shifts between historical and contemporary contexts and focuses on the less visible sides of design: industrial craft, manufacturing, repair, skill loss and industries in transition. I recently completed an ARC DECRA Fellowship (2021-2025).
Writing
My latest works are two edited collections (co-edited with Chantel Carr), entitled Designing through Planetary Breakdown and Working through Planetary Breakdown (both Routledge 2025). These two collections are the result of our pioneering interdisciplinary symposium All Hands on Deck 2023, founded by myself and Carr. I am the author of Industrial Craft in Australia (Palgrave Macmillan 2021), and Hot Metal (Manchester University Press 2016).
Public History
In 2024 I was named one of “Ten humanities EMCRs shaping the future” by the Australian Academy of the Humanities. In that same year I was Director of History Now 2024, a public history seminar series. I am deeply involved in the Australian history sector, as a member of the General Council of the History Council of NSW, and a member of the Australian Centre for Public History.
In addition, I am involved in historical and design collections across Australia, including as an oral historian, and through various collaborations and partnerships with Museums Victoria, the Powerhouse, the National Library of Australia and the State Library of NSW.
I have initiated two oral history projects that are collected by the National Library: the Reshaping Australian Manufacturing Oral History Project (2017-2019) – as part of a UTS Chancellor’s Postdoctoral Research Fellowship, and Makers, Manufacturers & Designers (2021-2023) as part of my ARC DECRA.
Other projects: Repair and Hi Vis
I am currently working on a delightful, energising (and dare I say – fun!) research project on the politics and history of ‘hi vis’ workwear in Australia, with Dr Elizabeth Humphrys and Dr Bettina Frankham. The Hi-Vis Project is formally partnered with the Powerhouse. (See also: Projects: Hi-Vis)
In 2019 I initiated the UTS Design Studies collaborative project, Repair-Design (with A/Prof Alexandra Crosby).
I am a regular commentator on the ‘right to repair’, skilled trades, hi-vis and industry policy reform in Australia.
NB: This is not an official UTS page.
Jesse Adams Stein 