My name is Burak Taşdizen and I’m a Post-Doctoral Researcher in Sociology at Kadir Has University in Istanbul, Turkey.
My research explores an animal-centered design framework that challenges anthropocentric assumptions in both theory and practice. In my Ph.D. dissertation, Designing Zoöpolis, I theorized how Istanbul’s citizens design and maintain complex infrastructures of care for community cats, from spatial accommodations and population management to everyday interventions such as the cat house, ultimately designing a more-than-human city. Since then, my work has focused on developing methods to study human–animal interactions, inquiring animal experiences such as liminality and end-of-life care, and exploring designing of more-than-human futures.
I’m currently preparing a new research project, which will explore the central question of how companion animals and their human guardians can meaningfully participate in participatory design processes that impact them. I’m open to exploring possible collaborations with scholars interested in creative methods for human-animal interactions. I’m delighted to join this community and look forward to meaningful exchange and collaboration!