Niels Wouters

Niels is a senior design researcher at Paper Giant, a strategic design consultancy that helps organisations understand and solve complex problems. Niels has over nine years of experience in user research, digital strategy, placemaking and design. He has worked with councils, community organisations, tertiary education providers and cultural venues across Australia and Europe to implement innovative technologies that create meaningful places. Niels is passionate about human-centred technology innovation and advocates for technology ethics to become participatory and inclusive. He is a frequent media commentator and public speaker on the societal risks and opportunities of emerging technologies.

Wominjeka (Welcome). We acknowledge the Yaluk-ut Weelam as the traditional custodians of the land on which we meet. Yaluk-ut Weelam means ‘people of the river camp’ and is connected with the coastal land at the head of Port Phillip Bay, extending from the Werribee River to Mordialloc. The Yaluk-ut Weelam are part of the Boon Wurrung, one of the five major language groups of the greater Kulin Nation. We pay our respects to the land, their ancestors and their elders—past, present and to the future.