Crafting Self-Efficacy
Making a wallet from scratch, using nothing but duct tape, teaches kids that duct tape is versatile, and that they are, too. Working with tape cuts across gender, develops motor skills, and demands patience. The learning curve can be steep at first, but kids stick with it because they get to take home their own creation when they persevere.
Dammwegsiedlung, Berlin-Neukölln, 2020
ReLAX Community Center, Fennpfuhl, Berlin-Lichtenberg, 2025
Visual Storytelling
I learned as a teen to use visual art when words couldn’t do the trick. Moving to a country with a new language makes youth even more challenging than it already is. In these drawings and comics made by children and teens who came to Berlin as refugees, self-expression moves beyond verbal language, allowing for confidence to grow in other places.
Original Work, Spray Paint and Oil Paint on Found Carrom Board (Table Game), 2009
Storytelling Workshop, Camp United Democracy Youth Camp, Berlin, 2025
Storytelling Workshop, Camp United Democracy Youth Camp, Berlin, 2025
Public Art: Leaving a Mark
Including young people by way of public art allows for impactful communication in both directions. The community gets to feel the presence of its young residents and kids get to feel a direct connection to their environment.
Original ork, logo design for Zig Zag Jazz Club, Berlin, 2015
Addressing restroom problems with the Ernst-Habermann-Elementary Student Council, Berlin-Wilmersdorf, 2024
Das Beteiligungshaus Youth Club, Berlin-Neukölln, 2021
Refugee Housing Facility, Berlin-Karow, 2018
Fun as Resistance: Pop-Up Social Spaces
My work has taught me that carving out pockets of fun is possible even in heavy settings or circumstances.
Fridays with Friends Teen Meetup, Berlin-Lichtenberg, 2025
Tea Garden as a Covid-19 Lockdown Workaround, Berlin-Neukölln, 2021
Fridays with Friends Social Club, Refugee Housing Facility, Berlin-Karow, 2020
Minecraft World Created by Children in a Refugee Housing Facility, Berlin-Karow, 2018
Kid’s Space at the Welcome Festival for Refugees and Locals, Berlin-Tempelhof, 2016
City Planning and Urban Development with Children and Teens
Young people are excellent co-creators when given the chance.
House of Change as Planning Instrument, Berlin-Neukölln, 2020
Dream Play Place Exhibition at the Local Library, Berlin-Karow, 2019
Dream Play Place Sketch, Refugee Housing Facility, 2019
Dream Play Place Model, Refugee Housing Facility, 2019
Mapping Activity as Research Tool, Refugee Housing Facility, Berlin-Karow, 2019