Nick Okafor

Nick Okafor (he/him), a strategist and design researcher, is a doctoral student in the Management Science and Engineering Department at Stanford University, where his research focuses on the practice and pedagogy of responsible innovation. He explores the organizational dynamics that influence the efficacy of responsibility & ethics within tech firms at various scales, and in tandem, he is interested in how pedagogy on liberatory design can be effectively integrated into traditional innovation coursework. He puts research into practice as the founder of trubel&co, a nonprofit venture studio that accelerates youth-driven liberatory innovation, championing the next generation to use data, design, and tech to reshape society for the better. Previously, Nick was a Senior Associate at Sidewalk Labs (Google's urban innovation arm), where he drove commercialization for emerging products that improve quality of life in cities. He advocates for a radical reimagining of the tools used to create a more just and equitable society, and is committed to ensuring the digital revolution can increase opportunity, mitigate harm, and create liberatory futures. Nick holds a B.S. in mechanical engineering and sustainable development from Washington University in St. Louis.