Designing engagements with animals to find, imagine, or emphasize non-speciesist practices
(for citation references see my Google Scholar Profile)
Westerlaken, M. (2021). It matters what designs design designs: Speculations on multispecies worlding, Global Discourse, vol. ahead of print. PREPRINT (forthcoming), LINK.
Westerlaken, M. (2020). What is the opposite of speciesism? On relational care ethics and illustrating multi-species-isms, International Journal of Sociology and Social Policy, vol. ahead of print. PREPRINT, LINK
Westerlaken, M. (2017). Uncivilizing the future: Imagining non-speciesism. Antae – Special Issue on Utopian Perspectives, 4(1), 53-67. PDF, LINK
Gómez Maureira, M.A., Westerlaken, M., Janssen, D., Gualeni, S., and Calvi, L. (2014). Improving level design through game user research: A comparison of methodologies. Entertainment Computing, Elsevier, 5(4), 463-473. LINK
Westerlaken, M. (2018). When game mechanics come crawling out of ant colonies. In Games and Rules Game Mechanics for the “Magic Circle”, Beat Suter, Mela Kocher, René Bauer (eds.), Bielefeld, DE: Transcript Verlag. LINK.
Gollonitsch, K., and Westerlaken, M. (2017). Beyond yarn-balls & squeaking bones: Inviting animals as co-players and co-designers. In Welt der Spiele 360°, 31-51, Krems, AT: Donau Universität Krems. LINK
Westerlaken, M. (2017). Self-fashioning in action: Zelda’s Breath of the Wild vegan run. Proceedings of the Philosophy of Computer Games Conference, (Krakow, PL, November 28-30). PDF, LINK
Westerlaken, M. and Gualeni, S. (2017). A dialogue concerning ‘doing philosophy with and within computer games’ – or: Twenty rainy minutes in Krakow. Proceedings of the Philosophy of Computer Games Conference, (Krakow, PL, November 28-30). PDF, LINK
Westerlaken, M., and Gualeni, S. (2016). Becoming with: Towards the inclusion of animals as participants in design processes. Proceedings of the Animal Computer Interaction Conference, ACM Press, (Milton Keynes, UK, November 14-15). PDF, LINK
Westerlaken, M., and Gualeni, S. (2016). Situated knowledges and game design: A transformative exercise with ants. Proceedings of the Philosophy of Computer Games Conference, (Valletta, MLT, November 1-4). PDF, LINK
Westerlaken, M., and Gualeni, S. (2014). Felino: The philosophical practice of making an interspecies videogame. Proceedings of the Philosophy of Computer Games Conference, (Istanbul, TUR, November 13-15). PDF, LINK
Westerlaken, M. Playful animals: An invitation to participate. (2016). Extended Abstract in Proceedings of Digra/FDG (Dundee, UK, August 1-6). PDF, LINK
Westerlaken, M., and Gualeni, S. (2014). Grounded zoomorphism: An evaluation methodology for ACI design. Proceedings of ACE’14 Workshop on Animal Human Computer Interaction, ACM Press, (Madeira, PRT, November 11-14). PDF, LINK
Westerlaken, M., and Camilleri, A. (2014). User testing an interspecies videogame. Proceedings of NordiCHI’14 Workshop on Animal Computer Interaction, ACM Press, (Helsinki, FIN, October 26-30). PDF
Gómez Maureira, M.A., Janssen, D., Gualeni, S., Westerlaken, M., and Calvi, L. (2013). Comparing game user research methodologies for the improvement of level design in a 2-D platformer. Advances in Computer Entertainment, 77-92. (Twente, The Netherlands, November 13-15). LINK
Westerlaken, M., and Gualeni, S. (2013). Digitally complemented zoomorphism: A theoretical foundation for human-animal interaction design. Proceedings of Conference on Designing Pleasurable Products and Interfaces (DPPI ’13), ACM Press, (Newcastle, UK, September 3 – 5). PDF, LINK
Westerlaken, M. (2020). Telling multispecies worlds: Traces of a counter-concept to speciesism, Abstract/Presentation at European Association for the Study of Science and Technology Conference (EASST). PDF.
Hillgren, P.-A., Lindström, K., Strange, M., Witmer, H., Chronaki, A., Ehn, P., … Westerlaken, M. (2020). Glossary: Collaborative future-making. A Glossary curated by the Collaborative Future Making research network, pp 1-34. LINK.
Sandelin, E. and Westerlaken, M. (2019). After the revolution: Prototyping post-speciesist futures. Abstract/Presentation at the 6th European Association for Critical Animal Studies Conference (presented by Erik Sandelin). PDF.
Westerlaken, M. (2018). Imagining non-speciesism. Abstract/Presentation at the Rethinking Animality Conference (Santiago de Compostela, SP, September 26-28). PDF, LINK.
Westerlaken, M. (2018). Speciesism. Genealogy entry on the Critical Posthumanism Network. PDF, LINK
Speaker at Klang Games, Lunch talk on Imagining Multispecies Worlds, November 2020.
PhD Defense, Malmö University (Sweden), Department of Culture and Society (K3), September 2020. (discussant: Andrew Morrison). LINK
90% PhD Seminar, Malmö University (Sweden), Department of Culture and Society (K3), March 2020. (discussant: Alex Taylor).
Speaker at the WUD Silesia Design Conference, Katowice (Poland), invited conference speaker, November 2019. VIDEO RECORDING
Speaker at the Johannes Gutenberg University of Mainz (Germany), Guest Lecture in the MA program in Media Dramaturgy course “Filming animals: media practices after the human.” January 2019. LINK
50% PhD Seminar, Malmö University (Sweden), Department of Culture and Society (K3), May 2018. (discussant: Jonas Löwgren).
Keynote Speaker at the Zürich GameZ & RuleZ conference (Switzerland), November 2017. LINK
Speaker at Hong Kong Polytechnic University (Hong Kong), guest lecture in the MSc program in Multimedia & Entertainment Technology, September 2017. LINK
Speaker at Laguna College of Art and Design in Laguna Beach (California), public talk, July 2017. LINK
Speaker at Delft University of Technology (Netherlands), guest expert at the graduate studies Design for Animals Lab, June 2017. LINK
25% PhD Seminar, Malmö University (Sweden), Department of Culture and Society (K3), May 2017. (discussant: Maria Hellström Reimer). LINK
Speaker at the University of Skövde (Sweden), guest lecture at the Department of Media, Technology, and Culture, February 2017. LINK
Speaker at Laguna College of Art and Design in Laguna Beach (California), public talk, July 2016. LINK
Speaker at University of Malta Institute of Digital Games in Malta, public talk at the Game Lecture Series, April 2016. LINK
Speaker at the 9th Future and Reality of Gaming Conference in Vienna (Austria), invited conference speaker, October 2015. LINK
Keynote speaker at the Game Happens Conference in Genova (Italy), June 2015. LINK
How to Include Animals in the Design Process. Podcast interview with Bartłomiej Michalski and Łukasz Januszek. November 2019. LINK
More-than-human. Workshop host at the Imagining Collaborative Future Making conference at Malmö University, November 2019. LINK
Research Through Breakfast. Panel member at Storm Innovation Hub at Malmö University. January 2019.LINK
Designers Against Animal Oppression. Medea Vox Podcast. December 2018. LINK
Knowing Animals Podcast. Interview with Siobhan O’Sullivan. September 2018. LINK
Des Jeux Vidéo pour Animaux. Interview with Swiss newspaper ‘La Liberté’ (written by Vincent Bürgy). December 2017. LINK
Workshop organizer – Representations of Dragons in Videogames. Hong Kong Polytechnic University. October 4th 2017. LINK
Beyond the Game – Playful Pets with Michelle Westerlaken. Interview with Indie Toaster (written by Alessandro Cossidente). May 2017. LINK
Games on Games: Game Design as Critical Reflexive Practice. Panel member at the 10th Philosophy of Computer Games Conference, Msdia (MLT), November 1-4 2014. LINK
A MAZE. Magazine No. 4 Animals. Animals as Players: Rethinking Relationships with Animals In Captivity. 2016. LINK
Workshop organizer at the 12th Student Interaction Design Research Conference (SIDeR). Micro Gamejam: Exploring Playful Relationships Between Humans and Insects. April 2, 2016, Malmö (SE). LINK
Wie Hund und Katz mit Computern Spielen. Interview with ORF. 2015. LINK
Malmö University website. (2015). Designing for Animals – Master Student Internationally Recognized. LINK
Independent Game Philosophers Panel. Panel member at the 8th Philosophy of Computer Games Conference, Istanbul (TUR) November 13-15 2014. LINK
The New Scientist. (2014). Lassie Gets an Upgrade. LINK
Brewed Magazine. (2014). Felino. Because Cats Love Games too. LINK
Westerlaken, M. (2020). Imagining Multispecies Worlds. Doctoral dissertation, Malmö University (Sweden). PDF, LINK
Westerlaken, M. (2015). Exploring the Mediating Role of Playful Technological Artefacts Designed for Animals and Humans. Thesis for the MSc in Interaction Design at Malmö University. LINK
Westerlaken, M. (2014). A New User Testing Methodology for Digitally Mediated Human-Animal Interaction. Thesis for the MSc in Interaction Design at Malmö University. LINK
Westerlaken, M. (2012). Design Methodologies for Embodied Play in Canine Digital Interaction. Thesis for the Master in Media Innovation at NHTV Breda University of Applied Sciences, available on request.
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