I’ve spent the last 15 years researching and working in media, technology, and design. With The Nightside, my mission is to harness my intersection of skillsets to help create more supportive experiences around loss.

Since receiving my PhD in cultural and linguistic anthropology from the University of Pennsylvania, most of my career has focused on conducting research to help software organizations create better user experiences. My perspective was expanded when I worked on Facebook’s Memorialization team, which was responsible for handling what happens when an account holder dies. I began to understand the urgent need to transform how our society approaches and supports people during end of life.

While conducting research and attending conferences helped me understand this intellectually, it was made personal to me when my 5-year-old dog Quincy suddenly fell ill and I had to make the difficult decision to euthanize him within a few weeks. Drawing on what I had learned, and with the guidance of a supportive friend and mentor, I orchestrated a “good death” for Quincy, incorporating rituals and approaches I wouldn’t have otherwise considered, with the aim of creating a death that was peaceful, meaningful, and beautiful for him.