Introducing FY26 Board Officers

CoDesign Collaborative congratulates our new FY26 Executive Committee members.

We are excited to announce our FY26 Board Executive Committee:

Aidan Borer steps into the Board Chair role after two years on the Board and several years on the Advisory Council. He shares his vision for the organization:

In a time when many feel disempowered and isolated, CoDesign Collaborative provides a space to reclaim our agency and transform our anxiety into action.

 

We’ve built a remarkable community of diverse thinkers and doers who inspire me every day, all united by a shared mission: to drive social change through the transformative power of design. I’m honored to take on the role of Board Chair because I believe we can do more than just dream of a better future – we can design it, together.

 

The next chapter of CoDesign Collaborative will be our most exciting yet, as we reimagine design as a civic and cultural force that disrupts not just what gets built, but who gets to build it. If that’s something you want to be part of, I hope you’ll join us and support our work!

In the newly established Director of Design Impact role, Josephine Holmboe will bring her exceptional expertise in collaborative system building and facilitation to strengthen our community’s engagement and participation. Her leadership includes the launch of our Visual Thinking Strategies (VTS) workshop series, which provides hands-on training and facilitation to individuals and teams.

The organization is grateful to our outgoing Board Officers: Chair George White, Vice Chair Leila Mitchell, and Treasurer Tom Di Lillo. George and Leila will continue to support the organization’s work as Board Members, and Tom will continue to support the Board Finance Committee. 

Learn more about our new Executive Committee: 

Aidan Borer, Chair,  is a researcher, strategist, and designer who has spent the last ten years helping organizations grow by creating better products and experiences for their constituents. Passionate about designing sustainable, equitable solutions to systemic problems, he loves working with nonprofit and for-profit organizations in the pursuit of delivering meaningful social and commercial impact. With a degree in Industrial and Product Design from Western Washington University, Aidan began his career as an Industrial Designer at Bose Corporation, where he realized the importance of bringing real people into the process of designing the products, services, and systems that shape their reality. Today, he is the Director of Human Insights at Human-ology, a global insight agency that measures how people are changing and brands must adjust to stay relevant. Connect with Aidan on LinkedIn.

Ashley Dunn, Vice Chair, is Principal, Director of Workplace, Dyer Brown & Associates. After graduating from the University of Tennessee with a Bachelor of Architecture degree, Ashley relocated to the colder climes of Boston to begin her career at Dyer Brown. In her tenure with the firm, she has worked extensively on both client projects and marketing initiatives. As a licensed Architect, Ashley has leveraged her passion for client service and design to complete projects ranging from 4,000 to 400,000 square feet. She also currently teaches at the Boston Architectural College as an adjunct faculty member and is a committee member with the Boston Society of Architects. A native of North Carolina, Ashley is an avid runner, a college football fan (Go Vols!), and a craft beer enthusiast. In her free time, she loves to travel and spends more time on her wardrobe than she would care to admit. Connect with Ashley on LinkedIn. 

A senior leader in Design Operations, Treasurer Tracy Swyst’s career has networked her with a countless number of design professionals from nearly every discipline. She is a savvy choreographer of resources, stakeholders and team members, balancing competing needs while confidently addressing conflict and keeping people accountable. Tracy brings a working knowledge of the mechanics and operations that fuel the process of graphic design, branding, marketing, industrial design, and user experience design in varying many forms. When faced with a complex business problem, much like a designer she’ll consider all of the variables, aligning and realigning them, iterating the process, until the most effective solution has been arranged. She enjoys the challenge of identifying the core issue, and the nearly audible spark of arriving at the right solution. Clients include AIGA, Boston Society of Architects, DIGMA, IDSA, Filmmaker’s Collaborative, Bose Corporation, Korn Design, Marquis Design, and MITs Sloan School of Management. Connect with Tracy on LinkedIn.

Catherine Clarke, Secretary, is a Manager of New Hire Experience at Fidelity Investments with a BFA in design from Northeastern University. She is a leader for Fidelity Enable, an advocacy group for people with disabilities, and a certified Visual Thinking Strategies @ Work Facilitator through the Hailey Group. Inclusion and community care is fundamental to her design practice. Connect with Catherine on LinkedIn. 

Josephine Holmboe, Director of Design Impact, is the Former VP & Creative Director, Fidelity Center for Applied Technology (FCAT). She has a passion for Human-Centered Design and for mentoring and growing designers. With over 25 years of experience as a corporate Creative Director, she has led teams in creating user experiences and print and digital design solutions, ranging from visual design systems for complex data to full product offerings. As an experienced coach and strategic facilitator, she employs techniques such as Design Thinking and Visual Thinking Strategies to lead and co-design with business teams, client partners, and designers to achieve creative solutions for the best user experience possible. Connect with Josephine on LinkedIn. 

Members of the Board of Directors are experts in CoDesign Collaborative’s impact areas and design fields. In alignment with Staff and Council, they govern the organization, set strategic priorities, and implement programs, while ensuring adequate resources and strong community are available to accomplish the organization’s mission.