UTDesignLabFrank Kresin new DesignLab Managing Director

Frank Kresin new DesignLab Managing Director

The Executive Board of the University of Twente has appointed Frank Kresin to the post of Managing Director of the DesignLab 

Frank Kresin (b. 1972) was originally a filmmaker. He earned a Master’s degree in Artificial Intelligence in 1997, worked as a director and functional designer at the University of Amsterdam, and he was the Digital University’s programme manager for five years. Kresin has been affiliated with the Waag Society since 2006, first as a programme manager, and since 2010 as the society’s Research Director. He is responsible for a Waag Society research programme aimed at developing and querying technologies to address societal issues. 

Kresin has been intimately involved in a wide range of Waag Society projects and programmes (and similar activities without a society affiliation) focusing on themes such as Creative Care, Future Internet and Smart Citizens. He is the co-founder of Apps for Europe, City SDK, CineGrid, Code 4 Europe, Digital Social Innovation, Making Sense and the Smart Citizens Lab. In addition, he regularly publishes on transdisciplinary research in the creative industries and he gives presentations on this topic.  

Kresin is also involved in a number of other activities. He is a member of the Creative Industries Fund advisory committee for activities planning, a board member of the Dutch branch of the Internet Society and a board member of The Mobile City.  

Kresin will take up his post as the Managing Director of the DesignLab on 1 January 2017. Victor van der Chijs, President of the Executive Board, had this to say about Frank Kresin’s appointment: “Frank has extensive experience in setting up EU projects in a range of different domains, including digital social innovation, brain-computer interaction, open data and algorithms, the democratization of technology and the position of the citizen in the smart city. He focuses squarely on the cutting edge of design, science and technology and their potential impact on societal issues, making him ideally suited to galvanize and expand the unparalleled position of the DesignLab in the Netherlands and abroad, in trade and industry, among research institutes and in the public sector. We anticipate that he will identify and develop opportunities for new programmes and networks, forging links with UT’s research groups and institutes.”  

The Executive Board wishes Frank Kresin and the entire DesignLab management team every success as they embark on this new chapter.

drs. B.G. Lankhaar (Bertyl)
Spokesperson EB (Currently acting director Kennispark Twente)