Rachael Dietkus, LCSW
Digital Services Expert in Design & Social Work, United States Digital Service
Rachael Dietkus is a pioneering social worker-designer specializing in trauma-informed care and ethics within civic and public interest design and technology. With nearly 25 years of experience in social justice, Rachael most recently was the first social worker ever hired at the United States Digital Service, where she focused on integrating trauma-informed practices into federal technology projects. As the founder of Social Workers Who Design, she consults globally on design, research, and strategy projects, nurturing trauma literacy and care humility among designers. Rachael is an RSA Fellow, a Design Council Expert, and a contributor to key publications, including "Feminist Designer" and the forthcoming "This is Journey Management" and "Designed with Care: Creating Trauma-Informed Content." She is also working on her first book on care, trauma, and design with MIT Press. Rachael's work bridges the gap between social work and design, advocating for more humane, care-centered approaches in public service delivery and civic tech.
Rosenverse talks by Rachael:
" Not every insight is eternal; some are tied to a specific prototype or test, while others about human nature last years. "
Day 3 Theme Panel
March 13, 2025
" Moving fast isn’t just breaking things, it’s actually breaking people. "
The power to heal and harm
March 13, 2025
" AI reflects dominant hegemonic views, creating virtual worlds where counter views do not exist. "
AI: Passionate defenses and reasoned critique [Advancing Research Community Workshop Series]
September 18, 2024
" Humanity doesn’t stop at the door just because you’re a leader — you still have vulnerabilities and struggles. "
Leading through the long tail of trauma
July 13, 2022
" Even if there is an element of enrichment in research participation, all processes have some extraction and must be minimized. "
Leading through the long tail of trauma
July 7, 2022
" Leadership modeling ‘being human’ with stress and mental health normalizes trauma-informed culture. "
Leading through the long tail of trauma
July 7, 2022
" This conference felt like a professional bootcamp that helped me grow profoundly as a speaker and thinker. "
Everything You Need to Know about the Civic Design 2022 Call for Presentations
May 17, 2022
" Harm is inevitably caused by research; the question is how do we reduce that harm as much as possible. "
Learnings from Applying Trauma-Informed Principles to the Research Process
March 10, 2022
" Our ability to entice participants to share their most personal stories raises the potential to exploit them for design research. "
Trauma-Responsive Design: Reimagining the Future of Design Now
December 10, 2021
