Ralitsa Diana Debrah is a Ghanaian-born designer, educator, and passionate advocate for design-driven social change. With over a decade of local and international experience, she harnesses design as a catalyst for social innovation and sustainability. Ralitsa holds a Ph.D. in Design, Innovation, and Sustainability from the Cape Peninsula University of Technology in South Africa; a Postgraduate Diploma in Educational Technology from the University of Cape Town in South Africa; and both a Master’s and a Bachelor’s degree in Design from Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST), Ghana.

She actively contributes to the global design community as a juror and committee member for organizations such as Open Design Afrika (ODA), DesignGhana, the Pan Afrikan Design Institute (PADI), the Design Research Activity Workgroup Networks (DRAWn – CPUT), the Type Directors Club (TDC), Cumulus Association, and the World Design Organization (WDO). As the International Coordinator of the Design for Social Innovation and Sustainability (DESIS) Network, she collaborates on global initiatives that harness design for meaningful impact.

Beyond academia, she co-founded Inclusive-Tech-Group (ITG), a not-for-profit organization in Ghana that champions inclusive technology solutions for differently-abled communities, and mentors emerging talent as a coach for WDO’s Young Designers Circle (YDC). Her research and practice focus on social innovation, sustainability, decolonizing design, human-computer interaction, and educational technology for social transformation across transdisciplinary settings. A lifelong learner and forward-thinking futurist, Ralitsa is dedicated to using design to build a more inclusive and sustainable world.