A native of Detroit, Rebecca “Bucky” Willis received her Master of Architecture degree from the University of Detroit Mercy. She has worked for several nonprofit organizations in Detroit, including Habitat for Humanity and Detroit Future City, and is currently a project manager and designer at the Detroit Collaborative Design Center. She has taught Architectural Design Studio as an adjunct professor at the University of Detroit Mercy School of Architecture.
The heart of her career and research lies at the intersection where architecture and design meet social issues and emotional impact. This career and research focus inspired her to create the concept of Bleeding Heart Design – a design movement and non-profit that inspires altruism. Designers who seek to improve humanity and solve social issues through design are who Bucky likes to call “design superheroes.”