This practice seeks to answer one question– how can we be truly human in today’s digital world?
About
Tarika is a design practice built from a pressing need: space for humanity and connection in a world that is increasingly controlled by data, dopamine, and isolation. What started as a personal practice by founder Tarika Kumar has since evolved into a global community of innovators, designers, fitness professionals, and entrepreneurs centered around one mission: restoring connection, clarity, and care—especially in a time of disembodiment and digitization.
There was once a television show called “Cheers”. In fact, it was arguably the most popular sitcom in the United States for years. However, as with all great things invented prior to social media, many modern adults have no idea what it is.
It just so happened to be my favorite TV show growing up. It was simple– and entirely took place in a bar in Boston, where everyone knows your name. Millions tuned in live across the U.S. weekly, simply to be in that bar for 20 minutes. It connected me to place, people, and my family, and was a simple reminder of what community can look like.
When I was in Secondary School, I was obsessed with the Arts… and I was obsessed with Philosophy, and Literature, and Genetics, and apparently History (even though I thought it was my least favorite). And I thought it was due to curiosity– but really, it was about space. It was about the fact that, for one reason or another, the art studio became a third home for me. The history teacher’s office became an informal salon. The mathematics class was where my classmates and I joked around in the back of the room until we became friends for life. All of these places were places I could go, where people were different from me, where everyone knew my name.
Enter personal technology. Social Media. LinkedIn. Netflix.
By the time I went to University, I could tell something was wrong. I decided to graduate in 2 years instead of the traditional 4, and pursued in office jobs in technology full time as an undergraduate. I began working with innovators, building expertise in User Research, Product Marketing, and Design. After years in early stage technology and Venture Capital, I realized innovation needed improvement. We weren’t addressing human needs anymore, and instead were simply building tech. So, I left.
I lived in London, then Tokyo, then NYC, then Cambridge, UK, obtaining an MA/MSc in Global Innovation Design and a PhD in Architecture, specializing in nonverbal interactions and design research around third space, human sensory modalities in HCI, and novel cultural ethnography.
As an expert in trends forecasting and ethnography, I help businesses, designers, and technology companies create products, services, and spaces that just “hit”.
All of this is really about a fight for connection in a world of isolation - its about shifting the narrative and understanding that we can still put human-ness first, it just may require a new approach. And it will truly benefit all.
With Love,
Story
About the Founder:
Tarika Kumar is a design researcher, strategist, and trends forecaster whose work explores how design can restore depth, connection, and meaning in a rapidly shifting world.
With a PhD in Architecture from the University of Cambridge and an MA/MSc in Global Innovation Design from the Royal College of Art and Imperial College London, Tarika’s work spans consulting, writing, and teaching. She has advised Fortune 500 companies, early-stage startups, and cultural institutions: always working at the intersection of aesthetics, ethics, and futures thinking.
She is the founder of Elsewhere, a studio within her practice dedicated to designing third spaces, physical, digital, and conceptual, that reconnect people in fragmented times.
Our rates
Talk therapy
Online or in-person, this is designated for individuals to process and explore their thoughts. Typically, meetings are weekly or bi-weekly.
60 mins | $300 | Get started
Psychiatric session
Online or in-person, this time will be spent evaluating your physical and mental health to provide medication to alleviate mental health symptoms. This does not include talk therapy.
45 mins | $250 | Get started
Coaching session
Online or in-person, this session will help you with what you care most about and develop a plan to achieve personal and professional goals.
50 mins | $200 | Get started
Acupuncture session
In-person only, this session helps alleviate pain and treat various physical, mental, and emotional conditions.
60 mins | $250 | Get started
Check your insurance.
We usually take many commonly known insurances.
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