About Us
Building paths toward liveable futures
Our Mission
Our Approach
Every organization has different capacities, contexts and budget. We understand that resources can be limited, so we offer flexible arrangements that adapt to your needs without compromising quality or integrity.
You don’t need a tech background to work with us. Our process is designed to be user friendly and collaborative, so your ideas and expertise remain at the center. We’ll guide the digital side of things, while you focus on the ideas and impact that matter most.
We use a framework we call UX for Knowledge Mobilization, an approach that helps translate research and insights into accessible, engaging formats. The aim is simple: to make important ideas move, reaching the people and places where it can create real social value.
By helping others mobilize meaningful ideas, we also sustain our own circle of learning. We use parts of our revenue to nurture youth communities through Anotasi.org and beyond, so they too can grow as knowledge producers in their own right.
Our Story
Lab Anotasi started from a discomfort
We come from the tech and commercial world, where strategy, design, and user experience are taken seriously, clarity is expected, aesthetics matter, and impact is measured. At some point, it no longer felt enough to just be good at what we did.
In 2019, we built Anotasi.org to open access to alternative knowledge on social issues and the humanities. What began as an experiment brought us into communities and movements doing deeply meaningful work.
There, we noticed a tension: important issues and meaningful ideas often stayed within small circles, while communication, constrained by limited resources, exposure, and time was treated as an afterthought.
We realized the skills we took for granted were rare in this space. Coming from tech industry, and communication, we saw how tools common in the commercial world were often inaccessible in academics work and social justice. We kept asking ourselves: if these skills help ideas move, be understood, and mobilize people, why are they so absent where they are most needed?
Lab Anotasi exists as a lever to bring clarity, care, and strategic communication into spaces where meaning already exists, but often struggles to travel. We work with non-profits and courageous brands that want to engage people and systems more thoughtfully.
If you find yourself carrying similar questions, navigating a communication challenge, or simply wanting to think things through with someone we’re open to conversations. You can reach out to consult, collaborate, or just talk. Sometimes, clarity starts there.
Our team
Transdisiplicary by practice, grounded in care
Marissa Saraswati
Dian (Aya) Soraya
Principal Consultant
diansoraya.com
Aya is a design and technology practitioner with experience across startups, big tech, and public-facing institutions. She holds an MFA in Design and Technology from Parsons School of Design as a Fulbright Award grantee, and a Bachelor’s degree in Industrial Engineering from Universitas Islam Indonesia.
Her work spans product design, UX leadership, and systems thinking—working with organizations such as TikTok Shop Southeast Asia, Tokopedia, Blibli, and Traveloka. At Lab Anotasi, Aya passionate to bring clarity, and structure to complex work. Outside of work, she enjoys vacuuming and spending time with her cat, Semi.
Annisa Beta
Advisor
Annisa is a Lecturer in Cultural Studies at the School of Culture and Communication, University of Melbourne, Australia. Her research is broadly concerned with political subjectivity, youth, and new media. Annisa is one of Anotasi's co-founders.
Designing with care