Why does design matter?

Design affects all aspects of an organisation in ways that are both seen and clearly understood, and also unseen, unclear and pervasive. It can be the latter that has the greatest impact on the people who work in an organisation, those who visit it, or those who might walk past on the street.

What are the core reasons for which we need a design process?

A design process is needed to ensure that the end result really does fulfil a need, ideally to the best extent possible. Design thinking charges us with being given the white pages of history on which to create beauty for the future (Starck, 2007). It entails needfinding, brainstorming and prototyping preferably in multidisciplinary teams (Seidel & Fixson, 2013, pp. 19-21) . Without interdisciplinary teams the hope of enriching a human experience is seriously challenged (Buchanan, 1992, p. 6).

What might be the role of design when we think about learning spaces?

The aim of utilising a design thinking process for learning space development is to build the learning capacity of students and enhance the teaching practitioner’s role. Design thinking is strategic because it unleashes the disruptive, game changing potential that is latent in everything (Brown, 2009, p. 7).

References

Brown, T. (2009).   Change by Design How Design Thinking Transforms Organizations and Inspires   Innovation. New York: Harper Collins.

Buchanan, R.   (1992). Wicked Problems in Design Thinking. Design Issues Vol 8 No 2,   5-21.

Seidel, V., &   Fixson, S. (2013). Adopting Design Thinking In Novice Multidisciplinary   Teams: The Application ans Limits of Design Methods and Reflexive Practices. Journal   Of Product Innovation Management, 30, 19-33.

Starck, P. (2007,   March). Design and Destiny. Philippe Starck Thinks Deep On Design.   Retrieved July 5, 2014, from http://www.ted.com/talks/philippe_starck_thinks_deep_on_design