focuses on the collective and social benefits of design rather than commercial objectives. Over the past several decades, notions of design practice and research have diversified and expanded considerably and designers are realizing their potential as change agents and collaborators within increasingly complex environments.
The aim of the project is to capture the scope of historical and current Social Design research and practice through different areas of specialization such as: inclusive design/accessibility, design for sustainability, social innovation, service design, and design for activism.
These areas are typically covered to some degree within undergraduate design education and a centralized web site (hub) provides an opportunity to bring together concepts, terminology and resources that span a range of design specializations. The intention is that this site can be used by faculty and students to inform curriculum development, teaching, and learning.
This project has been funded by a Sheridan College Scholarship, Research, and Creative Activities Growth Grant. The time frame of the funded portion is from May 2018 to March 2019. The web site will continue to be developed through 2019 with the addition of academic and professional case studies.