Funded by the Hasso Plattner Design Thinking Research Program
Arguably the most pressing and urgent threats to the health and well-being of our society--climate change, resource degradation and most recently, COVID-19--are at their core collective action issues. This project seeks to address how we can most effectively cultivate the transition from individual- to collective-action mindsets to advance sustainability solutions, leveraging process and insight-driven aspects of design thinking.
Our research project begins with a synthesis of what we’ve learned to date regarding the application of design thinking to collective environmental action challenges, as well as the theoretical underpinnings of design thinking aimed to catalyze innovation and collaboration. Through our review and analysis of peer-reviewed literature, in conjunction with insights from interviews and writings of design-thinking practitioners, we seek to elucidate the aspects of design thinking that most effectively foster shifts toward collective mindsets to address complex social-ecological challenges.
This project is intended to lay foundations for new partnerships, and to bolster existing partnerships, among community practitioners, the d.school, and the Social Ecology Lab. Activities working toward that goal include developing shared vision, understandings, language, and skills that contribute to on-the-ground, in-the-field use of design-thinking mindsets, research, and practices in the sustainability space.