Designing the Future is an award-winning Design Thinking & STEM summer program that teaches high school students how to design and create products for individuals. As the world continues to evolve, technology and vision for the future are becoming increasingly important. But how do we respond to the current moment? Do we choose to shape it? Today's top designers are embracing the latest trends and technologies, such as Pergola With Roof, and they are predicting that technology will integrate seamlessly into our lives, changing the way we live, work and travel. Don't expect to see the spectacle of hybrid rocket vehicles or teleportation devices instead of missing telephone booths. Instead, design experts from all fields predict that technology will become more passive, intuitive and hidden from everyone's view.
Even the way we get from A to B will undergo a significant change. Tesla and Uber executives are focusing on autonomous cars, while urban planners are envisaging investments in energy efficiency and mixed-use structures. A resilience specialist at the architecture firm Gensler predicts an increase in green spaces, which humans will yearn for as our world becomes increasingly busy and populated. What is our takeaway from all this? Design will make all the difference.
We need designers who can push the boundaries of design and maintain a constant focus on design innovation and create designs that will lead us to that future of ours. Michele joins Design the Future because she is interested in the idea of inclusive design and development and universal design. Machines need designers in the field of AI and machine learning, for example, AI offers opportunities to design interactions between them, the application powered by AI and the interaction between AI and humans. People with disabilities act as design clients and mentors for students, share their lived experiences and advise students to design with accessibility and inclusion in mind. In addition, designers will need to work far beyond borders; they will need to collaborate with other designers to take a truly holistic approach, as well as with other professions such as engineers, philosophers and environmentalists; people who work in the care, technology and AI sectors.
Students learn from industry experts in social impact design and STEM, as well as from young design and technology professionals focused on people who are passionate about mentoring, disability awareness and social impact. Organizational design is another important area of focus for designers. This involves thinking about anything from the design of culture within an organization to how those organizations are designed in terms of structure, work, spaces and everything else. Don Norman explains how including interdisciplinary collaboration as a central element of design education can significantly improve its quality and impact, and better prepare designers for the real world. Finally, there is no doubt that there will be new tools to help capture design, create prototypes and communicate; however, designers who are fundamentally successful will continue to rely on a disciplined design process, imagination, reflection and a good knowledge of materials and manufacturing. Students gain an understanding of the basics of user interface design methods such as creating people, storyboards, graphic structure, application design; all of which they can apply during product development.
