Category: Design engagement
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Design at the Sharps End
The smell of oil and grease evokes happy memories of hours teaching in a secondary school engineering work shop, the clatter of tools and low rumble of machinery, familiar and almost homely – but there is another odour, a whiff of ozone, and this is not year seven last period on a wet Wednesday afternoon.
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Designing for Futures
Designing for Futures: Building a Blueprint for Human Potential by Rachel A.Wood. In a world where every moment counts, our early experiences and continuous support shape not only individual destinies but the fabric of our communities. This blog is a tribute to David Farrington’s life course approach and builds upon the ground breaking insights of […]
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Reflections on our face to face design meet-ups this year
We have been delighted to be able to run a number of informal face to face meet ups at various venues across the country this autumn. It has been wonderful to meet with students as well as their partners, children and grandchildren! It has been a joy to meet such enthusiastic students and to see […]
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Designing for possibility and growth: the ‘art of the possible’ meets ‘Jobs-to-be-Done.’
Designing for possibility and growth: the ‘art of the possible’ meets ‘Jobs-to-be-Done.’ By: Rachel A.Wood. In my work as a designer, I use and talk about ‘the art of the possible’ (AoP) and the ‘Jobs-to-be-Done’ (JTBD) method very often. This is mainly because I have found that they are particularly useful in creating and sustaining a […]
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Designing communities for belonging
For years, I’ve been exploring ways to design with and for communities at the Open University (OU). A recent event showcasing student community projects highlighted a growing interest among staff and students in building and supporting these initiatives. Being part of a community or communities instils a sense of belonging. Belonging, a sense of connectedness […]
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Women’s research @ Engineering & Innovation showcase
To celebrate the International Women in Engineering Day 2024 (#INWED24), we organised an online event to showcase some of the cutting-edge research carried out by our women researchers at the School of Engineering and Innovation (E&I) at The Open University (OU). In this event, women researchers at different stages of the research career presented their […]
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Digital Transformation in Finance: Key Takeaways from the Banking Summit
The banking sector, long seen as a bastion of tradition, is undergoing a transformation driven by digital innovation and a renewed focus on user-centric design. At the heart of this transformation is a shift in thinking that prioritises understanding and meeting users’ real needs. As we explore the role of design in banking, it becomes […]
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Presenting Futures Literacy to the Scottish Government
One of the things we get to do now and again as academics is to speak to governments and politicians in policy areas we are interested in. This year, the OU in Scotland contributed to the Royal Society of Chemistry event Science and the Parliament event. This brings together scientists, business, politicians, and government to […]
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The BAD Conference
I recently had the opportunity to attend The Bad Conference, part of Product Design Week #PDW23, organised by Tech Circus in London. The turnout for the in-person event was impressive, with 250 individuals joining in person. Networking, an essential part of such gatherings, felt notably different post-Covid. Rather than the fluid mingling of the past, […]
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Designing the ‘Fry Equation’
Harmonising purpose: exploring the ‘Fry Equation’ and bridging the gap between reform and service design by Rachel A.Wood. Whilst undertaking some literature searches for my design research project, I started to look at significant figures who have worked tirelessly to design, reform, and transform the criminal justice system for mothers in the UK. I […]