Design For The First World: The Rest Saving The West
This is an amazing competition with a twist. It is a call for artists, designers, doers, thinkers, makers, tinkerers and anyone out there born and living in a developing country to come up with ideas to help tackling problems of the first world.
The developing world is used to live and deal with social problems in a daily basis. Financial crisis, health and education challenges, social inequity form part of the DNA of countries such as Mexico, Brazil, Argentina or Malaysia and their problem-framing and problem-solving skills have a great potential to help developing solutions for those countries like the UK that are currently experiencing the effects of social crisis.
Visit the site, join and propagate!
The Challenge Of Co-Production
Voicebox: A Data Visualisation And Youth Insight Project
This video showcases a new service for V, The National Young Volunteers Service developed by London based Sidekick Studios, a service design consultancy who are focused in social innovation and the re-design of public services in the United Kingdom.
User experience design, service design & design thinking : A common story?
How a train rocked my world: Jeneanne Rae on Service Innovation
Named one of the "Magnificient 7 Gurus of Innovation" by BusinessWeek Jeneanne Rae, President and Cofounder of Peer Insight LLC, describes how customer journey mapping and service prototyping affected organizational change in Amtrak during the Acela project.
Lucy Kimbell On User-Centred Design To Designing For Service
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"The distinction is between an idea of design that focuses on the user and their interactions with things, that serves firms and markets, and an idea of design that is about exchanging service for service. The first is rooted in the design professions that emerged to serve a production and consumption economy that emphasized value-in-exchange. The second – visible in emerging practices in design and the car-ecology examples – is shaped by enquiries into value-in-context.
User-centred design asks how can we design a better toaster. Designing for service explores what meaning and what value toast-making has."
Lucy Kimbell 2010
This is an extract of the brilliant paper that Saïd Business School fellow Lucy Kimbell, was to present in the DMI conference Transforming Design in London the past month (before the ashcloud managed to block the skies and it got suspended).
One of the strongest ideas discussed here is the distinction between goods and services in regards of design is outdated. Kimbell argues that in the XXI century the real challenge lies in the designing of the 'service system' or 'ecology', the questions risen by this process and the role of designers and design managers dealing with them.
The conference has been rescheduled for next September 7th in London, more info here.
Get Together: Tackling Loneliness Amongst Older People
Loneliness is endemic amongst older people who live alone, affecting both physical and mental health.
Working in Westminster in London UK, where over 50% of people over 60 live alone, London based service design consultancy Participle have piloted a service to support older people in their desire to lead more social lives; increasing well being and mutual support.
This service is now being launched across the whole of London.
Creative Marketing For Older Audiences: A Review of Data, Research & Literature
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A report from RCA Advantage a new integrated marketing communications agency that brings together an experienced team of creative, marketing and planning experts. RCA provides creative and effective solutions to the marketing challenges posed by an ageing population
