Kelly M. Murdoch-Kitt
- Courses1
- Reviews3
- School: University of Michigan
- Campus:
- Department: Art
- Email address: Join to see
- Phone: Join to see
-
Location:
500 S State St
Ann Arbor, MI - 48109 - Dates at University of Michigan: October 2017 - November 2018
- Office Hours: Join to see
Biography
University of Michigan - Art
Experience
University of Michigan
Assistant Professor
My appointment in the Stamps School of Art & Design at the University of Michigan includes teaching courses across the interdisciplinary undergraduate Art & Design curriculum, such as interaction design, 2D foundations studio, typography, and the year-long senior thesis course (Integrative Project). Students in these courses explore complex 21st-century issues, and combine historical and multicultural perspectives with theory, criticism, process, investigation and application to arrive at dynamic and multifaceted design approaches, services, and experiences. This position also includes curriculum and project development, independent studies, graduate advising, and undergraduate mentorship. Grant-funded research and collaboration (across disciplines and with community partners) are also regular activities within this role.
Creative Mind for Hire
Owner/Graphic Designer
Designer, Copywriter, Owner, Principal. Creative and strategic work for clients in the arts, hospitality industry, environmental engineering, small businesses, educational institutions, and non-profit organizations.
gotomedia
Contractor, Research & UX specialist
Client work includes researching, writing and designing competitive analyses and designing research summary infographics; writing and conducting in-person and remote usability testing sessions; collecting and interpreting data from usability testing sessions and stakeholder interviews; and copywriting and editing website content. Also researching users’ emotional response to interaction design experiences.
California College of the Arts
Adjunct Faculty, Graphic Design
Taught an introduction to interaction design course for graphic design majors, with focus on user-centered design research practices and how those inform visual design strategies.
Rochester Institute of Technology
Assistant Professor
Currently teaching junior and senior level classes in user-centered research methods and usability, basic front-end web development, and interaction design.
Education
School of Visual Arts
Summer program in Design Writing & Research
Wake Forest University
BFA
Studio Art/Theatre
Presidential Scholarship
Distinguished Achievement in Art (1997–2000)Eleanor Layfield Davis Scholarship
Leadership & Excellence in ArtEmily Crandall Shaw Scholarship
Top Liberal Arts ScholarD. A. Brown Award
Excellence in WritingNorth Carolina State University
MGD
Master of Graphic Design
Master's thesis abstract excerpt: "This design investigation leverages virtual and face-to-face communications to intervene in two concepts that have become opaque, distant, and fractured in American culture: food and the local community. Food in 21st century American culture is a myth constructed by science, advertising and marketing, from which the hegemony of industrial agriculture has emerged. Conversely, many of the people who identify with the sustainable agriculture movement are currently a latent group. By visually connecting different levels of participants to information and to each other, this latent group comes into existence as a physical community linked and reinforced by ongoing virtual communications. Eventually, participants’ activity in the community and the information they contribute creates a visual record that can become valuable beyond the immediate community of interest as policy-makers seek evidence of public activity and interest around the topic of sustainable agriculture in North Carolina."
Publications
Mapping Insights to Product Strategy: Emotional Targets for the Future of Learning
Proceedings of the 8th International Conference on Design & Emotion hosted by Central Saint Martins College of Arts and Design University of the Arts London 11-14 September 2012.
Our design and research firm partnered with a major educational publisher to understand the current state of learning in a college environment and gather insights about unmet needs. We sought to translate emotional insights into actionable ideas for their product. We created a map that connects key findings from the in-person student interviews and emotional targets, with the goal of informing the client’s product development strategy for the Future of Learning.
Mapping Insights to Product Strategy: Emotional Targets for the Future of Learning
Proceedings of the 8th International Conference on Design & Emotion hosted by Central Saint Martins College of Arts and Design University of the Arts London 11-14 September 2012.
Our design and research firm partnered with a major educational publisher to understand the current state of learning in a college environment and gather insights about unmet needs. We sought to translate emotional insights into actionable ideas for their product. We created a map that connects key findings from the in-person student interviews and emotional targets, with the goal of informing the client’s product development strategy for the Future of Learning.
City reflections: design collaborations for cross-cultural learning
Proceedings of the 2nd International Conference for Design Education Researchers
Design educators must learn to develop and lead successful intercultural projects and exchanges for students entering into a globally connected and diverse profession. Teaching students to approach problems by using collaborative and interpersonal skills provides them with durable assets to better understand international audiences, colleagues, and perspectives. The proliferation and integration of first-hand cross-cultural experiences into design curricula can result in innovation and knowledge sharing, indicating synergistic properties in which the whole is greater than the sum of the parts. This research explores how collaborations between geographically separate design students in San Francisco, California, USA and Dubai, UAE—mediated by virtual communication—can impact learning, cultural awareness, and audience sensitivity. The two distinct courses challenge students to work together in teams, understand a range of audiences, give and receive critical feedback, exchange projects, and respond with culturally sensitive design solutions. The paper introduces the rationale, methods and design-related outcomes of a series of collaborations to encourage design educators to develop cross-cultural methods in their own classrooms.
Mapping Insights to Product Strategy: Emotional Targets for the Future of Learning
Proceedings of the 8th International Conference on Design & Emotion hosted by Central Saint Martins College of Arts and Design University of the Arts London 11-14 September 2012.
Our design and research firm partnered with a major educational publisher to understand the current state of learning in a college environment and gather insights about unmet needs. We sought to translate emotional insights into actionable ideas for their product. We created a map that connects key findings from the in-person student interviews and emotional targets, with the goal of informing the client’s product development strategy for the Future of Learning.
City reflections: design collaborations for cross-cultural learning
Proceedings of the 2nd International Conference for Design Education Researchers
Design educators must learn to develop and lead successful intercultural projects and exchanges for students entering into a globally connected and diverse profession. Teaching students to approach problems by using collaborative and interpersonal skills provides them with durable assets to better understand international audiences, colleagues, and perspectives. The proliferation and integration of first-hand cross-cultural experiences into design curricula can result in innovation and knowledge sharing, indicating synergistic properties in which the whole is greater than the sum of the parts. This research explores how collaborations between geographically separate design students in San Francisco, California, USA and Dubai, UAE—mediated by virtual communication—can impact learning, cultural awareness, and audience sensitivity. The two distinct courses challenge students to work together in teams, understand a range of audiences, give and receive critical feedback, exchange projects, and respond with culturally sensitive design solutions. The paper introduces the rationale, methods and design-related outcomes of a series of collaborations to encourage design educators to develop cross-cultural methods in their own classrooms.
Experiential Elements of High-to-Low-Context Cultures
LearnxDesign: Proceedings of the 3rd International Conference for Design Education Researchers, Vol. III.
Abstract: Intercultural design collaboration (IDC) is a cross-cultural exchange that can take place between visual, spatial, product and digital designers. IDC involves a shared approach to gathering information, making decisions, creative production, critique, and developing design solutions. IDC methodologies can provide designers with the cross-cultural experiences and competencies necessary to navigate an increasingly globalized landscape. This qualitative study combines Edward T. Hall’s theories of high- and low-context cultures with Elizabeth Tunstall’s ‘Five Experiential Elements of Community’ to explore the impacts and outcomes of IDC between two geographically distinct groups of students and faculty. The exploratory research in distance collaboration uses grounded theory to compare and analyse the experiences and interactions of independent groups of participants located in the United States and the Gulf Region over a period of four separate academic semesters. Findings indicate that a blended approach integrating ‘communication’ and ‘design’ into the methodology can increase cultural understanding, break down perceived barriers, and promote effective design outcomes. As such, this comparative analysis aims to share findings and recommendations with design educators while advancing IDC between students situated in seemingly disparate cultural contexts.
Mapping Insights to Product Strategy: Emotional Targets for the Future of Learning
Proceedings of the 8th International Conference on Design & Emotion hosted by Central Saint Martins College of Arts and Design University of the Arts London 11-14 September 2012.
Our design and research firm partnered with a major educational publisher to understand the current state of learning in a college environment and gather insights about unmet needs. We sought to translate emotional insights into actionable ideas for their product. We created a map that connects key findings from the in-person student interviews and emotional targets, with the goal of informing the client’s product development strategy for the Future of Learning.
City reflections: design collaborations for cross-cultural learning
Proceedings of the 2nd International Conference for Design Education Researchers
Design educators must learn to develop and lead successful intercultural projects and exchanges for students entering into a globally connected and diverse profession. Teaching students to approach problems by using collaborative and interpersonal skills provides them with durable assets to better understand international audiences, colleagues, and perspectives. The proliferation and integration of first-hand cross-cultural experiences into design curricula can result in innovation and knowledge sharing, indicating synergistic properties in which the whole is greater than the sum of the parts. This research explores how collaborations between geographically separate design students in San Francisco, California, USA and Dubai, UAE—mediated by virtual communication—can impact learning, cultural awareness, and audience sensitivity. The two distinct courses challenge students to work together in teams, understand a range of audiences, give and receive critical feedback, exchange projects, and respond with culturally sensitive design solutions. The paper introduces the rationale, methods and design-related outcomes of a series of collaborations to encourage design educators to develop cross-cultural methods in their own classrooms.
Experiential Elements of High-to-Low-Context Cultures
LearnxDesign: Proceedings of the 3rd International Conference for Design Education Researchers, Vol. III.
Abstract: Intercultural design collaboration (IDC) is a cross-cultural exchange that can take place between visual, spatial, product and digital designers. IDC involves a shared approach to gathering information, making decisions, creative production, critique, and developing design solutions. IDC methodologies can provide designers with the cross-cultural experiences and competencies necessary to navigate an increasingly globalized landscape. This qualitative study combines Edward T. Hall’s theories of high- and low-context cultures with Elizabeth Tunstall’s ‘Five Experiential Elements of Community’ to explore the impacts and outcomes of IDC between two geographically distinct groups of students and faculty. The exploratory research in distance collaboration uses grounded theory to compare and analyse the experiences and interactions of independent groups of participants located in the United States and the Gulf Region over a period of four separate academic semesters. Findings indicate that a blended approach integrating ‘communication’ and ‘design’ into the methodology can increase cultural understanding, break down perceived barriers, and promote effective design outcomes. As such, this comparative analysis aims to share findings and recommendations with design educators while advancing IDC between students situated in seemingly disparate cultural contexts.
Design Nexus: integrating cross-cultural learning experiences into graphic design education
Studies in Material Thinking, Volume 11: Re / materialising Design Education Futures
As twenty-first century design professionals engage in an expanding global landscape, prowess in international systems and marketplaces is more necessary than ever before. Designers must not only understand how to connect with widespread audiences in visual terms, but employ a range of communication skills to collaborate practically with international partners. From large-scale initiatives to community-based, grassroots projects; creating for and alongside different cultures is increasingly commonplace in professional design practice. In this regard, the importance of culture, language, religion, tradition, and gender is not only paramount to effective communication with each unique audience, but is of utmost importance to collaborations with multinational business partners, interdisciplinary team-members, and community participants. At the same time, young designers often lack the soft skills required to succeed in this “connected” intercontinental workplace. Their educational process should prepare them in developing skills to better understand cross-cultural issues, audiences, and colleagues.
Mapping Insights to Product Strategy: Emotional Targets for the Future of Learning
Proceedings of the 8th International Conference on Design & Emotion hosted by Central Saint Martins College of Arts and Design University of the Arts London 11-14 September 2012.
Our design and research firm partnered with a major educational publisher to understand the current state of learning in a college environment and gather insights about unmet needs. We sought to translate emotional insights into actionable ideas for their product. We created a map that connects key findings from the in-person student interviews and emotional targets, with the goal of informing the client’s product development strategy for the Future of Learning.
City reflections: design collaborations for cross-cultural learning
Proceedings of the 2nd International Conference for Design Education Researchers
Design educators must learn to develop and lead successful intercultural projects and exchanges for students entering into a globally connected and diverse profession. Teaching students to approach problems by using collaborative and interpersonal skills provides them with durable assets to better understand international audiences, colleagues, and perspectives. The proliferation and integration of first-hand cross-cultural experiences into design curricula can result in innovation and knowledge sharing, indicating synergistic properties in which the whole is greater than the sum of the parts. This research explores how collaborations between geographically separate design students in San Francisco, California, USA and Dubai, UAE—mediated by virtual communication—can impact learning, cultural awareness, and audience sensitivity. The two distinct courses challenge students to work together in teams, understand a range of audiences, give and receive critical feedback, exchange projects, and respond with culturally sensitive design solutions. The paper introduces the rationale, methods and design-related outcomes of a series of collaborations to encourage design educators to develop cross-cultural methods in their own classrooms.
Experiential Elements of High-to-Low-Context Cultures
LearnxDesign: Proceedings of the 3rd International Conference for Design Education Researchers, Vol. III.
Abstract: Intercultural design collaboration (IDC) is a cross-cultural exchange that can take place between visual, spatial, product and digital designers. IDC involves a shared approach to gathering information, making decisions, creative production, critique, and developing design solutions. IDC methodologies can provide designers with the cross-cultural experiences and competencies necessary to navigate an increasingly globalized landscape. This qualitative study combines Edward T. Hall’s theories of high- and low-context cultures with Elizabeth Tunstall’s ‘Five Experiential Elements of Community’ to explore the impacts and outcomes of IDC between two geographically distinct groups of students and faculty. The exploratory research in distance collaboration uses grounded theory to compare and analyse the experiences and interactions of independent groups of participants located in the United States and the Gulf Region over a period of four separate academic semesters. Findings indicate that a blended approach integrating ‘communication’ and ‘design’ into the methodology can increase cultural understanding, break down perceived barriers, and promote effective design outcomes. As such, this comparative analysis aims to share findings and recommendations with design educators while advancing IDC between students situated in seemingly disparate cultural contexts.
Design Nexus: integrating cross-cultural learning experiences into graphic design education
Studies in Material Thinking, Volume 11: Re / materialising Design Education Futures
As twenty-first century design professionals engage in an expanding global landscape, prowess in international systems and marketplaces is more necessary than ever before. Designers must not only understand how to connect with widespread audiences in visual terms, but employ a range of communication skills to collaborate practically with international partners. From large-scale initiatives to community-based, grassroots projects; creating for and alongside different cultures is increasingly commonplace in professional design practice. In this regard, the importance of culture, language, religion, tradition, and gender is not only paramount to effective communication with each unique audience, but is of utmost importance to collaborations with multinational business partners, interdisciplinary team-members, and community participants. At the same time, young designers often lack the soft skills required to succeed in this “connected” intercontinental workplace. Their educational process should prepare them in developing skills to better understand cross-cultural issues, audiences, and colleagues.
A Visual World Demands Design Sense: Advocating for Visual Communication Across the Curriculum
Design Principles and Practices: An International Journal.
Would the world be different if everyone learned design thinking and visual communication skills? Speaking and writing have long been prized in academia and business, resulting in many American universities implementing communication across their curriculum programs. However, these programs exclude visual communication / design knowledge. We propose that basic design knowledge is necessary for higher education graduates, regardless of their disciplines. Our increasingly visual culture often requires non-designers in the professional realm to visualize their ideas. As educators from different ends of the visual communication spectrum, we believe professional designers should help integrate design literacy into higher education curricula.
Mapping Insights to Product Strategy: Emotional Targets for the Future of Learning
Proceedings of the 8th International Conference on Design & Emotion hosted by Central Saint Martins College of Arts and Design University of the Arts London 11-14 September 2012.
Our design and research firm partnered with a major educational publisher to understand the current state of learning in a college environment and gather insights about unmet needs. We sought to translate emotional insights into actionable ideas for their product. We created a map that connects key findings from the in-person student interviews and emotional targets, with the goal of informing the client’s product development strategy for the Future of Learning.
City reflections: design collaborations for cross-cultural learning
Proceedings of the 2nd International Conference for Design Education Researchers
Design educators must learn to develop and lead successful intercultural projects and exchanges for students entering into a globally connected and diverse profession. Teaching students to approach problems by using collaborative and interpersonal skills provides them with durable assets to better understand international audiences, colleagues, and perspectives. The proliferation and integration of first-hand cross-cultural experiences into design curricula can result in innovation and knowledge sharing, indicating synergistic properties in which the whole is greater than the sum of the parts. This research explores how collaborations between geographically separate design students in San Francisco, California, USA and Dubai, UAE—mediated by virtual communication—can impact learning, cultural awareness, and audience sensitivity. The two distinct courses challenge students to work together in teams, understand a range of audiences, give and receive critical feedback, exchange projects, and respond with culturally sensitive design solutions. The paper introduces the rationale, methods and design-related outcomes of a series of collaborations to encourage design educators to develop cross-cultural methods in their own classrooms.
Experiential Elements of High-to-Low-Context Cultures
LearnxDesign: Proceedings of the 3rd International Conference for Design Education Researchers, Vol. III.
Abstract: Intercultural design collaboration (IDC) is a cross-cultural exchange that can take place between visual, spatial, product and digital designers. IDC involves a shared approach to gathering information, making decisions, creative production, critique, and developing design solutions. IDC methodologies can provide designers with the cross-cultural experiences and competencies necessary to navigate an increasingly globalized landscape. This qualitative study combines Edward T. Hall’s theories of high- and low-context cultures with Elizabeth Tunstall’s ‘Five Experiential Elements of Community’ to explore the impacts and outcomes of IDC between two geographically distinct groups of students and faculty. The exploratory research in distance collaboration uses grounded theory to compare and analyse the experiences and interactions of independent groups of participants located in the United States and the Gulf Region over a period of four separate academic semesters. Findings indicate that a blended approach integrating ‘communication’ and ‘design’ into the methodology can increase cultural understanding, break down perceived barriers, and promote effective design outcomes. As such, this comparative analysis aims to share findings and recommendations with design educators while advancing IDC between students situated in seemingly disparate cultural contexts.
Design Nexus: integrating cross-cultural learning experiences into graphic design education
Studies in Material Thinking, Volume 11: Re / materialising Design Education Futures
As twenty-first century design professionals engage in an expanding global landscape, prowess in international systems and marketplaces is more necessary than ever before. Designers must not only understand how to connect with widespread audiences in visual terms, but employ a range of communication skills to collaborate practically with international partners. From large-scale initiatives to community-based, grassroots projects; creating for and alongside different cultures is increasingly commonplace in professional design practice. In this regard, the importance of culture, language, religion, tradition, and gender is not only paramount to effective communication with each unique audience, but is of utmost importance to collaborations with multinational business partners, interdisciplinary team-members, and community participants. At the same time, young designers often lack the soft skills required to succeed in this “connected” intercontinental workplace. Their educational process should prepare them in developing skills to better understand cross-cultural issues, audiences, and colleagues.
A Visual World Demands Design Sense: Advocating for Visual Communication Across the Curriculum
Design Principles and Practices: An International Journal.
Would the world be different if everyone learned design thinking and visual communication skills? Speaking and writing have long been prized in academia and business, resulting in many American universities implementing communication across their curriculum programs. However, these programs exclude visual communication / design knowledge. We propose that basic design knowledge is necessary for higher education graduates, regardless of their disciplines. Our increasingly visual culture often requires non-designers in the professional realm to visualize their ideas. As educators from different ends of the visual communication spectrum, we believe professional designers should help integrate design literacy into higher education curricula.
My Water, My Change: Confronting Global Water Concerns through Cross-Cultural Collaboration
Design With the other 90%: Cumulus Johannesburg Conference Proceedings
Water is vital to life; this is a simple fact, but human behaviors and relationships with water are increasingly complex. Designers at the undergraduate level should learn to confront the complexities of water scarcity and conservation, as well as how to discuss, explore and design for these issues in a global context. In response to this need, two design educators fused visual communication, international relations, and two geographically distinct graphic design courses to address the theme of water sustainability. Through an ongoing series of cross-cultural virtual collaborations between classrooms located in the Middle East and North America, students created interactive and experiential solutions to understand the ecological centrality and social importance of water. Students learned to work within teams to create new tools, approaches, and communication interventions with the goals of raising community awareness, educating, and/or changing behaviors regarding water use. As a product of the collaboration, exhibitions of the student projects in Doha, Qatar and Rochester, New York, USA delivered the poignant message that, regardless of a country’s existing resources, drastic changes are needed to respond to the water crisis in a timely manner. This research contributes to a growing dialogue on the future of water across the globe, while advocating for increased opportunities for cross-cultural collaboration in the design classroom. The curriculum developed by the two lead faculty and its resulting design outcomes are presented to encourage continued creative innovation for environmental stewardship—an imperative that extends past the borders of region, country, or nation.
Mapping Insights to Product Strategy: Emotional Targets for the Future of Learning
Proceedings of the 8th International Conference on Design & Emotion hosted by Central Saint Martins College of Arts and Design University of the Arts London 11-14 September 2012.
Our design and research firm partnered with a major educational publisher to understand the current state of learning in a college environment and gather insights about unmet needs. We sought to translate emotional insights into actionable ideas for their product. We created a map that connects key findings from the in-person student interviews and emotional targets, with the goal of informing the client’s product development strategy for the Future of Learning.
City reflections: design collaborations for cross-cultural learning
Proceedings of the 2nd International Conference for Design Education Researchers
Design educators must learn to develop and lead successful intercultural projects and exchanges for students entering into a globally connected and diverse profession. Teaching students to approach problems by using collaborative and interpersonal skills provides them with durable assets to better understand international audiences, colleagues, and perspectives. The proliferation and integration of first-hand cross-cultural experiences into design curricula can result in innovation and knowledge sharing, indicating synergistic properties in which the whole is greater than the sum of the parts. This research explores how collaborations between geographically separate design students in San Francisco, California, USA and Dubai, UAE—mediated by virtual communication—can impact learning, cultural awareness, and audience sensitivity. The two distinct courses challenge students to work together in teams, understand a range of audiences, give and receive critical feedback, exchange projects, and respond with culturally sensitive design solutions. The paper introduces the rationale, methods and design-related outcomes of a series of collaborations to encourage design educators to develop cross-cultural methods in their own classrooms.
Experiential Elements of High-to-Low-Context Cultures
LearnxDesign: Proceedings of the 3rd International Conference for Design Education Researchers, Vol. III.
Abstract: Intercultural design collaboration (IDC) is a cross-cultural exchange that can take place between visual, spatial, product and digital designers. IDC involves a shared approach to gathering information, making decisions, creative production, critique, and developing design solutions. IDC methodologies can provide designers with the cross-cultural experiences and competencies necessary to navigate an increasingly globalized landscape. This qualitative study combines Edward T. Hall’s theories of high- and low-context cultures with Elizabeth Tunstall’s ‘Five Experiential Elements of Community’ to explore the impacts and outcomes of IDC between two geographically distinct groups of students and faculty. The exploratory research in distance collaboration uses grounded theory to compare and analyse the experiences and interactions of independent groups of participants located in the United States and the Gulf Region over a period of four separate academic semesters. Findings indicate that a blended approach integrating ‘communication’ and ‘design’ into the methodology can increase cultural understanding, break down perceived barriers, and promote effective design outcomes. As such, this comparative analysis aims to share findings and recommendations with design educators while advancing IDC between students situated in seemingly disparate cultural contexts.
Design Nexus: integrating cross-cultural learning experiences into graphic design education
Studies in Material Thinking, Volume 11: Re / materialising Design Education Futures
As twenty-first century design professionals engage in an expanding global landscape, prowess in international systems and marketplaces is more necessary than ever before. Designers must not only understand how to connect with widespread audiences in visual terms, but employ a range of communication skills to collaborate practically with international partners. From large-scale initiatives to community-based, grassroots projects; creating for and alongside different cultures is increasingly commonplace in professional design practice. In this regard, the importance of culture, language, religion, tradition, and gender is not only paramount to effective communication with each unique audience, but is of utmost importance to collaborations with multinational business partners, interdisciplinary team-members, and community participants. At the same time, young designers often lack the soft skills required to succeed in this “connected” intercontinental workplace. Their educational process should prepare them in developing skills to better understand cross-cultural issues, audiences, and colleagues.
A Visual World Demands Design Sense: Advocating for Visual Communication Across the Curriculum
Design Principles and Practices: An International Journal.
Would the world be different if everyone learned design thinking and visual communication skills? Speaking and writing have long been prized in academia and business, resulting in many American universities implementing communication across their curriculum programs. However, these programs exclude visual communication / design knowledge. We propose that basic design knowledge is necessary for higher education graduates, regardless of their disciplines. Our increasingly visual culture often requires non-designers in the professional realm to visualize their ideas. As educators from different ends of the visual communication spectrum, we believe professional designers should help integrate design literacy into higher education curricula.
My Water, My Change: Confronting Global Water Concerns through Cross-Cultural Collaboration
Design With the other 90%: Cumulus Johannesburg Conference Proceedings
Water is vital to life; this is a simple fact, but human behaviors and relationships with water are increasingly complex. Designers at the undergraduate level should learn to confront the complexities of water scarcity and conservation, as well as how to discuss, explore and design for these issues in a global context. In response to this need, two design educators fused visual communication, international relations, and two geographically distinct graphic design courses to address the theme of water sustainability. Through an ongoing series of cross-cultural virtual collaborations between classrooms located in the Middle East and North America, students created interactive and experiential solutions to understand the ecological centrality and social importance of water. Students learned to work within teams to create new tools, approaches, and communication interventions with the goals of raising community awareness, educating, and/or changing behaviors regarding water use. As a product of the collaboration, exhibitions of the student projects in Doha, Qatar and Rochester, New York, USA delivered the poignant message that, regardless of a country’s existing resources, drastic changes are needed to respond to the water crisis in a timely manner. This research contributes to a growing dialogue on the future of water across the globe, while advocating for increased opportunities for cross-cultural collaboration in the design classroom. The curriculum developed by the two lead faculty and its resulting design outcomes are presented to encourage continued creative innovation for environmental stewardship—an imperative that extends past the borders of region, country, or nation.
Sustainability at the forefront: educating students through complex challenges in visual communication and design
Interdisciplinary Environmental Review, Vol. 16, Nos. 2/3/4, pp.285–311.
Abstract: Although a range of academic disciplines in higher education are now introducing sustainability into their curricula, the need to present this concept to graphic design and visual communication students is especially important. These fields influence trends in society and culture and have great potential to impact decision-making for individuals, corporate practices, policies, and politics. Recent workforce surveys (Adecco Group, 2013; Workforce Solutions Group, 2013) reveal that employers across many fields value ‘soft skills’ more than technical skills. Acquiring these competencies can stem from experience in sustainable development and include: applying human-centred research methodology; systems-based thinking; awareness of human behaviours and impacts; tackling complex problems and employing creative approaches to solutions. Although these skills make students more competitive in the workforce, recent graduates often lack these capabilities. Therefore, this paper considers a collection of case studies from university-level graphic design and visual communication courses that used project-based learning to further sustainable practices. Examining multiple projects helped researchers highlight broader themes, learning advantages, best practices and methods for students to evaluate outcomes. The anticipated benefits are that students who use visual communication in the classroom, while tackling the complexity of promoting sustainable public practices, will likely develop unique problem-solving abilities as they simultaneously brainstorm and design potential solutions.
Mapping Insights to Product Strategy: Emotional Targets for the Future of Learning
Proceedings of the 8th International Conference on Design & Emotion hosted by Central Saint Martins College of Arts and Design University of the Arts London 11-14 September 2012.
Our design and research firm partnered with a major educational publisher to understand the current state of learning in a college environment and gather insights about unmet needs. We sought to translate emotional insights into actionable ideas for their product. We created a map that connects key findings from the in-person student interviews and emotional targets, with the goal of informing the client’s product development strategy for the Future of Learning.
City reflections: design collaborations for cross-cultural learning
Proceedings of the 2nd International Conference for Design Education Researchers
Design educators must learn to develop and lead successful intercultural projects and exchanges for students entering into a globally connected and diverse profession. Teaching students to approach problems by using collaborative and interpersonal skills provides them with durable assets to better understand international audiences, colleagues, and perspectives. The proliferation and integration of first-hand cross-cultural experiences into design curricula can result in innovation and knowledge sharing, indicating synergistic properties in which the whole is greater than the sum of the parts. This research explores how collaborations between geographically separate design students in San Francisco, California, USA and Dubai, UAE—mediated by virtual communication—can impact learning, cultural awareness, and audience sensitivity. The two distinct courses challenge students to work together in teams, understand a range of audiences, give and receive critical feedback, exchange projects, and respond with culturally sensitive design solutions. The paper introduces the rationale, methods and design-related outcomes of a series of collaborations to encourage design educators to develop cross-cultural methods in their own classrooms.
Experiential Elements of High-to-Low-Context Cultures
LearnxDesign: Proceedings of the 3rd International Conference for Design Education Researchers, Vol. III.
Abstract: Intercultural design collaboration (IDC) is a cross-cultural exchange that can take place between visual, spatial, product and digital designers. IDC involves a shared approach to gathering information, making decisions, creative production, critique, and developing design solutions. IDC methodologies can provide designers with the cross-cultural experiences and competencies necessary to navigate an increasingly globalized landscape. This qualitative study combines Edward T. Hall’s theories of high- and low-context cultures with Elizabeth Tunstall’s ‘Five Experiential Elements of Community’ to explore the impacts and outcomes of IDC between two geographically distinct groups of students and faculty. The exploratory research in distance collaboration uses grounded theory to compare and analyse the experiences and interactions of independent groups of participants located in the United States and the Gulf Region over a period of four separate academic semesters. Findings indicate that a blended approach integrating ‘communication’ and ‘design’ into the methodology can increase cultural understanding, break down perceived barriers, and promote effective design outcomes. As such, this comparative analysis aims to share findings and recommendations with design educators while advancing IDC between students situated in seemingly disparate cultural contexts.
Design Nexus: integrating cross-cultural learning experiences into graphic design education
Studies in Material Thinking, Volume 11: Re / materialising Design Education Futures
As twenty-first century design professionals engage in an expanding global landscape, prowess in international systems and marketplaces is more necessary than ever before. Designers must not only understand how to connect with widespread audiences in visual terms, but employ a range of communication skills to collaborate practically with international partners. From large-scale initiatives to community-based, grassroots projects; creating for and alongside different cultures is increasingly commonplace in professional design practice. In this regard, the importance of culture, language, religion, tradition, and gender is not only paramount to effective communication with each unique audience, but is of utmost importance to collaborations with multinational business partners, interdisciplinary team-members, and community participants. At the same time, young designers often lack the soft skills required to succeed in this “connected” intercontinental workplace. Their educational process should prepare them in developing skills to better understand cross-cultural issues, audiences, and colleagues.
A Visual World Demands Design Sense: Advocating for Visual Communication Across the Curriculum
Design Principles and Practices: An International Journal.
Would the world be different if everyone learned design thinking and visual communication skills? Speaking and writing have long been prized in academia and business, resulting in many American universities implementing communication across their curriculum programs. However, these programs exclude visual communication / design knowledge. We propose that basic design knowledge is necessary for higher education graduates, regardless of their disciplines. Our increasingly visual culture often requires non-designers in the professional realm to visualize their ideas. As educators from different ends of the visual communication spectrum, we believe professional designers should help integrate design literacy into higher education curricula.
My Water, My Change: Confronting Global Water Concerns through Cross-Cultural Collaboration
Design With the other 90%: Cumulus Johannesburg Conference Proceedings
Water is vital to life; this is a simple fact, but human behaviors and relationships with water are increasingly complex. Designers at the undergraduate level should learn to confront the complexities of water scarcity and conservation, as well as how to discuss, explore and design for these issues in a global context. In response to this need, two design educators fused visual communication, international relations, and two geographically distinct graphic design courses to address the theme of water sustainability. Through an ongoing series of cross-cultural virtual collaborations between classrooms located in the Middle East and North America, students created interactive and experiential solutions to understand the ecological centrality and social importance of water. Students learned to work within teams to create new tools, approaches, and communication interventions with the goals of raising community awareness, educating, and/or changing behaviors regarding water use. As a product of the collaboration, exhibitions of the student projects in Doha, Qatar and Rochester, New York, USA delivered the poignant message that, regardless of a country’s existing resources, drastic changes are needed to respond to the water crisis in a timely manner. This research contributes to a growing dialogue on the future of water across the globe, while advocating for increased opportunities for cross-cultural collaboration in the design classroom. The curriculum developed by the two lead faculty and its resulting design outcomes are presented to encourage continued creative innovation for environmental stewardship—an imperative that extends past the borders of region, country, or nation.
Sustainability at the forefront: educating students through complex challenges in visual communication and design
Interdisciplinary Environmental Review, Vol. 16, Nos. 2/3/4, pp.285–311.
Abstract: Although a range of academic disciplines in higher education are now introducing sustainability into their curricula, the need to present this concept to graphic design and visual communication students is especially important. These fields influence trends in society and culture and have great potential to impact decision-making for individuals, corporate practices, policies, and politics. Recent workforce surveys (Adecco Group, 2013; Workforce Solutions Group, 2013) reveal that employers across many fields value ‘soft skills’ more than technical skills. Acquiring these competencies can stem from experience in sustainable development and include: applying human-centred research methodology; systems-based thinking; awareness of human behaviours and impacts; tackling complex problems and employing creative approaches to solutions. Although these skills make students more competitive in the workforce, recent graduates often lack these capabilities. Therefore, this paper considers a collection of case studies from university-level graphic design and visual communication courses that used project-based learning to further sustainable practices. Examining multiple projects helped researchers highlight broader themes, learning advantages, best practices and methods for students to evaluate outcomes. The anticipated benefits are that students who use visual communication in the classroom, while tackling the complexity of promoting sustainable public practices, will likely develop unique problem-solving abilities as they simultaneously brainstorm and design potential solutions.
Virtual communication, physical community : leveraging social tools to build a sustainable food network in Raleigh, North Carolina
North Carolina State University
Master's thesis abstract excerpt: "This design investigation leverages virtual and face-to-face communications to intervene in two concepts that have become opaque, distant, and fractured in American culture: food and the local community. Food in 21st century American culture is a myth constructed by science, advertising and marketing, from which the hegemony of industrial agriculture has emerged. Conversely, many of the people who identify with the sustainable agriculture movement are currently a latent group. By visually connecting different levels of participants to information and to each other, this latent group comes into existence as a physical community linked and reinforced by ongoing virtual communications. Eventually, participants’ activity in the community and the information they contribute creates a visual record that can become valuable beyond the immediate community of interest as policy-makers seek evidence of public activity and interest around the topic of sustainable agriculture in North Carolina."
