Thinking beyond circles: Developing collaborative, cross disciplinary design education for circularity

This presentation discusses a case study of a material-lifecycle design project developed between educators, textile researchers and industry. Designed as a one-week sprint, the cross-disciplinary project invited graphic design students to visualise a product lifecycle for a circular textile industry client, considering the new knowledge that visual communication methods, more traditionally taught in graphic design programmes, bring to these challenges.

Literature discussing practice-based design research recognises the growing demand for design specific research approaches. It also recognises the need for ‘a new kind of designer’ with an ‘expanded capacity to undertake research.’ (Vaughan 2017:1-2). This project explores how cross-disciplinary teaching and learning collaborations contribute to these goals by integrating live research projects with the curriculum through processes of knowledge exchange.

Methods employed in the project were grounded in literature from the field of practice-based iconic research (Renner, 2017); a research practice based on image-making as a means of producing knowledge about visual communication (Schubach, 2017).

The online project design is presented, demonstrating how the brief and activities were structured for students, and framed by relevant literature. The visual prototypes created by students are discussed in relation to the literature and feedback from the students, client and researchers; demonstrating the benefits of the approach for both the students and the researchers

We argue that teaching and learning practices have the potential to play a key role in connecting research and innovation to environmental and social practice. Findings point in the direction of a shared language for discussing the intersections of knowledge exchange, research and teaching within Higher education with reference to existing examples but also to support the development of future models.