Thinking Materials

Project timeframe
1 November 2016 - 31 July 2017
Research area
Design Practice
Amount awarded
£72,000
Funder ID
AHRC

Project leader: Dr Mark Evans

Funded by the UK Arts and Humanities Research Council, the Thinking Materials project explored ways in which innovative materials selection in emerging economies could be used to identify new product opportunities.

Using co-design and product design thinking to identify materials-led product opportunities, an international team of six academic researchers and eight industrial designers translated findings from the research into tangible products and design resources with which to engage key stakeholders. Outputs included a fold-out design tool; website/video; presentations/exhibitions in Kenya, Uganda, Indonesia, Turkey, 2018 London Design Festival; and an International Design Excellence Award.