The role of the designer facilitator — A field based design approach towards facilitating a collaborative technology for a health care project

Design has the ability to envision and also integrate within processes for achieving positive societal transformation. Based on my participation in a University-based technology for health care project as a master's thesis I will present a field based design approach for facilitating a collaborative process. I present that a designerly approach can be useful especially in bringing together the users perspective and needs into a multi-disciplinary working team. The University-based project called GloCal is a Mobile Health project from the University of Helsinki. Project GloCal is an effort to reduce infant morbidity and mortality among the underserved populations of the world. I highlight my learning from working with Non-Governmental Organization’s (NGO’s), university researchers and technology developers involved in the project. By presenting the role of the designer in such process, in reflection I will finally share what evolved as a toolset for me during the project. In this manner, the thesis will explore the role of the designer as a facilitator for an inclusive, participatory and iterative process in a technology for healthcare and development project

Including the North : a comparative study of the policies on inclusion and equity in the Circumpolar North

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Capturing the spark: PISA, twenty-first century skills and the reconstruction of creativity

Creativity has fascinated scholars for generations, and its identification as one of the key ‘twenty-first century skills' necessary for economic growth has led to renewed interest. This creates two challenges for the OECD: its flagship Programme of International Student Assessment (PISA) does not directly measure creativity. Secondly, the increased importance attached to creativity has highlighted claims that high performers on PISA are largely nations stereotyped as lacking creativity. This challenges PISA's self-proclaimed status as the premier global benchmark for evaluating and comparing the quality of school systems and weakens its capacity to deliver its core mission; to identify ‘best practices' which ensure economic prosperity. We explore these challenges and examine both how the OECD has responded to them and is moving to include creativity in PISA 2022. We argue that, while a precise definition of creativity has defied scholars for centuries, the indications are that the OECD's metric will focus on a narrow, convergent and easily-measured conception associated with cognitive competencies and linked to enhancing human capital. In this way, the ‘messiness’ around the polysemic concept will be simultaneously both exploited and threatened, as new, measurable versions displace alternatives

e-Skills: The International dimension and the Impact of Globalisation - Final Report 2014

In today’s increasingly knowledge-based economies, new information and communication technologies are a key engine for growth fuelled by the innovative ideas of highly - skilled workers. However, obtaining adequate quantities of employees with the necessary e-skills is a challenge. This is a growing international problem with many countries having an insufficient numbers of workers with the right e-Skills. For example: Australia: “Even though there’s 10,000 jobs a year created in IT, there are only 4500 students studying IT at university, and not all of them graduate” (Talevski and Osman, 2013). Brazil: “Brazil’s ICT sector requires about 78,000 [new] people by 2014. But, according to Brasscom, there are only 33,000 youths studying ICT related courses in the country” (Ammachchi, 2012). Canada: “It is widely acknowledged that it is becoming inc reasingly difficult to recruit for a variety of critical ICT occupations –from entry level to seasoned” (Ticoll and Nordicity, 2012). Europe: It is estimated that there will be an e-skills gap within Europe of up to 900,000 (main forecast scenario) ICT pr actitioners by 2020” (Empirica, 2014). Japan: It is reported that 80% of IT and user companies report an e-skills shortage (IPA, IT HR White Paper, 2013) United States: “Unlike the fiscal cliff where we are still peering over the edge, we careened over the “IT Skills Cliff” some years ago as our economy digitalized, mobilized and further “technologized”, and our IT skilled labour supply failed to keep up” (Miano, 2013)

Situating Sustainability

Situating Sustainability reframes our understanding of sustainability through an emerging international terrain of concepts and case studies. These approaches include material practices, such as extraction and disaster recovery, and extend into the domains of human rights and education. This volume addresses the need in sustainability science to recognize the deep and diverse cultural histories that define environmental politics. It brings together scholars from cultural studies, anthropology, literature, law, behavioral science, urban studies, design, and development to argue that it is no longer possible to talk about sustainability in general without thinking through the contexts of research and action. These contributors are joined by artists whose public-facing work provides a mobile platform to conduct research at the edges of performance, knowledge production, and socio-ecological infrastructures. Situating Sustainability calls for a truly transdisciplinary research that is guided by the humanities and social sciences in collaboration with local actors informed by histories of place. Designed for students, scholars, and interested readers, the volume introduces the conceptual practices that inform the leading edge of engaged research in sustainability

Situating sustainability : a handbook of contexts and concepts

Situating Sustainability reframes our understanding of sustainability through an emerging international terrain of concepts and case studies. These approaches include material practices, such as extraction and disaster recovery, and extend into the domains of human rights and education. This volume addresses the need in sustainability science to recognize the deep and diverse cultural histories that define environmental politics. It brings together scholars from cultural studies, anthropology, literature, law, behavioral science, urban studies, design, and development to argue that it is no longer possible to talk about sustainability in general without thinking through the contexts of research and action. These contributors are joined by artists whose public-facing work provides a mobile platform to conduct research at the edges of performance, knowledge production, and socio-ecological infrastructures. Situating Sustainability calls for a truly transdisciplinary research that is guided by the humanities and social sciences in collaboration with local stakeholders informed by histories of place. Designed for students, scholars, and interested readers, the volume introduces the conceptual practices that inform the leading edge of engaged research in sustainability.VertaisarvioitupeerReviewe

Situating Sustainability

Situating Sustainability reframes our understanding of sustainability through an emerging international terrain of concepts and case studies. These approaches include material practices, such as extraction and disaster recovery, and extend into the domains of human rights and education. This volume addresses the need in sustainability science to recognize the deep and diverse cultural histories that define environmental politics. It brings together scholars from cultural studies, anthropology, literature, law, behavioral science, urban studies, design, and development to argue that it is no longer possible to talk about sustainability in general without thinking through the contexts of research and action. These contributors are joined by artists whose public-facing work provides a mobile platform to conduct research at the edges of performance, knowledge production, and socio-ecological infrastructures. Situating Sustainability calls for a truly transdisciplinary research that is guided by the humanities and social sciences in collaboration with local actors informed by histories of place. Designed for students, scholars, and interested readers, the volume introduces the conceptual practices that inform the leading edge of engaged research in sustainability