Designing with and for users
Join us at the Royal College of Art for our Masterclass in Designing for an Ageing Population to move away from the medical discourse of ageing dominated by decline, frailty and burden, and discover a new way to think about ageing and how to design services and products for older adults.
At Design Age Institute, we view Design Thinking as a form of people-centred innovation – design solutions therefore derive from reframing problems from the perspective of the user or the customer, not the producer or service provider. The process is not neutral – it involves showing empathy and engagement with people’s lived experience. It also means resolving the contradictions between the real world of barriers and constraints and the abstract world of imagination and creative ideas.
By 2050 the global population of those 65 years and above is estimated to double from 727 million today to 1.5 billion. We are expected to not only live longer lives, but also more diverse lives requiring designers, innovators, manufacturers, service providers, and industry leaders to reconsider how to target and support this growing market segment.
Our programme of skills development, training and executive learning includes our Masterclass in Designing for an Ageing Population led by Colum Lowe, Design Age Institute’s Director and an RCA Honorary Fellow, supported by experts from Oxford University’s Institute of Population Ageing and the International Longevity Centre among others.
The course provides participants with unique insight into the healthy ageing marketplace, looking at what drives behaviour and purchase motivation, the basics of action psychology and how design has a critical role to play in creating healthier, happier lives for all of us as we age.
Our next course take place 27 & 28 November 2024 at the Royal College of Art’s campus in Battersea, London. Find out more and book – early bird places available until 31 August.
If you are interested in taking part in our Masterclass programme or arranging a workshop please get in touch with us at [email protected] and sign up to our mailing list to be the first to know about upcoming events and opportunities
Participant feedback
Explore feedback from former participants in the course below.
Course participant
“A highly participatory approach, studded with surprising and motivating sectoral information, an engaging orientation to design thinking, and an international cohort made this highly worthwhile. What I learned validated and enriched my project approach, and whetted my appetite to continue thinking and collaborating with some of the other participants I met on the course. We can continue to learn from and teach each other.”
Course participant
“Great masterclass to take a close look at our behaviour and needs that are changing so fast. We all are growing old, fact. It was great to review outdated conventions and start considering the older population as a functional & relevant group of people in the society, and the specific needs to be addressed by industries and all of us to improve everyone’s ways of living.”
Course participant
“Overall, the course was truly inspiring for me, the 2 days went by very quickly. I especially liked the constant change between lectures by guest speakers and the discussions in workshop format with the participants.”
Colum Lowe, Course Leader
“We want people to come away from our executive education courses with a better understanding of the healthy ageing economy, how to create effective and impactful products and services and above all, insight to the lives of people as they age.”
News
Meet the speakers
Meet the team delivering our upcoming Masterclass in Designing for An Ageing Population on 27-28 November at the Royal College of Art.
Design Age Masterclass
Colum Lowe, Director, Design Age Institute, invites you a Masterclass in designing with and for an ageing population this November.
Masterclass: 27 & 28 November
Discover a new way to think about ageing and how to design services and products for older adults in a Masterclass in Design for an Ageing Population.
Masterclass: Design for Ageing
Learn how to apply design and innovation approaches to create better customer products, services and experiences for an ageing population.