Design for Social Innovation

Examine the myriad ways that design interacts with culture, society, technology, and the environment.

"An exceptional and genuinely transformative model of humanity-centered-design education, that fuses design, culture, and ethics and demonstrates impressive integrity, scale and impact."

Design for Social Innovation - 2025 Winner International DNDA Humanity-Centered-Design Education Award.

Design for Social Innovation examines the relationship between design and culture, society, technology, and the environment. It explores how they impact each other and delves into the theoretical, practical and creative connections between them.

In this field, we undertake a variety of research. Our research focuses on how design shapes, and is shaped by, cultural beliefs, values, norms, institutions, relations, and practices. Research themes we pursue include design for more-than-human worlds, indigenous cultures and narratives, sustainable design, and transition design.

Research in this area aims to have a positive impact on the way people live and work. We seek creative solutions to some of the social, environmental, and cultural challenges facing our world.

Research topics

Research topic	Staff who can supervise research in this area
Co-design	Rosie Scott
Design ethnography	Rosie Scott
Indigenous cultures and narratives	Nan O'Sullivan, David Hakaraia, Edgar Rodriguez, Tuakana Metuarau
Indigenous knowledge systems	Tanya Ruka
Service design	Nan O'Sullivan, Dana Fridman, Leon Gurevitch
Sustainable design	Tonya Sweet, Leon Gurevitch
Theories of Change	Nan O'Sullivan
Transition design	Nan O'Sullivan, Tonya Sweet

Academic staff

Name	Research interests
Dana Fridman	Design investigations that aim to have a positive impact on the way people live and work
Leon Gurevitch	Design investigations that aim to have a positive impact on the way people live and work
David Hakaraia	Design explorations that are driven by and/or recognise the value of cultural diversity through any creative medium
Tuakana Metuarau	Indigenous Narratives, Representation in Media Digital Narrative, Digital Mediums Media Culture and History Retro Game Design, Video Game Abstraction
Nan O'Sullivan	Design explorations that are driven by and/or recognise the value of cultural diversity through any creative medium Design investigations that aim to have a positive impact on the way people live and work Design investigations that challenge complex social, cultural, political issues through any creative medium
Edgar Rodrigues	Design explorations that are driven by and/or recognise the value of cultural diversity through any creative medium
Tanya Ruka	Creative explorations of Data Sovereignty and Artificial Intelligence, centring Indigenous approaches to decentralised technologies He Ara Mauri - the ongoing development of an Indigenous framework for reimagining systems as pathways toward regenerative and just futures in education and technology Arts-based research that reimagines systems change through creativity, culture, and care for the environment
Rosie Scott	Social impact design and design justice
Tonya Sweet	Design investigations that challenge complex social, cultural, political issues through any creative medium

Social Design Lab

Social Design Lab positions social and cultural issues as highly relevant to contemporary design research and situates them as central points of departure for our investigations. The research projects cultivated in this stream employ critical, creative approaches to their explorations of indigenous culture, society, politics, economics, technology and the environment.

For more see Social Design Lab.

Study options

The following postgraduate programmes allow you to pursue research in the area of design for social innovation:

Master of Design (MDes)

The MDes allows you to further develop your critical thinking and discussion skills, increase your understanding of design, and learn to express your own ideas and conclusions within a theoretical framework.

Find out more about the Master of Design (MDes).

Master of Design Innovation (MDI)

The MDI delves deep into the process of innovation, from conception to design to construction. Through independent research, you'll gain the specialist skills and knowledge you need to be a successful professional in the design industry.

Find out more about the Master of Design Innovation (MDI).

PhD

On our PhD programme, you'll produce an original body of research that expands the design discipline. Your work will be largely independently driven, with two supervisors available to advise you. Typically the PhD is studied on-site, but in suitable cases it may be studied by distance.

Find out more about the PhD.