The Attendees and The Panelists
A session, as a part of Rajasthan DigiFest 2022 was organized this year by the ARCH College of Design & Business on the theme of “New Framework for Design-centric Ecosystems for High-growth”, powered by CUMULUS Association. It took place on the 19th of August 2022, at the Birla Auditorium, Jaipur.
The attendees were professionals, educationists,and students from various fields like design, architecture, arts and engineering.
The Panelists:
- Prof. Ravi Poovaiah, Design Educator & Professor, IIT Bombay
- Prof. Mamta N Rao, Dean, NID Bengaluru Campus
- Mr. Krishan Jagota, Product Design Head, Sideways President, Association of Designers of India ADI Mumbai Chapter.
- The Moderator: Ms. Archana Surana Design Leader & Entrepreneur, Founder & Director, ARCH College of Design & Business
The Design-centric Framework
Prof. Ravi talked about the three steps that are considered in developing a framework for Design-centric ecosystems for high-growth:
- Knowledge about the History of Design in India
- Stakeholders Involved
- Future of Design Culture
Prof. Ravi began with a description of the richness of art and craft in Indian culture and traditions, since historical times. He provided insights on how the culture of applied arts evolved to that of creativity and innovation in the nation during the early 90s.
The evolution included the onset of the National Institute of Design, IITs, etc. Today the country has an abundance of acquired skills, however, these professionals lack theoretical knowledge. Emphasizing the same, Ravi shared the vision of design culture ahead, explaining the new framework. It focuses on converting the existing as well as developing and nurturing fresh human resources to learn design thinking from an early age, as early as primary school. Such a culture would enhance the problem-solving capabilities of students and prepare them for not just design, but all kinds of professions by imbibing creativity and innovation. The new framework of the 21st century allows degrees based on skill courses which are a combination of acquired skill set theories and also some abilities identified for the modern era. To make use of the acquired skill resources, some courses developed as a part of the New Education policy today are –
- One Year Certification courses
- Two Years Diploma courses
- Three Years Degree courses
- Four Year Professional Degree courses
Summing up, Ms. Archana put some light on how the government and private institutions are together trying to level design education and engage professionals with degrees. The youth today needs to be a part of the design system and play an active role in its evolution.
Creativity and Innovation in Design Thinking
Carried over by Prof. Mamta, she gave an in-depth essence of the relation between design and creativity. For finding a solution to a problem, it is important to study the context of the problem, how the system functions, etc. How you view the problem statement plays a crucial role in developing the base to solve the problem.
She focussed upon the user-centric approach as a familiar aspect instead of an alien approach. Also, research is an important part of design education. She explained how different learners’ perspectives can be balanced by an equal contribution of structured approach and organic approach.
Design Culture and its Various approaches
Mr. Krishan Jagota continued on the topic of structured approach explaining how it allows future generations to experience a carefree living. Contrary to this, he remarked on how designers are the people who break the norms and think out of bounds. We are not developing robots using technology. Hence, he summed up by observing that the goal of structure in a structured approach is to give students a nudge into being creative young minds. Prof. Ravi put some light on the creation of a design culture and ethos among the parents also so that they would appreciate it’s importance and consider their child’s further education in this field.
Answering about how the youth can be involved in these domains, Prof. Mamta focused that the nurturing process occurs at the place where the problem exists.
In Conclusion:
The session reached its final phase by the question answer round where questions on the topics – structured and organic teaching systems for students, design policy and its governance, metaverse and incorporation of design thinking were asked.
In conclusion Ms. Archana Surana summarized the discussion and thanked all the attendees and members. She remarked on the outcome of the session as an awareness session for all the business and engineering colleges, going over the importance of design thinking skill sets to be inculcated into business models and structures. The discussion ended on a high note with an explanation by Ms. Archana about how the holistic approach that design thinking enables among individuals at large.
It was encouraging to see so many attendees showed their active participation with interesting and relevant questions.