Edward Appiah is Senior lecturer and Coordinator of Research and Postgraduate Studies at the Department of Communication Design, KNUST, Kumasi. He completed his doctoral studies in Design Education and Social Innovation at the Faculty of Informatics and Design, Cape Peninsula University of Technology, Cape Town, South Africa. His research interests are in Design for Social Innovation and Sustainability, and Computers and Technology in Design Education. He is the local Coordinator for Design for Social Innovation and Sustainability (DESIS), a network of design labs, based in design schools and design-oriented universities, actively involved in promoting and supporting sustainable change. A member of the Design Research Society of UK, Edward is the Vice President of Design Ghana, a non-profit inter-university initiative comprising design educators, researchers, and design advocates. Eddie Appiah is reviewer for five international journals and moderates post graduate education in the area of technology in education and Design for Social Innovation.

Oral Presentations:

Un-nuances of Co-designing and co-creating: a design thinking approach within a ‘Zongo’ community in Ghana

Andreas Metzner-Szigeth is Full Professor (since March 2016) in Sociology of Culture and Communication at the Faculty of Design and Art of the Free University of Bozen–Bolzano, Italy. He was Full Professor of Sustainability Science at Bochum University of Applied Sciences (May 2012-March 2016) in Bochum, Germany, and Holder of the Visiting Chair for Studies in Science, Technology and Society (STS) at the University of the Basque Country (UPV/EHU) in Donostia–San Sebastian, Spain (October 2004-September 2007). Moreover, he has collected additional international experiences in a series of positions as Visiting Professor and Resident Research Fellow. His broad record of working experience comprises several positions in different academic institutions, European research networks and international projects focusing on the interplay of media and culture, technology assessment and risk communication. He acquired additional proficiency in management and governance related consulting and evaluation procedures centering on various fields of Sustainable Development as an entrepreneur and executive manager (October 2008-March 2016, Executive Manager and Consultant, Episteme Consulting (EC), Muenster, Germany; April 2000-April 2005, Entrepreneur and Consultant, Institute for Management and Sustainability Issues (IMSI), Muenster, Germany). Andreas started his academic career as Assistant Professor at the Brandenburg University of Technology, in Cottbus, Germany (June 1994-April 1999).

Webpage: https://www.unibz.it/en/faculties/design-art/academic-staff/person/36698-andreas-bernhard-josef-metzner-szigeth

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Oral Presentations:

Strategies for Eco-Social Transformation: Comparing Efficiency, Sufficiency and Consistency

Arianna Bionda is a PhD candidate of the XXXII Cycle at Politecnico di Milano, Department of Design. Architect, sailor and yacht designer, since 2014 she is involved in teaching and research activities with the Master program in Yacht Design at Politecnico di Milano and SMaRT Lab (Sustainable Marine Research and Technology laboratory), Lecco Innovation Hub interdepartmental laboratory. Her doctoral research is focus on innovative technologies and materials role in a yacht design project and their current dynamics and practices of interaction. She is also involved in national and international research activity mainly focused on Yacht Desgin for sustainability: design for sustainable material and technology, design for circoular economy, design for disassembly and for recycling, design for sustainable social innovation and sustainable business model, and design4all.

Oral Presentations:

INTERDISCIPLINARY HIGH EDUCATION IN PLACE BASED SOCIAL-TECH: THE EXPERIENCE OF THE TAMBALI FII PROJECT IN DAKAR

Andrea Ratti, Architect, PhD, publicist, is researcher and Associate Professor of nautical design and architecture technology at Politecnico di Milano, Department of Design. He is currently Chair M.Sc. Yacht & Cruising Vessel Design and director of Master in Yacht Design, operational manager of the Laboratory for boating (SMaRT-lab) at the Lecco Innovatio Hub, vice president of the Italian Naval Technical Association (ATENA) Section Lombardy, member of the Board of Directors of Assocompositi (Italian Association of Composite Materials) and member of the UNI U8105 GL5 working group "Disposal of recreational craft at the end of life". He is the author of numerous scientific publications relating to construction techniques and innovation in the nautical and architectural sector, as well as the relationship between construction materials and health effects. He is also the owner of a patent related to an innovative system for hauling yachts.

Oral Presentations: 

INTERDISCIPLINARY HIGH EDUCATION IN PLACE BASED SOCIAL-TECH: THE EXPERIENCE OF THE TAMBALI FII PROJECT IN DAKAR

Francesco Gerli is currently PhD student at the Department of Management, Economics and Industrial Engineering of Politecnico di Milano. He is member of Tiresia, the International Research Center promoted by the School of Management of Politecnico di Milano pursuing scientific excellence in the field of Social and Impact Innovation. Francesco completed his Master of Science in Economics and Social Sciences at Bocconi University with a thesis about the relationship between governances and performances of Social Policies. After a collaboration with the Centre for Child Well Being and Development of the University of Zurich, his research interest currently focuses on Social Innovation and Local Development, specifically investigating the role of Social Entrepreneruship face with the challenges of Economic and Territorial Inequalities.

Oral Presentations:

INTERDISCIPLINARY HIGH EDUCATION IN PLACE BASED SOCIAL-TECH: THE EXPERIENCE OF THE TAMBALI FII PROJECT IN DAKAR

Kurtis Ulrich is a recent graduate from the Masters of Natural Resource Management program at the University of Manitoba’s Natural Resource Institute (NRI), in Winnipeg Manitoba and holds an undergraduate degree in political science. His thesis, “Prescribed Fire and Design: Two Biocultural Design Case Studies from Northwestern Ontario” explored wildfire management issues and the use of design thinking for assessing management outcomes and developing future wildfire management strategies. He is currently working as a research assistant for Dr. Iain Davidson-Hunt, of the NRI, on a biocultural design and innovation project looking at innovation in small scale food systems in Manitoba, Canada. In addition, Kurtis is the co-owner and creator of a wildfire risk and adaptation consulting firm, which aims to apply the principles of biocultural design in the context of wildfire risk reduction and adaption in communities in Canada’s boreal forest.

Oral Presentations:

Crafting sustainability through small, local, open and connected enterprises on the Canadian Prairies: The case of Manitoban Craft breweries

Despite being an Industrial Design Engineer, which she became in 2000 at Delft Technical University, she concentrated more on research than designing industrial products. She started off in a research project at the university for the Ministry of Social Affairs, and after half a year became the general manager of an ergonomic design and consultancy company, named De Vesting Design. Two years later she decided to start her own venture in ergonomic consultancy under the name illand, and additionally got back in education and research at Delft Technical University. Currently she teaches at the Hanze University Groningen and researches at the University of Groningen. The core of her teachings is still design methodology, but her field of interest switched from human centred- to world centred design; or -You-CD to -DoubleYou-CD.

Oral Presentations:

Environmental Product Optimisation: an integral approach

Yun-ting Gao is a qualified designer with a master degree and over 10 years of freelance design experience. Gao is also a multidisciplinary researcher with core focus on design for sustainability, art theory and design higher education. Gao previously worked as international seaman and club singer, and currently working as a executive director, researcher and teacher at the green environment art design research center in Guangdong Baiyun University, based in Guangzhou. His academic opinions: sustainability should keep pace with function, which is a basic essential content that must be considered in design; Design without sustainable attribute is not a design; the integration of ecology and emotion under the sustainable framework will be another starting point for the development, deepening and popularization of sustainable design. Gao current key scientific research project, called “Research on Sustainable Architecture Design Based on Humanistic Perspective” began in April 2017. So far, Gao have presided over and participated in more than 10 scientific research projects, completed more than 10 design projects, and published nearly 30 academic papers, some of which have won Chinese high-level awards or been included. His representative monograph is “Humanistic Connotation of Green Interior Environment Design”.

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