Publications

By The Care Lab

Principles of nurturing communities of care towards resilient communities and cities.

Read more here.

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By The Care Lab

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The Care Lab's Care Manifesto

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By The Care Lab

Experience design blue print for in patient hospices to be used by care teams, architects and planners.

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Find more here.

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By Marc Marc Rettig (Fit Associates)

Essays on human-centered design for managers in Japan: why?
The essays in this collection are different than what I would write to the design profession in the US in 2022. I wrote them in 2020, speaking to (my limited understanding of) hierarchical corporate management in Japan. I wrote them from my continual exploration of how to better create things together in These Times.

Find out more here.

By Somia CX

A collection of articles to explore how we can adopt the Systems Thinking approach in our design process.

Find out more here.

By Somia CX

These are learnings from the DiFi for All projects, a discovery project aimed at understanding the digital onboarding process for digital financial providers for Indonesia's unbanked and underbanked people.

Find out more here.

By Somia CX

We conducted quick research on Gen-Z entrepreneurs and aimed to get inspiration to spark further thoughts and innovative ideas around this space.

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Find out more here.

By Somia CX

This is a collection of desk research, somewhat curious conversations, and at times, uncomfortable chats with eight of our personal friends of diverse industries, lifestyles and age groups to get a sense of what they think about AI being interwoven into human relationships.

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Find out more here.

By Somia CX

What is the better way to help micro-entrepreneurs in rural Indonesia to fully utilise the financial system? We have 8 practical recommendations to help financial institutions address those challenges.

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Find out more here.

By Re:public

MOMENT is a trans-local magazine that explores the future of cities. The term “trans-local” refers to citizen-led transformations of environments and lifestyles that occur based on the reinterpretation of local technologies, resources, and cultures. MOMENT introduces such trans-local practices and practitioners from all parts of the world.

As the discourse and executions of smart cities increase, corporations that provide safety, convenience, and comfort to citizens through digital technology are becoming an essential part of the urban ecosystem. The more irreplaceable such corporations become, the more citizens would use their services and products and in turn, become targets of optimization. How will our role evolve in cities where we are seen as urban “users” rather than as citizens?

In this first issue, we explore the theme “-able city,” a city that opens up the possibilities for citizen engagement. We highlight the ways in which citizens interpret local climates, histories, resources, and communities to craft alternative lifestyles in Barcelona, Amsterdam, Kumamoto, Nara, and more.

Through the reflection of trans-local practices around world, MOMENT re-imagines and contributes to the future of cities, citizens, and lifestyles.

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By Quicksand

This playbook is for city health administrators, as well as administrators from other departments at the city and state levels whose work has an impact on public health.

As we pursue the mission of 100 smart cities through technology, public-private partnerships and progressive policies, we need to think of the health of all our citizens. The lessons of cooperation, compassion and adaptability from COVID-19 can guide our path. Given the pressing climate challenges threatening our health, especially the vulnerable, it's crucial to establish collaborative frameworks for prevention, response, recovery, and mitigation. These efforts can lay the foundation for cities that prioritise well-being and resilience even amidst adversity.

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By Quicksand

From Beneficiaries to Economic Citizens documents and details the financial habits and the role of technology in Andhra Pradesh, India. It also helps to understand the manner in which direct benefit transfers from the government, enabled through technology platforms, impact the lives of end recipients.

The report is based on an in-depth ethnographic study conducted across Andhra Pradesh for CGAP and is meant for anyone interested in developing financial and technological products and services for the BoP in India.

Read more about the project here

Download a PDF version of the publication here

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By Quicksand

This book is a collection of reflections and pieces from the participants of UnBox LABS: Caravan held in Ahmedabad, India in February 2016. The Caravan encouraged participants to explore projects and ideas around people-centred technologies and social applications of technology, through the lens of multi-disciplinary approaches that are future-facing and sustainable.

This edition of UnBox LABS was in partnership with Mozilla Foundation, British Council and National Institute of Design, Ahmedabad.

Read more about the projects here.

Download a PDF version of the publication here

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By Quicksand

How do new media and digital technology influence the way we perceive our reality and temporal notions of the past, present and future?

The set of writings here reflect on points of conflict, erosion and celebration that typify our pluralistic culture. This publication is a collection of essays that arise from curiosity - amplified by speculation - and is set within the contradictory, persistent marvel that is India. Write to us here for a printed copy.

Supported by ISDI as part of the Eyemyth Media Arts Festival 2017, details of which can be found here.

Download a PDF version of the publication here

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By Quicksand

The intent of UnBox Caravan is to bring together a group of interesting and interested people to explore our collective technology futures through multicultural and interdisciplinary lenses. Over several gatherings, a specific focus on the Internet of Things (IoT) emerged and became a key exploration point for this edition of the Caravan. This publication provides a window into the conversations and outcomes of the event.

This edition of the Caravan represented one of many convenings hosted by Mozilla’s Open IoT Studio and is a continuation of the previous year's inaugural event at National Institute of Design Ahmedabad.

Download a PDF version of the publication here

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By: Quicksand

Over the years, there have been concerted efforts to distribute modern contraceptives in developing countries. However, there are still millions of women in these markets whose contraceptive needs are not being met. Under these circumstances, the Family Planning program at The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation made a strategic decision to further stimulate the development of ground-breaking contraceptive technologies that address the unmet needs of women in developing countries.

Quicksand, along with project partners FHI 360 and independent consultants, conducted extensive research in Kenya and India to uncover unmet needs for contraception use. These findings were leveraged using human-centred design methodologies to facilitate insight-driven ideation for generating new product ideas in women’s contraceptive technology. This publication shares the results of this intensive, year-long study.

View an online version of the publication here.

By Quicksand

How can we find expression and meaning in a world shaped by technology, data, and algorithms? How can we think of technology that can manifest our shared culture and values that are also unique to place and context? How can we be educated participants in our own future?

This publication brings together conversations about the role of technology in our society, and about how we want to navigate being human in a digital world.

Download a PDF version of the publication here.

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By Quicksand

How does a need to sustain your livelihood and your choices of work intertwine in today’s times? Can machines and technology indeed replace traditional skills? How will sustainable fishing practices adapt and change? Will vested business interests overuse advanced technology and leave the world in a dystopic dilemma?

This speculative zine is a light, engaging read for anyone thinking about the future of livelihoods and work. In collaboration with Tandem Research as part of the Sassoon Dock St+Art Festival 2017.

Download a PDF version of the publication here.

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By: Quicksand

Our perceptions of water may vary, but the connection we share with it is essential to who we are as human beings.

Aurora is an epic immersive experience about our changed global relationship to water, conceived by Invisible Flock. First in a series of two accompanying publications, this edition is a collection of artistic expressions and stories of water from around the world.

Learn more about the project here. If you are in Liverpool, drop in here to experience Aurora.

Download a PDF version of the publication here

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By Quicksand

The use of plastic bags is deeply rooted in the lives of Cambodians. The bags no longer represent just a simple packaging film, but a sign of the kingdom’s rapidly transitioning society – culturally and economically. Excess Baggage follows the plastic bag’s journey from a wholesale shop on to the streets, at the markets, chab houys, to people’s homes and finally to a landfill.

This report was produced within the framework of the project ‘Reducing plastic bag waste in major cities of Cambodia’ funded by the European Union under the SWITCH-Asia Programme.

Download a PDF version of the publication here

By: Quicksand and Stby

Design Research Notes is a workbook to engage with wicked problems as a designer, through design research. Envisioned by the Strategic Creativity Readership at Design Academy Eindhoven, this workbook contains learnings from projects done by students of the academy as well as many partners in society and industry over eight years.

The intention of the workbook is to help you build on this work and join the growing movement of designers who use their skills to change the world by addressing its hardest problems as activists, together with many other activists.

Quicksand worked closely with Stby to design and develop the workbook and the accompanying microsite.

By: Quicksand

Aurora is an epic immersive experience about our changed global relationship to water, conceived by Invisible Flock. Quicksand collaborated with Invisible Flock and several other international partners on this project.

This is the second of two research publications produced by Quicksand, accompanying the Aurora installation, pulling together thinking, reflections, imagery, stories and research around water and our relationship to it.

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By: delaO Design Studio

Unveil the potential of the Mexican digital market with delaO Design Studio's comprehensive report, an essential resource for dominating the Mexican digital scene in the post-pandemic era. This detailed report highlights unique opportunities for digital projects in a competitive market. Ideal for entrepreneurs and businesses aiming to innovate in the Mexican digital sector, our report includes in-depth user profile analyses, reflecting a range of technological behaviours and attitudes.

Additionally, we provide exclusive archetype cheatsheets for workshops and practical worksheets for generating value propositions, allowing you to design strategies and products that resonate with each Mexican user archetype. These additional materials are perfect for design and strategy development workshops, helping you create customised and effective solutions.

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By: Apogee (Daniel Szuc and Josephine Wong)

We are facing a world where technology will continue to replace humans for many jobs. This creates uncertainties in our world, and it is vital for us to rethink how we learn and adapt to new work environments.

This is a book about how we can take ownership of ourselves, our team and our organisation by taking micro actions to shape the desired culture and behaviours to insert meaning into what we do.

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By: Fit Associates (Marc Rettig)

Year: 2016

This article details why industry needs a “Humans 101” course, and what that might include.

Read the article here.

By: Fit Associates (Marc Rettig)

Design capacity without creative culture yields shallow, repetitive results. This article, a transcript of a keynote presented at the UX Advantage Conference, explores the ingredients of personal and organizational creativity, particularly emphasizing openness.

Read the article here.

By: Fit Associates (Marc Rettig)

This is an invited paper for the Carnegie Mellon University symposium on Transition Design. It summarizes the ways in which social situations at any scale present complexities that are beyond current design practice, then describes the characteristics of the new approaches we need for working with emergent social patterns. It also offers examples of approaches that have some of those necessary characteristics.

Read the report here.

By: Fit Associates (Hannah du Plessis)

This is an invited paper for the Carnegie Mellon University symposium on Transition Design. It has three parts. Part one looks at the difficulty of change, first through the lens of the tightly constructed and difficult to affect inner world of individuals and then the systemic patterns that repeat over generations. Part two takes a deeper look at the nature of the inner shift necessary to engender a life-positive society: shifting from unequal to equal relationships, from defensive to open communication; from being imprisoned by the past to integration; moving from being the expert that knows to a participant in the process of creating. Lastly, this paper discusses how we invite students to become their own “social workshops” where they can learn how to work with and shift their own humanity towards life-affirming habits.

Read the report here.

By: Fit Associates (Marc Rettig)

Participation is essential for systemic work, but the methods often feel limited to meetings, brainstorms and debate. What else is possible? This three-part article series explores different strategies for participatory work.

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Read the articles here:

‍Part 1: Participation is great, but workshops are weak tea

‍Part 2: Simple sketches make your participation strategy clear

‍Part 3: How to visually plan a participatory creative process

By: Fit Associates (Marc Rettig and Hannah du Plessis)

Marc Rettig and Hannah du Plessis co-teach a course in the MFA in Design for Social Innovation at School of Visual Arts in New York. To complete the course, students chose two topics covered in the class and produce book spreads that summarize the topic, play with it visually, and suggest places to learn more. Both the 2013 and 2014 editions contain many of the same topics, though the visuals and descriptions of each student differ greatly.

In the course, students are taken through a series of exercises, culminating in them hosting group dialogues. Additionally, they hand in a journal that captures their personal reflections on readings, assignments and practices.

Find out more here.

By: Anthropologerne (Rikke Ulk and Michi Hesting)

‘289 Views on Innovation’ is a publication of the Innovation C.I.R.C.U.S. project funded by the European Commission.

The Innovation C.I.R.C.U.S. project (2006-2008) aimed to Challenge and Illuminate Regional Creators to Unfold societal Strength by portraying, presenting and exemplifying innovation in unconventional ways and to a wider range of people than the ones usually attending innovation conferences and innovation events.

Read the book here.

By: The Care Lab

Under the Asian Insights and Design Innovation (AIDI) programme by DesignSingapore Council, this project was conducted by The Care Lab to understand how middle to upper-class Indonesians seek relief, relaxation, and rejuvenation. Using design ethnography, the study explored the cultural and context-specific behaviours of Indonesians in response to stress. The findings led to the creation of twelve personas, representing distinct health and wellness attitudes. These Personas guided Singapore enterprises in innovating products and services tailored to Indonesian consumers. A workshop with local SMEs generated over 50 concepts based on these personas, resulting in eight developed solutions. The publication details the ethnographic journey, insights, and opportunities, highlighting solutions for middle to upper-class Indonesians.

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Read the report here.

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By: Somia CX

How far has the UX industry has grown in Indonesia? In an effort to understand the current landscape of the UX industry in Indonesia, Somia CX conducted research and observation among UX practitioners and companies. Some things are changing in 2017, and the field is seeing growth and potential for development. This survey was an attempt to dive deeper on these changes.

Find out more here.

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By: The Care Lab

An insight and inspirational publication aiming at uncovering the unseen and un recognised experiences of caregivers in Singapore.

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Read the book here.

By: Apogee

Dan strings together stories from his childhood, his early working years, and his recent past to shed light on the problems he sees facing project work today. He invites us to reflect on what frustrates us about our work, and posits that we need to go deep to find out what will take us from sleepwalking to sparkle.

Find out more here.

By: Apogee (Daniel Szuc) and Whitney Quesenbery

Global UX: Design and Research in a Connected World discusses how user experience (UX) practice is changing and how practitioners and teams around the world are creating great user experiences for a global context. The book is based on interviews with practitioners from many countries, working on different types of projects.

It looks behind the scenes at what it takes to create a user experience that can work across borders, cultures, and languages. The book begins with a quick look at the world outside of UX. This includes the external forces of change and globalization as well as an overview of how culture affects designers and the UX of products. It considers what global UX means for an individual practitioner, a company, and for teams.

It then turns to the details of global UX with the process and practice of research in the field. How information is brought home and shared with colleagues? And how it is applied in design? The final chapter presents some thoughts about how to deliver value both to projects and the users of finished products.

Purchase the book here.

By: Rockefeller Foundation, Stby and Quicksand

Initiated by Nesta and made possible by The Rockefeller Foundation, Stby and Quicksand have edited and designed the DIY Toolkit. DIY stands for ’Development Impact and You’. The toolkit is primarily meant for practitioners in international development, but can be used by anyone who feels they can benefit from it. It contains a set of 30 best-in-class and proven tools that aim to trigger and support social innovation. Every tool has a concise description, a downloadable worksheet and some practical instructions to get you started. The toolkit is published under a creative commons license and therefore freely available online. Many tools also have one or more case studies that describe the use of them in the context of specific projects, organisations and cultures. On the website of the DIY toolkit people can share comments and rank the tools according to their experiences.

Find out more here.

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By: Stby

Year: 2017

As the world becomes increasingly global and interconnected, more organisations must take the local and global into account when thinking about strategy and innovation. This sounds straightforward and sensible, but how do enterprises actually identify, conceptualise and design new products and services amidst the forces of globalisation? Pioneers: Thoughts on Global Design Research explores these questions through a collection of reflections on global design research, co-funded by Stby and Innovate UK, and written in collaboration with partners across the globe. Filled with reflection, stories and insights derived from real-world cases and hands-on project experience, we hope that this publication will spark a conversation among our fellow design researchers around the globe. We also hope to engage those working outside of this field, to consider the benefits of embedding design research in wider global innovation strategy.

The book is available to purchase online.

By: Stby and Samantha Miller

Year: 2016

Viewfinders: Thoughts on Visual Design Research explores the rich potential photography, film and other mediums hold for design research. Bas Raijmakers and Samantha Miller co-authored and edited a collection of writing that includes learnings from Stby projects, inspiration from fields such as documentary film, and relevant project examples ranging from speculative design to art photography.

With a special contribution from Goldsmiths’ Interaction Research Studio on ‘Thinking with Pictures’, Viewfinders is a publication not to miss – of interest to those in research, design, innovation, academia, industry and any combination thereof.

The book is available to purchase online.

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By Stby

As designers and researchers grapple with more systemic issues, we need to hone our tools and refine our language. Visualising complexity is one of the key ways that we add value in highly collaborative settings and it is something that sets us apart. How can we further add value through mapping? Explorers: Thoughts on Mapping in Design Research brings together learnings and conversations around this topic. With generous contributions from leading pioneers, we explore the work of innovators in our own fields and venture across disciplines for insight into how others go about mapping. We hope this collection of thoughts and maps will spark fruitful discussion and reflection in design studios, research departments, boardrooms, and beyond.

Explorers: Thoughts on Mapping in Design Research is available here.

Creatives, designers and researchers often find themselves in the role of ‘Catalysts’ in complex change processes. This might be in projects commissioned by clients or partners or in self-initiated projects. Many of us identify ourselves as activists and ambassadors for system change. The articles in this publication are particularly honing in on creative contributions to ‘Meaningful Change’. So not just on any change, as in change-for-change’s-sake, but on meaningful change that makes a real difference to the everyday lives of people, organisations and the planet as a whole. The seven themed sections offer a wide range of observations on the various ways that design and research are contributing to many different meaningful change processes, aiming to inform and inspire research and design activists all over the globe.

Each themed section starts with a brief introduction on its specific angle to meaningful change, followed by an essay co-authored by partners from the Reach Network, and complemented by contributions from other partners around the world. The seven themed sections are: LIVE, ENGAGE, SUSTAIN, PROBE, PLAY, WORK, and CONNECT.

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The book is available to purchase online.