Design Field
Research Strand

The taste of bioregioning in Taiwan

 
Author: Justin McGuirk

‘We all have a stake in biodiversity’

In conversation with Future Observatory coordinator Leilah Hirson-Comley, Nick and Rupert share how their Design Exchange Partnership is exploring new ways to record and experience urban biodiversity.
 
Leilah Hirson-Comley

‘Tech is shaping the conversations and culture around climate action’

In conversation with Future Observatory coordinator Leilah Hirson-Comley, Jo Walton shares how his Design Accelerator project is helping the cultural sector improve its digital sustainability.
 
Leilah Hirson-Comley

Solar material mapping: Wonky Brick

Wonky Brick makes visible the journeys of the materials used in Design Researchers in Residence: Solar
 
Author: Alys Hargreaves

Open call: Artificial

The time for the residency open call has rolled around once again. For its fourth consecutive year, Future Observatory is excited to share the open call for our programme, Design Researchers in
 

The return of the grand narrative

Justin McGuirk revisits his three-tiered framework for impact in design research, with a particular focus on stories. Does the ‘green transition’ not demand a new grand narrative?
 
Author: Justin McGuirk

The impact of design: symptoms, systems and stories

At Future Observatory we increasingly think about impact in terms of three different levels: symptoms, systems and stories. Design can help us to imagine a different future, tackling the climate
 
Author: Justin McGuirk

Contaminating our current thinking

Cher Potter, Future Observatory's Curatorial Director discusses the role of design research with the Design Researchers in Residence Solar cohort.
 
Cher Potter

What is the potential legacy of a research project?

In late May, we held a networking event at the Design Museum for the researchers and industry partners involved in our Design Accelerator, Design Exchange Partnership and Design Researchers in
 
Author: Leilah Hirson-Comley

How do you solve a housing crisis in a climate crisis?

Over the past year, Future Observatory has been pursuing a strand of research focused on low-carbon housebuilding . The UK has a longstanding housing crisis, and yet any large-scale housebuilding
 
Author: Ruth Lang

Future Observatory Journal launches with issue on bioregioning

“If ever there was a time to consider alternative ways of building a future, it is now. What we do this decade will shape the rest of the century. But what if, rather than fetishising innovation, what
 
Author: Justin McGuirk

Nine new biodiversity research projects join the Design Exchange Partnerships programme

Supporting biodiversity is becoming an increasingly urgent focus of design research practice. With many ecosystems and species in decline, human interdependence on natural systems is ever more
 

We are hiring

As we progress with the delivery of the Future Observatory: Design the Green Transition programme, we are seeking a Programme Manager (maternity cover) to join our dynamic and friendly team. If you
 

“Furniture is a platform whereby we can tell new stories about the environment”

This project explores how waste materials can be used to make new things. They worked with Fishy Filaments in Cornwall, Harris Tweed Hebrides in Scotland and furniture maker Wood Bros in Hertfordshire
 
Andrea Conde Pereira

Six Design Accelerator projects to drive a new generation of green innovation

Building on the theme of ‘communities,’ the new cohort of six projects will 'commercialise' their innovative solutions to accelerate the green transition across the UK.
 
Author: Salah ud Din