Program: Design for Social Innovation

The HCD+ program offers courses including Whakapapa Design I–III, Design Justice, and Service Design, grounded in Mauri Ora, a holistic approach to individual, social, and environmental well-being. The methodology draws on Māori tikanga (values) and matauranga Māori (knowledge), emphasizing intergenerational experiences, justice, equity, sustainability, and wellbeing. Students explore local communities through stories, whakapapa (legacy), and place-based methods, fostering whanaungatanga (relationships), manaakitanga (care), ngā manakura (empathy), turangawaewae (belonging), and kaitiakitanga (stewardship). The program centers on collaborative projects with community leaders, iwi elders, and industry partners. Students learn wānanga and talanoa methods to conduct research as a reciprocal relationship and participate in field trips to deepen contextual understanding. Projects prioritize rangatiratanga (self-determination), ensuring impacted communities are actively involved in equitable and sustainable solutions. Indigenous academics and tutors are integral to teaching.

The curriculum follows the Māori adage Ko Au, Ko Koe, Ko Tatau:

• First-year (Ko Au – I Am): Focus on self-awareness and positionality.
• Second-year (Ko Koe – You Are): Build authentic, reciprocal relationships emphasizing co-design and equity.
• Third-year (Ko Tatau – We Are): Foster stewardship and co-creation, supporting communities’ autonomy in implementing solutions.

The program’s staff have received awards for innovative, relational, equitable, and co-design teaching approaches.

Students

The DSI program, now nine years old, embeds HCD+ principles through matauranga Māori at its core. It currently enrolls 40 undergraduate students, 6 Master’s, and 9 PhD candidates, with around 80 students having completed HCD+ as a minor. Three DSI courses are now core to the BDI degree, reaching 150–200 non-DSI undergraduates per year. All Master’s students take courses incorporating HCD+, totaling 60–65 students annually.

The program is highly interdisciplinary, attracting students from Health, Architecture, Psychology, Anthropology, Communication, UX, Service, Industrial, and Interaction Design, and requires DSI students to take a minor outside their program. DSI has contributed to two new interdisciplinary degrees at Victoria University, launched in 2023–2024, further expanding HCD+ principles in industry and practice.

Postgraduate research focuses on co-design and social impact, including:

• Design Us In – addressing teenage isolation through third spaces.
• Pathways to Pākehā/Tauiwi self-reflection – exploring racism in public sector systems and using board games to shift understanding and behaviour.
• Compassion Informed Co-Design – examining how compassion skills support designers to address inequity and promote well-being.

Country

New Zealand
Wellington

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