The National Endowment for the Arts Design Program will host a series of webinars to build on findings discussed in the recently released white paper, Design and Social Impact: A cross-sectoral agenda for design education, research, and practice (pdf). Curated and hosted by thought leaders in the field of social impact design, the webinar series will build on discussions that began during the Social Impact Design Summit held in February 2012 and will cover topics that further enhance the field's capacity to design effectively for social impact.
You will need to register in advance of the webinars (separate registration for each webinar required). Attendance is free.
April 24, 2013 at 2pm ET: Creating a Culture of Storytelling & Evaluation
Hosted by: John Cary, Founder of http://www.publicinterestdesign.org/ Social impact design is distinguished by its human-centered approach, a practice ripe for storytelling and evaluation, with the unique potential to change hearts and minds. This webinar will explore the topics of communication and critique, featuring campaigns, entities, and individuals that successfully communicate the value of social impact design work and techniques for effectively evaluating its outcomes.
June 12, 2013 at 2pm ET: Making it Happen: Spotlight on Successful Projects
Hosted by: Jen Hughes, Design Specialist at National Endowment for the Arts The social impact design field encompasses a diverse community of inventors, architects, designers, and urban planners working across the globe. This webinar will profile successful social impact design practitioners (including NEA design grantees), and their approach to executing projects in this field. Featured designers will discuss key lessons learned, their organizational models, and their thoughts on scaling social impact work.
August 20, 2013 at 2pm ET: Educating the Next Generation of Social Impact Designers
Hosted by: William Drenttel, President of Winterhouse Institute and Co-Founder of Design Observer Universities and design schools are currently an important seat for social impact design training and fieldwork. This webinar will bring together educators and practitioners to discuss strategies for teaching and practicing social impact design. It will delve into the need for diverse skills and curricula to prepare effective social impact designers for the field.