Looking back at the Global Design Thinking Festival 2022
In 2022, we had many reasons to celebrate: Students have been learning at the HPI School of Design Thinking for 15 years now, and we have been connecting the international Design Thinking community with the Global Design Thinking Alliance (GDTA) for five years.
Another highlight from last year: Cape Town, South Africa. The Hasso Plattner d-school Afrika at the University of Cape Town opened the first building designed specifically for a Design Thinking school.
To properly celebrate, reflect and discuss these events and the impact of Design Thinking on business and society, HPI D-School Potsdam and Hasso Plattner d-school Africa have organized the Global Design Thinking Festival in September and October 2022.
Design Thinking ImpAct Conference: 15 Years of Design Thinking at HPI
The festival month kicked off with the “Design Thinking ImpAct Conference: 15 Years of Design Thinking at HPI“, which took place on September 15 and 16, 2022, at the Hasso Plattner Institute in Potsdam and online. Over two days, we reviewed the highlights of Design Thinking activities at HPI over the past 15 years with alumni, project partners, researchers, and customers of the HPI Academy. We discussed how we can continue to shape business and society with the help of the innovation approach.
Design Thinking ImpAct Conference’s review takes you through another exciting two days of anniversary insights: https://express.adobe.com/page/Vmgwl2gqtSJpT/
Global Design Thinking Challenge 2022
We also kicked off a four-week hybrid Global Design Thinking Challenge during the Potsdam conference.
The HPI School of Design Thinking in Potsdam is partnering up with several global sponsors and Design Thinking institutions from the Global Design Thinking Alliance to innovate and create solutions tackling the 4th Sustainable Development Goal as defined by the United Nations: “Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all.”
We have designed a unique opportunity for learners to create global impact while experiencing Design Thinking in diverse and multidisciplinary teams. More than 340 participants from 12 Design Thinking institutions around the world joined our call to develop solutions fostering sustainable learning in schools. The winning teams had the opportunity to present their most inspiring solutions at the d.confestival in Cape Town.
On the website of the GDTC we present the five awards in the various categories
d.confestival meets Africa
The unique conference-meets-festival hybrid event centered around Design Thinking enabled the exchange with like-minded innovators, change-makers, and thought-leaders at the d.confestival.
The third d.confestival was held in Cape Town, South Africa from 12 to 14 October 2022.
The event followed the 2012 and 2017 d.confestival events hosted in Potsdam. Supported by the Global Design Thinking Alliance (and also celebrated its 5th birthday) this event was hosted by the Hasso Plattner d-school Afrika at the University of Cape Town in its newly built home that aims to be the first 6-Star Green-rated academic building in Africa.
Centered around the subject of Design Thinking, the ‘confestival’ term denotes a combination of the traditional academic conference and the interactive, creative elements of a festival. Sessions included inspiring keynote presentations, vibrant panel discussions as well as interactive workshops of a participatory nature.
The hybrid event took place onsite in Cape Town and simultaneously online, with professional video streaming of presentations and discussions, interactive virtual sessions in parallel to those onsite, and audience engagement among onsite and online participants.
Last year’s the d.confestival also doubled up as the opening of Africa’s first school of Design Thinking building: the HPI d-school building at the University of Cape Town’s middle campus.
To capture the powerful conversations and insights of design thinking leaders and practitioners from all walks of life – business, education, public service, the Hasso Plattner d.school Africa has created an e-magazine: https://dschoolafrika.org/events/d-confestival