During the annual GDTA conference and meeting, which took place from August 8-10 at Hasso Plattner Institute, New York, GDTA president Uli Weinberg and General Secretary Dato Lee Yew Meng officially introduced the five new members to the GDTA network.

Together, the now 16 GDTA member institutions will exchange best practices and further develop the methods and mindset of Design Thinking.

The American University in Cairo – Center for Learning an Teaching

The mission of the Center for Learning and Teaching (CLT) at the American University in Cairo is to create a stimulating learning environment by promoting excellence in teaching, facilitating the effective application of technology to the teaching and learning process, providing support and resources and engaging in outreach activities. CLT provides AUC faculty members with various resources, services and personalized support to help them create a stimulating learning environment in AUC classrooms.

Echos Innovation Lab, Brazil

Founded by HPI D-School alumnus Richardo Ruffo, Echos is an innovation lab in Brazil that aims to transform people, organizations, and society. Its purpose is to foster the new generation of innovators and innovations worldwide. At Echos they see design as a way to transform new realities enabling preferred futures. They call themselves designers of the invisible things: process, culture, behavior, services, business model, learning experiences, change. Echos on the one hand helps businesses create value and innovate for good. On the other hand, Echos develops learning experiences to help people master the innovation mindset and tools at its school of design thinking.

Penn State University – College of Engineering

The Penn State College of Engineering is the engineering school of the Pennsylvania State University, headquartered at the University Park campus in University Park, Pennsylvania. It was established in 1896, under the leadership of George W. Atherton. Today, with 13 academic departments and degree programs, over 11,000 enrolled undergraduate and graduate students, the Penn State College of Engineering is one of the leading engineering schools in the United States.

Tecnológico de Monterrey, Campus Guadalajara Mexico

Tecnológico de Monterrey is a private, non-profit university, which was founded in 1943. The main campus is located in Monterrey but in total, the university has 31 campuses in 25 Mexican cities. Four years ago, Tec de Monterrey launched a Design Thinking Initiative that is helping students, professors, directives, companies and the community to address problems with a focus on a human-centered approach.

Universidad Mayor, Santiago de Chile

Universidad Mayor is a private non-profit university in Chile, with campuses in Santiago and Temuco, and a Branch Campus in Miami (USA). The institution serves 23,000 students between 43 undergraduate programs, over 100 graduate and diploma programs, and 6 doctoral degrees. In 2018 Universidad Mayor established the first D-School in Latin America through a collaboration with the Hasso Plattner Institute in Germany, installing design thinking as a core methodology into the curriculum of its undergraduate and graduate programs, training faculty, and expanding this knowledge and mindset to the organization itself.

We look forward to shaping the Global Design Thinking Alliance together with our new affiliated members.