In 2026, after nearly 90 years, the Institute of Design was folded into Illinois Tech's School of Design & Society.
This website is an archive of the impactful and inspirational work produced by the ID community before that transition.

László Moholy-Nagy opened the New Bauhaus in Chicago in 1937, treating design as a discipline that was teachable, testable, and consequential. Nine decades on, its scope had widened from the things people use to the systems they depend on: hospitals, government agencies, classrooms, supply chains, digital platforms. Along the way, ID community members developed the published research, methods, and frameworks that designers rely on every day.

Chief among them is human-centered design: close attention to how people actually live, and advocacy for what that research reveals. It shaped designers who are comfortable with complexity and ambiguity: curious, rigorous, inclusive, and stubbornly optimistic about design's ability to change the systems that shape our lives.

To every one of them, who taught, studied, built, critiqued, and stayed late in the studio: thank you, and keep designing.

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Better.T

By Brayan Pabón | Grace Parks Hall | Sahib Thukral |Sujith Samuel

May 11, 2023

Blockchain connects tea lovers to regenerative, fair farmers sustainably

Better T is a unique platform that aims to transform the tea industry by using blockchain technology and promoting fair and regenerative practices in the tea supply chain. Our platform connects tea lovers directly with farmers, eliminating intermediaries and ensuring that farmers receive fair compensation for their hard work. By using blockchain technology, we create a tamper-proof and immutable record of every transaction, ensuring transparency and traceability throughout the supply chain. Our goal is to create a more sustainable, transparent, and equitable ecosystem for tea production and consumption. Our platform provides strategies for regenerative agriculture that farmers can incorporate with the support of our local education partners. With the added value of traceability provided by web3 and the improved quality of the product, we ensure that we provide a premium-quality product. This in turn provides the financing needed to fund the regenerative transformation.

Project Details

  • Class: Introduction to Design Planning
  • Instructor: Larry Keeley

Grace Parks Hall

MDes + MBA 2024

Sahib Thukral

Sahib Thukral

MDes 2022

Sujith Samuel

Sujith Samuel

MDes 2023