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.

institute
of desiGn
Search

Graduate School: Design for Climate Leadership

Design for Climate Leadership

An exploration of the science of climate change & the role of design in developing solutions.

Objective & Outcomes

The course introduces students to the science of climate change, the vulnerabilities of different populations to CC impacts, and the range of actions pursued by individuals, organizations and nation-states in response to it. We will also critically explore the role of design in contributing to the current trajectory of CC, and in developing strategies for mitigation, adaptation and resilience to CC. A focal project with a civic and/or corporate partner provides an opportunity for students to understand how issues of climate risk, mitigation and adaptation play out in specific contexts, and how as designers they can work with such partners to articulate goals, develop strategies and engage relevant stakeholders in implementation. 

Students completing the course will gain an appreciation for the role of designers in understanding the multifaceted climate challenge and co-designing solutions for it. 

Typical Schedule

  • Session 1: Climate Change: Science & impacts
  • Session 2: Climate Change: Science & impacts
  • Session 3: Climate Change: Science & impacts
  • Session 4: Primary & Secondary Research to Understand Focal Project
  • Session 5: Primary & Secondary Research to Understand Focal Project
  • Session 6: Primary & Secondary Research to Understand Focal Project
  • Session 7: Primary & Secondary Research to Understand Focal Project
  • Session 8: Systems Mapping & Co-Design with Partners
  • Session 9: Systems Mapping & Co-Design with Partners
  • Session 10: Systems Mapping & Co-Design with Partners
  • Session 11: Systems Mapping & Co-Design with Partners
  • Session 12: Stakeholder Engagement Workshop & Debrief
  • Session 13: Stakeholder Engagement Workshop & Debrief
  • Session 14: Stakeholder Engagement Workshop & Debrief

See all MDes Courses