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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Trashcred

By Ruhi Dholakia | Aabha A. Kale | Shirin Navgire | Dennis Siegert

May 10, 2024

Speculative Design to Imagine Future Food Consumption and Waste Patterns

Strategies to increase productivity in remote/hybrid environments authentically

Trashcred for 2029 utilizes speculative design to explore future food consumption and waste patterns. It uses design sheets to map behaviors and identify change levers, such as emerging social movements and technological advancements.

The project assesses the consequences of these changes on society and the environment. Through futures design, it aims to create systemic solutions that promote sustainability. This approach helps stakeholders visualize potential impacts and encourages the adoption of innovative, long-term strategies to address food waste issues.

View full project here.

Project Details

  • Class: Futures Prototyping
  • Instructor: Cecilia Tham | Martin Thaler

Ruhi Dholakia

MDes + MBA 2024

Aabha Kale

MDes + MBA 2024

Shirin Navgire

MDes 2024

Dennis Siegert

MDes 2024