designmatters | Where art & design education meets social change.

Welcome to Designmatters at ArtCenter College of Design
Where art & design education meets social change.
More About Us
A Future Vision for the Aquarium of the Pacific
Packard Fellowship invited ArtCenter students, faculty to develop concepts for a new wing at Aquarium of the Pacific!
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Socially Engaged Art: Art in Urban Community Green Spaces
Sponsored by the Mary Pickford Foundation, this Designmatters studio teamed ArtCenter students with high schoolers from the Ramona Gardens public housing development to create an art-filled event at Alvarez Park that would celebrate and connect the Boyle Heights community with its cultural and natural surroundings through projects that explore self-expression and ideas of environmental justice.
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Seeing the Unseen: Visualizing Flow Patterns of Mesopelagic Ocean Eddies
ArtCenter students design interactive data visualization projects based on the elusive underwater movement patterns of ocean eddies.
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The Designmatters Minor in Social Innovation
The Designmatters Minor in social innovation is a course of study for ArtCenter undergraduate students who want to master a toolkit of design skills and strategies to navigate the complex dynamics of working with communities and designing for social change.
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Fellowship Program
The Designmatters Fellowship Program embeds top ArtCenter students in host organizations for one full 14-week academic term to work on high-level projects and explore the mission, model and meaning of the host organization’s work.
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PACIFIC RIM: Eco Research Lab Costa Rica
ArtCenter students collaborated with Tama students and faculty for two weeks to study, explore and be inspired by the rich biodiversity of the Costa Rica ecological landscape to later design sustainable spaces, materials innovations, furnishings and experiences.
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Designing Democracy: The Future of Civic Engagement
In partnership with California Common Cause, ArtCenter students created campaigns, collateral and experiences aimed to increase voter participation and citizen empowerment.
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Design Smarter: Reimagining Electronics for Repair & Recycle
The Fall 2018 Design for Sustainability 2: Design Smarter: Reimagining Electronics for Repair & Recycle studio in partnership with Homeboy Electronics Recycling challenged students to explore the economics, systems and processes of e-waste to create an innovative product or system that efficiently utilizes materials, processes, manufacturing, packaging, distribution, repair, reuse, recycling and end-of-life.
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Designmatters Project Archive
List of all Designmatters Case Studies in Chronological order.
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Building Trust, Bridging Divides: Visual Communication/Branding Programming for the LBPD
This studio challenged transdisciplinary students to develop a visually compelling and technology-infused awareness campaign and branding program, to build understanding and empathy between the LBPD and the diverse communities of Long Beach.
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Smart Image/Social Impact: Myth vs. Reality in the Immigration Debate
Illustration students worked with United We Stay (UWS), a nonprofit immigrant advocacy organization, on their final projects to debunk the myths surrounding immigrants in America.
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Introduction

The Designmatters educational platform at ArtCenter College of Design joins collaboration with experimentation, experience with reflection, problem-solving with problem-discovery, and purpose with action.

Our Mission

Through research, advocacy and action, Designmatters engages, empowers and leads an ongoing exploration of art and design as a positive force in society.

Recent News

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PACIFIC RIM: Eco Research Lab Costa Rica

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Socially Engaged Art - Art in Urban Community Green Spaces

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"All of a sudden, I wasn’t a student working in a classroom in Pasadena, but a person with responsibility and potential to change the world."
Jonathan Goldman Advertising, Student

Sustainable Ecosystem for the Future of Vans

Fall 2014 - Host Department: Product Design

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ENGAGING + REFRAMING THE ‘REFUGEE’ CRISIS

Social Design Insights / May 2019

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The Next Wave: Know the Tsunami

Students address the vital need for coastal communities of Southern California to have a clear and engaging message about the risks and hazards of tsunamis.

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“Each student brings individual life experiences, diverse cultural upbringings, varied interests and perspectives to the subject displaying the many ways see and converse about a problem.”
Krystina Castella, Faculty, Product Design

Big Lessons from the Big Apple: The LA i-team reflects on the NYC’s Service Design Studio

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Communicating the Wellbeing of a City with Santa Monica

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COANIQUEM: Safe Niños Designing Innovative Interactive Environments for Pediatric Healing

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View all projects

"Cultural production and design must go hand in hand as we seek to improve the condition of our world."
Najeeba Syeed-Miller, Western Justice Center Foundation

DESIGNMATTERS MINOR IN SOCIAL INNOVATION

A transcripted course of study for ArtCenter undergraduate students in social innovation

FELLOWSHIP PROGRAM

ArtCenter students are embedded in host organizations for one full 14-week academic term to work on high-level projects.

Networks & Partnerships

Current partnerships

AED

American Cancer Society

American Red Cross

ANSPE

Aquarium of the Pacific

Art Division

Arthritis Foundation

Ashoka

Autodesk Foundation

Barbie

Berkeley Graduate School of Journalism

Bloomberg

Center Theatre Group

Childrens Hospital LA

City of LA

City of Long Beach

City of Pasadena

City of Santa Monica Office of Civic Wellbeing

Coaniquem

California Common Cause

Cedar-Sinai Center for Health Equity Research

Compartamos Con Colombia

Covenant House

Dalberg

Doctors Withouth Borders

East West Bank

EMDRIA

FEMA

Flintridge Center

Food Forward

GE Healthcare

Girl Effect

Goodwill

Homeboy

Homeboy Electronics Recycling

Housing Works

HUB Bogota

Instituto de Diseño (ISDi)

International Medical Corp

International Organization for Migration

International Rescue Comm

Kyoto Seika University

LA County Dept. mental health

LAUSD

Legacy LA

Long Beach Police Department

Mary Pickford Foundation

Mattel

Mayo

Mayor’s Fund Los Angeles

NAKFI

Nathan Cummings

NEA

Nike Foundation

NOAA

North East Trees

OAS

Outward Bound Adventures

Packard Foundation

PAHO

Participant

Pasadena Public Library

Path

Planned Parenthood

Princeton

Project Concern Int

Proximity

Rancho Los Amigos National Rehabilitation Center

Ronald McDonald House

Rubbermaid

Sappi: Ideas that Matter

SCEC

Silicon Valley Community Foundation

State of California Seismic Safety

Surdna

SHE

Socialab

US dept of Interior

TAMA Art University

TECHO

UCLA Business of Science Center

UNESCO

UNFPA

UNDP

UNICEF

UNICEF US Fund

UNIFEM

United We Stay

UNOPS

USC Annenberg

USC Norris

USGS

VANS

VentureWell

WHO

Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution

World Bank

Women Deliver

YMCA

designmatters networks

AIGA

Cumulus Association

Design Ignites Change

Designers Accord

Desis Network

IDSA