Designing Tomorrow: A Day with Don Norman at FLAME University

Just like many of us do, I had planned out all the different discussions I’d have with Don Norman, the father of user experience design, commonly known as UX design. The whole university was prepped for his arrival; a large crowd gathered to get a glimpse. As he walked towards us, I knew what my first words were going to be. He shook my hand, and I said, “Uh… hi!” Well, I guess no one will ever find out what those first words were going to be. While I was completely starstruck, Don Norman considered himself to be one of us-a student who is always learning, a facilitator of knowledge, always willing to help anyone and everyone. He often mentioned how he is an ‘accidental designer’; it wasn’t his training in engineering that made him an eminent figure in the field of design, but purely his curiosity. When I asked him what is something that every budding designer should have, that was his first and only word—curiosity.

While he talked to students, faculty, and even the founding members of FLAME University, he always touched upon the need for curiosity and how interdisciplinary learning fosters it. He lauded the liberal education model and pedagogy of FLAME University, and especially that of the School of Design, Art & Performance at FLAME University that offers students the option of majors, minors, and interesting electives to choose from-nurturing their curiosity.

Aligning with NEP 2020, liberal education and interdisciplinary learning are now gaining momentum across the country, but FLAME was one of the first institutions in the country to introduce this way of learning and, might I add, this way of life. After graduating from FLAME in 2020, I was able to work in different fields and different capacities solely because I was never restricted to one way of thinking and learning. The campus life and the environment offered at FLAME that nurtures critical thinking and problem-solving skills were essential in helping me achieve my academic and professional aspirations. This is something that Don Norman witnessed within just a span of two days during his time at FLAME. Courses like critical thinking and mental models? He loved them! He argued that these aren’t just buzzwords; they are the backbone of future leaders and problem solvers, and nurturing these qualities at the college level allows students to seamlessly transition into high-impact leadership roles despite the changing dynamics of industries.

In the field of design, future design thinkers, researchers, and makers will have much bigger responsibilities with the rise of artificial intelligence (AI) and other novel technologies, unlike the common misconception of AI taking over jobs. Just like the IT boom, we have to evolve and adapt to let technology make our work easier and more efficient. The onus of decision-making, looking out for our fellow citizens, and accommodating their needs is upon us designers.

Growing fields like UI/UX design, service design, communication design, etc. are not just fancy titles for upcoming designers but relevant fields that encapsulate the needs of different people, different industries, and different global and local challenges. They call for a more holistic approach to address challenges and opportunities, which means having an understanding of different subjects, working collaboratively with different and multiple disciplines, and understanding and considering varying perspectives. One of the most pressing problems is climate change, a term we might be tired of hearing but something that will get to us sooner or later despite where we are in the world. People from different disciplines are all working together to find the best possible pathways to mitigate the repercussions of climate calamities, and this wouldn’t be possible without organizations and people working within it knowing how to collaborate cross-functionally.

The School of Design, Art & Performance at FLAME University, which offers a B.Des program with a major in Experience Design and a minor in Psychology, Entrepreneurship, Business Analytics, Marketing, and Literary & Cultural Studies, rests on these pillars of liberal education, interdisciplinarity learning, and cross-collaboration. Don Norman, among other global industrialists and educators, has been a guide and mentor from the inception of the school. As a member of the advisory body of the FLAME School of Design, Art & Performance, he continues to help the school devise its curriculum and pedagogy to ensure it is student-centric while addressing the dynamic needs of industries. Having had a monodisciplinary education, Don often brought up in conversations how he admired the vision that FLAME’s community had for education when FLAME was just an idea and an abstract concept. As he toured the campus, walking and talking with students and faculty alike, he realized the breadth of subjects offered here and the multitude of major-minor combination possibilities. What he appreciated most was the opportunity for students to build a foundation through the 5 ‘Universes of Knowledge’ before branching out into fields of their interests. It allows students to not only explore their interests but also gauge their aptitude in different subjects if they hadn’t had the chance to do so earlier.

During his time at FLAME, Don Norman interacted with students within the university as well as those from other schools around Pune. Rather than talking about himself, he gave students the opportunity to pose questions that would help them better understand what design is and who designers are. With the ever-changing roles and responsibilities of designers and the growth of new technologies, Don helped all of us visualize the future of design. His meetings with the founding members and leadership of FLAME ignited the verve for creating a movement that would bring together institutions across the country to discuss design education on a larger scale. With the growing need for a richer dialogue around responsible design, FLAME has already begun initiating this movement and is collaborating with its contemporaries to ensure design education can inform and train future leaders responsibly.

It was, in fact, Don Norman who pointed out the alignment between his work and different programs at FLAME; the Experiential Learning Program is one such program that stands out. While this program consists of 3 different sub-programs, “Discover India Program,” or DIP, is one that is unique to FLAME and caught Don’s attention. With students going out on field to learn about different cultures, practices, industries, etc. across our country, they’re exposed to different ways of thinking, doing, and living. Most students’ projects revolve around addressing challenges and design opportunities in their environment, which allows them to immerse themselves in the context and learn how to approach these challenges with new and innovative methods. Some prominent past projects have looked at physical accessibility and inclusion in tourist spots with a focus on historic monuments taking Shaniwar Wada in Pune as the case study, and tackling social isolation among senior citizens and how a hybrid platform called ‘Dost’ can address the challenges of the target group and contribute to overall societal well-being. These smaller and localized projects tie into the larger endeavor of contributing to Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), something that Don is passionate about and is contributing to through his work himself. As Don walked around the Design Lab viewing student projects across different courses, he witnessed the wide range of skills that students possessed despite studying the same subject and got a glimpse of how students are exposed to complex challenges and mentored to approach them using the best practices.

Humanity-centered design should be at the core of our methods, as Don advocates, which has always been the foundation for education at FLAME. Interdisciplinarity, curiosity, and empathy can make all of us more conscious and well-informed citizens that can allow us to address societal complexities more effectively. Spending the day with Don Norman made us realize and imbibe it, and by the end of it, we all felt a bit more creative and a lot more curious. This was only the beginning of a new era at FLAME, and a creative one at that, and the community of FLAME is eager to see this new chapter unfold.

Author: Tina Mangwani, FLAME Alumna, & Research Assistant at the School of Design, Art and Performance, FLAME University.