Design Research Methodology

The purpose of collaboration with sustainable food initiatives is for the iteration of a “design for communication tool” focused on the sustainability qualities explained previously.  The iterative process happens in a series of workshops with sustainable food initiatives and participants of the public in which the tool is developed and tested. 

Through this process new knowledge emerges that leads to develop a new framework for communication design specific to qualities of sustainabilit,y

The methodology created for this iterative and collaborative practice positions the communication designer as the facilitator rather than the producer of the final outcome - as a communicator or amplifier of a story rather than its author. 

The original contribution to knowledge as a result of practice-led research is twofold.  The first contribution is the framework “Design for Communication” that emerges through practice specifically centred on qualities of sustainability.  The second contribution of this research is the “Design for Communication Tool” itself, the iterative development of which provides the context for testing the framework. This tool can be of value to a wider audience of social oriented initiatives beyond sustainable food initiatives.