Our Framework
Designing to consider the 3 Interdependent life groups
All peoples
- Target users
- Non-users—Individuals, communities, and employees of organisations working within the product lifecycle
- Invisible humans—individuals and communities not involved in the lifecycle but who are impacted by it
- All human knowledge and ways of existing
All animals
Non-humans might include amphibians, reptiles, birds, and mammals of varying scales:
- Animals of all sizes
- Insects
- Microbes
- On land, sea, air, or underground
- Domestic, livestock, captive, or wild
- Whether ‘proven’ sentient or not
All planet
All planetary resources and ecosystems:
- Vegetation (trees, forests, swamps, etc.)
- Water systems (oceans, lakes, rivers, freshwater)
- Air
- Soil
- Climate
- Landforms (mountains, hills, etc.)
- Sunlight
- Noise
- Temperature
Aiming to uphold the 3 Design Pillars
** Our framework aligns with the ESG framework and supports ideation for your ESG commitments **
Sustainable
and regenerative
(ENVIRONMENTAL)
- Ensuring the social, economic, and resource sustainability of the product lifecycle by extending material value and reducing waste
- Zooming out to share prosperity with the ecosystem of the product/service lifecycle and to regenerate the sources of energy it takes from, nurturing resilience for all
Inclusive
and pluriversal
(SOCIAL)
- Broadening consideration of human experiences beyond what has been stereotyped as normal within the Euro-Western world
- Zooming out to know and champion diverse ways of existing beyond the dominant Euro-Western-centric capitalistic, colonial, white supremacist, patriarchal, hierarchical, heterosexual, and cis culture
Responsible
and Aligned
(GOVERNANCE)
- Align workplace values with life-centred purpose—from individual employee to business ownership—and embrace transparency and accountability to drive innovation
- Convert product to service, distribute to localise, and utilise data to foster responsible stewardship of resources
- Zoom out to align business goals with global goals and ally with the supply chain to nurture circular, regenerative, and just experience
Designing for your entire Ecosystem
Multi-level
- Micro level— the individual user experience
- Meso level— the service or business model
- Macro level— the product’s lifecycle impact at a global or national level
Multi-practice
Switching between design practices to work at all levels and attend to all actors
Time-honouring
Honour alternate perspectives of the past and recognise possible futures to protect all past wisdom and future actors
Switching between Key Design Practices
- Circular design
- Inclusive design
- Pluriversal design
- Systems thinking
- Distributed design
- Sustainable web design
- Behavioural design
- Interspecies design
- Biomimicry
- Foresight
- Human-centred design
Adopting new Mindsets
Guided by the Compass
A ‘Double-Diamond’ diagram for life-centred design, capturing the scope of consideration and when to use the key practices.
Take the lead
Life-centred design aligns designers and businesses with global goals, and gives them the skills to respond to today’s wicked problems in practical and measurable ways.
#2 Amazon Best Seller in Engineering Design, Dec ’22
“The ideas really resonated with me as I’ve felt this growing unease with human centred design’s echo chamber”
“Super helpful tools for designers… I’ll be sharing them with the students.”
“An amazing book about the topic.”
