Sustainable and Digital Transformation for designers

Welcome to Sustainable and Digital Transformation for designers

Description: This course aims at providing knowledge and concrete examples of sustainable digital transformation, and of the different approaches that can shape and frame it. The course takes as its starting point at the need for a profound transformation of socio-ecological dynamics to ensure a livable future for all. The required transformation should, at the same time, be sustainable and digital, and it should include the multitude of social, environmental, and technological elements that constitute the fabric of human practices of living in a common world. The course will discuss what this can mean through examples, which will be selected by the teachers based on the research questions of the participants. Such concrete topics can include, but are not limited to, data caring, waste management, sustainable interaction design, communing practices, cooperative platforms, green algorithms, and so on and so forth. The course will raise questions on the effects, values and stories linked to data and digitalization, as well as discuss how caring for the climate and environment can scope and create new social-technical configurations.

The course is built on the principles of the Problem Based Learning (PBL) model that focuses on learning by doing and reflection. The course is a 2-day Ph.D. course where the Ph.D. students meet to discuss applications of theories and principles from their own work, the literature that is provided for the course on design perspectives, sustainability, and digital transformation. Additionally, will there be presentations from the researchers involved to support the students’ thinking and construction of new ideas. The physical attendance will include individual and group work around student’s own work, cases, exercises, and discussion sessions and workshops.

Prerequisites: The course is open to participants with design background. However, the course will have a research focus on sustainable futures and/or digital technologies for thematic alignment as an entry to discussing sustainability and digital transformation. As a PBL initiative, the course will be rooted in the individual participants research questions, to show how research on sustainable and digital transformation can benefit the individual research trajectories and allow for the construction of a network of early career researchers contributing to the needed sustainable and digital transformation.

Learning objectives: 

Knowledge
Students who complete this course will obtain:

• knowledge and understanding of the current state of the art of research methods in sustainable digital transformation.
• knowledge and understanding of present theories on sustainable and digital transformation related to design.
• Knowledge and understanding of various design related theories and viewpoints within sustainable and digital transformation.

Skills
Students who complete the course will be able to:

• critically review and analyze case studies on sustainable digital transformation.
• apply principles of design theories within sustainable digital transformation to their own work and other case studies.

Competences
Students who complete the module will be able to:

• identify new research directions at the intersection of sustainability- and digitalization research.
• Identify design theories they can use for their work within sustainability and digital transformation research.
• be comfortable in networking and collaborating with researchers from different disciplinary backgrounds while facing problems pertaining to sustainable and digital transformation.

Organizer: Lene Sørensen

Lecturers: Maurizio Teli, Plan; Markus Lichtenfeld, CREATE; John Stouby, CS, Lene Sørensen, ES, Andrea Cabrera, Aalto, Chiara Rossitto, KTH

ECTS: 2

Time: 12 May (Online 14:00 - 16:30) 29 May (Physical)

Place: Aalborg University

City: Aalborg

Maximal number of participants: 20

Deadline: 21 April 2026

Important information concerning PhD courses: 

There is a no-show fee of DKK 3,000 for each course where the student does not show up. Cancellations are accepted no later than 2 weeks before the start of the course. Registered illness is of course an acceptable reason for not showing up on those days. Furthermore, all courses open for registration approximately four months before start of the course.

We cannot ensure any seats before the deadline for enrolment, all participants will be informed after the deadline, approximately 3 weeks before the start of the course.

For inquiries regarding registration, cancellation or waiting list, please contact the PhD administration at phdcourses@adm.aau.dk When contacting us please state the course title and course period. Thank you.