Feel the power

Feel the power

Two New Zealand design students from Unitec Institute of Technology in Auckland are meeting other upcoming international designers to face one of the great resource challenges: Adding emotional value to energy

We treat energy as if it were an inexhaustible resource. It is not. We have to start using energy with consideration and reflection. Experts agree that the behaviour of end-users is the key to creating the circumspect energy consumption that we need in the future. However, the fact that energy is invisible presents a major challenge when convincing people to start thinking about energy on a day-to-day basis.

DesignCamp 2011 wants to change this! From 3-14 October, 49 design students from across the world will gather at Kolding School of Design in Denmark. 2 of these students are students at Unitec Institute of Technology. They will in collaboration with the other international students work on the challenge of making energy consumption visible. Focusing on ordinary consumers the students will develop concepts that will make us aware of our energy consumption and make us change our behaviour towards reducing it.

The results will be creative prototypes and new angels on the challenge to make the Untangible Tangible. Prevoius DesignCamps have shown extremely original ideas and solutions to everyday challenges which inspire to new innovative products and services.

About DesignCamp 2011

The Kolding School of Design DesignCamp is an annual master class for invited top design students from selected design schools and universities around the world, who gather to develop design solutions assisted by specially invited international designers, educators, and researchers. DesignCamp focuses on the development of society in a broad perspective and is best characterised as a cross-cultural collaboration between nations, institutions, and industry on meeting global challenges and solving common issues.

Besides design students from the USA, Canada, India, New Zealand, Syria and the UK, this year's Camp gathers a number of energy companies, for instance DONG Energy. Research institutions will be represented, including Smart Grid researchers from the Technical University of Denmark (DTU), researchers from Energy Design Studio, Interactive Institute Eskildstuna, Kolding School of Design, etc.

A DesignCamp Jury will evaluate the student projects. The jury comprises Anders Troi, researcher at DTU, Cordy Swope, American design strategist, former IDEO, and Danish futurologist Anne Skare Nielsen.

For more information about the Kolding School of Design DesignCamp2011, please go to: http://www.designskolenkolding.dk/designcamp2011/

We will be able to establish contact to the New Zealand students during the camp and do video interviews for You if requested.

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