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This was the Design Research Discussion Group's (DRDGroup) first event. We have been heartened this semester by the interest and support the DRDGroup has gained from individuals from a diverse range of disciplines. From this integrative potential we decided to put on an event that could explore cross disciplinary notions of design. We did not know if anyone would be interested in coming along to put forward their disciplines notion of design. However, we ended up with a packed program of willing participants from a diverse range of fields; from fashion design to forensic science. We came together to discuss the similarities and differences between the different disciplines understanding and use of the term 'design'. In the end what resonated was how much we were able to understand each others fields, with correlations became much more evident than differences.

Craig Bremner (Head of the School of Design and Architecture, UC)

Introduced the event by going through a short history of how the field of design has thought about design. From 'what is design' to 'what is design for', through the idea of problem solving to good business, to improving our society. However, all of these historical platforms have been refuted. Perhaps the role of design is more about our relationships with each other.
See Vilem Flusser's paper on the term 'design'

Gowrie Waterhouse (Interdisciplinary Design Studies, UC)

Started the presentations by exploring the ideas of divergent and convergent disciplinary aspects of design ie. those disciplines diverging from the notion of design such as graphics, industrial, architecture, etc, and those disciplines converging for a design outcome. Postulating on a mapping of how these could be connected.
Discussion:

Kersty Hobson (Social Researcher, ANU)

Talked about design from the perspective of a social researchers interest in power and materiality. She outlined her research into the 'stuff' in sustainable behaviour. Moving away from meaning towards looking at what people actually do with the 'stuff' in their everyday. Previously social sciences have focused on education to promote sustainable behavior, Kersty started looking at how artifacts and our relationship to artifacts facilitated everyday practices and sustainable behaviour.
Discussion:

Craig McDonald and John Campbell (Information Systems, UC)

Outlined informatics. Gave a diagram outlining the Information Systems design process.
Outlined issues in Information Systems Research including brining back the notion of artifact.
Discussion:

Dennis McNevin (Forensic Science, UC)

Outlined the traditional notions of the scientific method in order to outline experimental design. Dennis explained this type of design as being highly prescriptive and with a highly structured framework from the scientific method of observation, hypothesis, testing hypothesis to be accepted or rejected and flowing back through an iterative process with no finality.
Discussion:

Kate Shaw (Fashion Design, CIT)

Showed us some beautiful images of a collaborative project fashion design students entered into with dance and photography students. She talked about teaching fashion and the nature of fashion design, including the impact of outside influences (people, market and contemporary issues) and the importance of gaining an ethical position as a fashion designer.
Discussion:

Neil Lynch (Enterprise Architecture, UC)

Gave us a brief history of the emergence of the field of enterprise architecture, from the architect Wurman to the engineer Zachman to institutional bodies, looking at the culture and practices of enterprises and how to re-design them or reverse engineering their existing architecture in terms of "as is" and "to be".
Discussion:

Jordan Williams (Creative Communications, UC)

Explored design from the perspective of reading and writing, in terms of content, form and experience. The content of writers designing worlds and objects such as William Gibson's sci-fi. Form of the physicality of literature; layout of words and images, size, shape and colour of book, etc. The experience of books and reading.
Discussion:

Chris Klimek (Design Education, UC)

Talked about the history of designing the curriculum for design at CIT aiming towards enabling students to challenge their ideas in order to approach their design studies with creativity, curiosity, exploration, passion and interest.
Discussion:

Sally Burford (Web Architecture, UC)
Outlined notions of how to design the information and interface of virtual space of the Internet. She outlined different design strategies from skipping the expert,to standards, guidelines and style guides, to design patterns of ready made solutions.
Discussion:

Val Brown (Fenner School of Environment and Society, ANU)

Proposed that design was like integrative knowledge. Val suggested that what was being talked about in this forum was core to finding the holistic and integrative knowledge needed to understand ecological and human systems as one.
Discussion:

Craig Bremner (Head of the school of Design and Architecture, UC)

Concluded the day by highlighting the commonality around this word design and the emergence of a realisation that we understand more about each others fields than we thought.