Last June, Design Literacy International Network celebrated its fifth anniversary by signing a collaboration agreement between the three sponsoring universities and presenting the special issue ‘Perspectives on Design Literacy’ published by the Norwegian journal FormAkademisk (Vol. 16 No. 5).
Five years have passed since Liv Merete Nielsen and Erik Bohemia called for academics interested in critically exploring sustainable and socially ethical perspectives to support design and design education research from kindergarten to PhD. This initiative allowed the DRS/Cumulus Oslo Congress organisers to continue the call they began in 2013. Thus, within the framework of the ADIM2019 conference in London, the Design Literacy International Network (DLIN) was established. Today, it is led by Nielsen, Bohemia and the UDD Design scholar, Úrsula Bravo.
In its five years of existence, DLIN has organised 35 talks, led three conference tracks, developed two special journal issues, held one symposium, and signed 1 Memorandum of Understanding, bringing together researchers worldwide. Among the highlights is Engage with Ideas, a regular series of online talks that enables a forum for international scholars to discuss their research and explore its connection to design literacy. Since its conception, nearly 1500 people have attended these events.
Other activities organised by DLIN include the special issue «Design Literacy for All», published by the Revista Chilena de Diseño (RChD) in 2020 (Bravo & Bohemia, 2020). Participation in the LearnXDesign 2021 conference with the tracks «Empowering critical design literacy», led by Eva Lutnæs from OsloMet, and «Design Thinking to improve creative problem-solving», led by Úrsula Bravo from Diseño UDD. Participation in the DRS Bilbao 2022 conference with the track «Design Literacies: Pasts, Presents, and Possible Futures» (Bravo et al., 2022). The organisation of the 2022 Symposium «Perspectives on Design Literacy», hosted by Shandong University of Art & Design and the publication of the FormAkademisk’s special issue (Vol. 16, No. 5).
In October 2023, the three DLIN leaders –Nielsen, Bohemia, and Bravo– were invited to participate in the celebrations of the 50th anniversary of the Shandong University of Art & Design and deliver a talk at the «Design Education and Development: Innovation and Integration» conference. The trip sought to consolidate the work of the Design Literacy International Network (DLIN) as a platform for international academic cooperation.
In June 2024, Erik Bohemia was invited as a keynote speaker at the “Perspectives on Design Thinking and Design Literacy in the 21st Century” symposium organised by Özyeğin University of Turkey.
As a result of the activities organised by DLIN during these five years, 97 academics from 54 universities located in 20 countries have contributed by sharing their research and perspectives in talks, papers, symposia or articles.
These achievements are the result of the work, commitment, and collaboration of the three DLIN leaders, as well as the sustained support of Universidad del Desarrollo (UDD), Oslo Metropolitan University (OsloMet), and Shandong University of Art & Design (SUAD).
To formalise this effort and boost future network activities, on June 25th, the authorities of the three universities met in Oslo to sign a cooperation agreement. The signing took place in the presence of Alejandra Amenábar, Dean of the Design School at UDD, Carl Christian Thodesen, Pro-Rector for Social Impact and Collaboration of Oslo Metropolitan University (OsloMet/TKD), and Han Wentao, Vice President in Charge of Qingdao Campus and International Affairs of Shandong University of Art & Design (SUAD).
On that occasion, Liv Merete Nielsen presented the achievements and activities organised by the Design Literacy International Network (DLIN) in its five years of existence, concluding with the presentation of the latest edition of the academic journal FormAkademisk (Vol. 16, No. 5) entitled «Perspectives on Design Literacy». In addition to the DLIN leaders–Bohemia, Bravo, and Nielsen–Chinese scholars Yang Zhang from Nanjing University of the Arts and Lusheng Pan from Shandong University of Art & Design participated as guest editors.
The editorial process took 18 months and began in September 2022 with an online symposium. Participants presented 16 proposals, which were subsequently drafted, submitted, and evaluated by double-blind review through the journal’s platform. The special issue includes two editorials and nine articles and brings together 19 scholars from Chile, China, Norway, Singapore, Sweden, and Turkey. The articles exploring design literacy at different educational levels and in diverse territorial and cultural contexts provide a valuable reference point for the public.
On October 11th, the editors will present the special issue in the “Futures of Design Education” online series, organised by the DRS EdSIG.
