Designing Designs Introduction
When we design, we break things into their simplest parts. With clear language, we articulate the patterns within a system. In this culmination of my degree in design, I wanted to illustrate the common patterns between many methodologies of Design. In effect, I am sketching the nuts and bolts of design methodologies (especially as used in Permaculture Design.)
Design Chart
You can download this chart below.
Downloadable Design Chart
Reflections on Growth as Designer
My growth as a designer is paramount to my pathway through my Master's program of Integrative EcoSocial Design with a Specialization in Applied Permaculture Design. I hope that the charts and pattern language that I share on this page can help demonstrate my growth as a designer. Below, you can see the wealth of design methodologies I have explored and utilized in my OP's.
During my Precapstone year, I primarily used OBREDIMET and my own methodology based off of OBREDIMET and GaSADIE with the acronym ORGBADIE. Following these acronyms helped me begin to formalize my own process of design.
This then inspired me in my Capstone year to explore Design through many more diverse lenses. I explored some formal design processes such as NASA engineering model, Dragon Dreaming, Appreciative Inquiry, The Waterfall Design. In addition to some of these methodologies, I created numerous design processes that reflected systems that I enjoyed: Chakra, Seed/Plant, NVC, and Natural cycles (moon/seasons).
My comfort with my own design process culminated in my articulation of Curriculum Creation as a design process empowering Action Learning. I see that through Gaia, I have become a more conscious and aware learner that is able to articulate what I would like to learn and create a syllabus/design framework to enact my desired goals and properly document them.
Design is second nature to me at this point in my life and my degree has helped give me vocabulary to support others (and myself) in their articulation of designing projects.
Again in my Precapstone year, I primarily used OBREDIMET and ORGBADIE
OP 2: Designing a Solar System
OP 3: OBREDIMET
OP 4: ORGBADIE
OP 4: Catering -- OBREDIMET
OP 5: ORGBADIE
When I entered my Capstone phase, I began to explore design through many more lenses.
OP 1b : ORGBADIE
CR 1b: Chakra Design Methodology: Rooting, Inspiration, Direction, Web, Expression, Illumination, Realization
OP2: NVC Design Methodology Observing Needs, Articulating Needs/Goals, Articulating Feelings and making the request.
CR 2: Natural cycles following seasons, moon, energies: Inspiration, Production, Reflection, Sourcing
OP 3 OGaSADIE
CR 3 Dragon Dreaming
OP 4: Revisit GaSADIE
CR 4: Plant Based: Seed, Shoot, Fruit, Root
OP 5: ORGBADIE
CR 5: Gaia U Design Process
Design can be seen through many lenses.
Design involves 1 clearly articulating goals, 2 creating a framework to implement those goals, 3 Doing it, 4 Documenting/Evaluating what happened.
Curriculum Creation
I have created many curriculums for myself during this phase, including many small experimental ones simply during the OP 4 cycle. The first major curriculum was inspired when I considered enrolling in school for Chocolatiers. Ultimately, as an action learner with OP's to create, I decided I would try my hand at creating my own curriculum and become a self certified chocolatier. Truly, I desired the skills and knowledge more than one more certification. This was for me both professionally and personally rewarding and inspiring as I love chocolate and I have used my newfound skills in several events and weddings. Professionally, many of the chocolate desserts that I use are even tastier and easier foir me to make. And I have also created tempered chocolate hearts for two different weddings that I catered.
Inspired by my success and recognizing that active experimentation with some research into what others "do" to learn skills, I have created a fairly basic Curriculum Creator.
During my last OP 4 cycle, I was exploring resources on my 1 acre homestead in Baja applying the principles:
Obtain a Yield and Produce no Waste,
I explored:
- floral design
- coconut frond basket weaving
- plumeria lei making
In addition, I wanted to teach myself magic tricks and knot tying.
Curriculum creation at its simplest is a design process for Action Learning.
Curricula Creation is at the heart of epistemology?
Employ the Socratic method and simply ask
"How do you do that?"
Luckily with the internet, hundreds of people are eager and anxious to tell you how they do just about everything. Now, self directed learning vs. learning from a master is different and there are pros and cons to both. If you only listen to the internet, you may go on a wild goose chase for some skills, indeed for many skills, it's very helpful to learn hands-on with a mentor. Some skills are so refined that understanding the tricks of the trade can save you 100's or 1000's of hours of experimentation.
However, most skills are fairly easy to learn from internet and experience. And if you have thousands of hours to actively experiment, you almost certainly can learn anything.
So this is what I mean by creating curriculum for ourselves to learn the things we want to learn.
Goal Articulation -- articulating what I want to learn
Survey -- survey the field -- often this involves reading books and watching youtube.
Assess -- Pull out pattern level awareness from your many sources.
Design -- Decide upon and create the strategies and techniques I want to explore.
Implement -- Actively Experiment with these strategies and techniques. It takes 10000 hours to become a master. Only about 100 to become proficient at something (especially with a little bit of pre reading and watching others share their experiences
Evaluate -- Journal and keep notes on how the process goes for you
So, really, curriculum creation is simply another design process of action learning or layering a design process around how we learn.
This was catalyzed in my life when I read the curricula for several chocolatiering schools which inspired me to write down what I wanted to learn (patterns of chocolatiering) and, consequently, which skills I would practice on which day of the week (hence a curriculum for my self driven chocolate studies.)
I realize that it is often wise to pay a teacher or a school to limit the amount of information that we need to sift through in order to find the patterns or the good information. I believe in finding these mentors and schools especially when the skill is a long or difficult skill to attain. However, for something like chocolatiering, where I was clear that mostly I wanted to master tempering and combining of chocolate and liquids; it only took a bit of research and practice. I certainly was calling myself a chocolatier after less than 100 hours. A typical chocolate session lasted 1-3 hours and during my research phase, I did 30-40 "classes." I am continuing to play/experiment and make chocolates and I know I will continue to improve. Perhaps, with a teacher, I may have failed fewer times; however, in the long run, many of my failures were my greatest teachers. A teacher that doesn't let a student fail doesn't prepare that student for anything outside of a very narrow box.
OTHER BEST PRACTICES:
- Tools
- Glossary
- Class Schedule
For some action learning, it is appropriate to sequentially experience things
Creating an ORDER for classes is sometimes highly beneficial.
Design Methodology Pattern
When examining design processes from many fields and systems, many follow the same basic pattern of
1. Goal Articulation
2. Designing the approach (timeline/structure/architecture)
3. Implementing an approach
4. Evaluation/Observation and then cyclically setting new goals, etc.
I believe that the process STARTS with Observation/Evaluation as well; however, many models begin with the goals/problem. Within my model of Curriculum Creation, this same pattern follows
1. Articulate goals of "What to learn?"
2. Create Syllabus
3. Actively experiment/implement
4. Evaluate learnings/new goals?
Curricula Floral Design
Goals -- Make beautiful bouquets
Survey -- I have watched 2 dozen videos on flower design.
I hired a local florist to make bouquets at my house. This taught me two things. Many florists use "standard" flowers and are less comfortable with home bouquets. Even he didn't know which flowers would last a day vs. a week.
Implement/Active Experiment
I experimented 4-5 times per week in Baja making bouquets
I bought 100 vases of different sizes and shapes as I was loving making bouquets but we only had 2. In this way, I could also give away the bouquets (obtain a yield) to friends; all of whom were extremely grateful.
Curricula Lei Making
I watched 4 videos on making leis. I am the type that believes things are hard until I do them. Even stringing flowers on a string felt like a challenge to me. After doing it, it seems like the easiest thing in the world. Occasionally, my abstract brain can overcomplicate things. Another reason that it is good practice for me to actively experiment. Just do it.
Curricula Coconut Frond Basket Weaving
I watched 6 videos on weaving coconut fronds into hats, baskets, walls, and more. I invited 8 friends over to explore weaving coconut fronds. Two of them watched a few videos and one had done a little weaving in Hawaii. We actively experimented together. Everyone had fun. Everyone created something more than I expected. Nothing was sellable or perfect; however, many things were interesting and it gave me a solid sense of how coconut fronds become other things. I hope to do more classes on this.