9/10/2014

Ecological Design and Ecological Systems Theory | Schumacher College

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Ecological Design Thinking

MA, PG Diploma (full and part-time) and PG Certificate programme approved and
awarded through Plymouth University.
We accept applications year-round for our postgraduate programmes.

For a world that is facing unprecedented challenges we need radical approaches to the way we
think about and apply our designs to the systems around us.
This ground-breaking new postgraduate programme from Schumacher College explores how
Ecological Design Thinking be used to create healthy systems and the conditions in which we
can all live well.
This programme has been developed with the School of Architecture, Design and Environment
at Plymouth University, with input from the School of Design at Carnegie Mellon University.
It offers a new framework for the ecological design of systems that is fit for the many challenges and opportunities of the 21st Century.

Application, Admissions and Fees >>

MA Ecological Design Thinking >>

We need ecological des ign centres in every

Postgraduate Diploma in Ecological Design Thinking >>

and s erve as repos itories of know -how and

Postgraduate Certificate in Ecological Design Thinking >>

MA and PG Diploma part-time options >>
Part-time programme details >>
For more information about this programme please email Schumacher.Ecodesign@dartington.org

region of the w orld to m id-w ife the trans ition

know w hy . . . Schum acher, the Dartington
Es tate, and Totnes could fill the role of
flags hip in that m ovem ent David Orr
I believe that Schum acher College is
uniquely qualified to redefine w hat Ecological
Des ign in the 21s t century ought to be
T erry Irwin, Profes s or and Head of
School of Des ign, Carnegie Mellon
Univers ity

Ecological Design Thinking

Good des ign needs to be built upon an

unders tanding of ecology and s ociety w ithin

This postgraduate programme in Ecological Design Thinking will help to create a global network of design

w hich des ign takes place. The ecos ys tem s

educators and practitioners able to respond to the pressing economic, social and ecological challenges of our

approach, at the heart of the new Mas ters in

times.
It will enable students to play an active role in the creation and transformation of human systems as we meet the
challenge of a transition to low carbon, high well-being and resilient world. Never has there been a more important
time for a new approach to design.

Ecological Des ign at Schum acher College,

places this ins ight as the s tarting point for the
des ign of all s ys tem s . Such a
trans form ational approach is urgently
needed.
T om Butterworth, Senior A dvis or for
Green Infras tructure, Natural England.

The programme is rooted in an exploration of ecosystem dynamics, trends and behaviour, and socio-cultural
systems and dynamics. It will focus on the design of the built environment and the connected ecological and social
systems and services, but students will also be encouraged to apply lessons from nature to the design of all of our
systems political, economic, educational and sociocultural.
Together in a collective enquiry, we will explore how transdiscplinary, collaborative teams can solve complex problems, and how using approaches from nature to shape
all of our relationships might help us to create healthy, durable, resilient, just, and prosperous communities.
Students will experiment with new ways of working first in studio where they will apply the principles of Ecological Design, and then through a series of short
placements with partner organisations. They will be introduced to facilitation and participation techniques, and will be involved in the co-production of both the design,
and the full lifecycle of projects.
There will be a particular focus in the studio sessions on the design of settlements and the connected ecological and social systems and services. Taught elements will
include input from leaders in the fields of ecological design, ecology, climate change, new economics and social change from around the world.
This programme is the fourth postgraduate programme to be developed at Schumacher College and will contribute to and enhance the ongoing collaborative inquiry into
sustainable living with faculty and students within the learning community.

Why Schumacher College?

Since 1991, Schumacher College has been pioneering radical new thinking in ecological design for sustainable living, attracting the leading teachers, practitioners and
activists from across the globe.
Schumacher College believes in a radical and rigorous approach to learning that develops the whole person through intellect, emotion, ethics and practice. We value
trans-disciplinary approaches, different ways of knowing and creative forms of expression.
Reflective enquiry, participatory learning methods, learning journals and personal development planning are among the tools we use in our small-group learning model.

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Ecological Design and Ecological Systems Theory | Schumacher College

Reflective enquiry, participatory learning methods, learning journals and personal development planning are among the tools we use in our small-group learning model.
In the last 20 twenty years we have inspired and supported thousands of organisations and individuals from many different countries in their quest to achieve a more
sustainable and equitable world. We have achieved this through the quality of our unique postgraduate programmes and internationally renowned short courses which
together create a rich and diverse learning community that extends across the globe.

Who is this course for?

We are delighted to receive your application whether you are coming directly from an undergraduate degree, taking time-out to study mid-career or wanting an
opportunity to develop your understanding of a practice that is of huge importance to all of our futures. You do not necessarily need a first degree in design to apply for
this course, we also encourage applications from community practitioners and activists as well as planners, architects and those working in policy. We will ask for a
portfolio in support of your application which can be a design portfolio, or a portfolio of project work.
We are looking for enthusiastic agents of change who are ready to co-design new approaches to the way we live that are socially just and ecologically sustainable. We
are looking for those prepared to take risks and stand on the cutting-edge of new practice in this area.
Schumacher College welcomes students from all over the world in its diverse mix of cultural experience and age that allows for rich peer to peer learning.

Studying at Schumacher College

What you will learn?
You will explore the relationship between ecological design thinking and the related disciplines of economics and ecology and their application to design;
The foundation of an ecological world view (ecology, deep ecology, systems thinking, complexity science, Gaia theory) and the application of living systems
principles to the design of systems, objects and places;
How to critique the neoclassical economic model from alternative schools of thought and its application to the design of systems, objects and places;
How to evaluate the relationship between the environment and built form, behaviour, well-being and resource consumption using both research evidence and case
studies;
You will develop personal and group enquiry practices to raise awareness of the interdependent relationship between the individual, society and nature and
between theory, experience and practice;
You will develop and enhance design, communication, facilitation and charrette skills in support of communities of place and interest
You will make use of a range of tools, methods and facilitation practices including co-production as a lifetime approach to project delivery;
You will co-create participatory practices, and theoretical principles for new approaches to the ecological design process that include a range of stakeholders in
the full lifecycle of projects and apply these both in studio, and in short placements on live projects;
You will also carry out an independent design or research project.

Special Features
A design programme rooted in deep ecological understanding and practice and informed by
cutting edge thinking in new economic approaches and social dynamics.
Access to some of the world leading thinkers and practitioner in Design, Gaia Theory,
complexity theory, climate science, systems thinking, new economics and social change.
Short practical placements with a range of partner organisations including the Transition Town
Network, the Atmos project, and the REconomy project.
An immersive, holistic and truly transformational teaching and learning approach within a living
and working community on the edge of the Dartington Estate in Devon.

Where you will go?

This programme aims to create a new generation of designers, entrepreneurs, policy-makers,
researchers, consultants and activists. Graduates will have the skills and knowledge to work for sustainable change in the public and private sectors as well as in civil
society, or to set up their own projects or organisations that will contribute to the transformation of society.

MA course programme
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Ecological Design and Ecological Systems Theory | Schumacher College

Module One: The Ecological Paradigm: Living Earth and the Anthropocene (20 credits)
Module Two: Social and Political Economy: From system maintenance to system transformation (20 credits)
Module Three: Ecological Design Thinking: Catalysing transformation (20 credits)
Module Four: Ecological Design Thinking in Practice 1: Transforming the story of place (30 credits)
Module Five: Ecological Design Thinking in Practice 2: Transformation in action (30 credits)
Dissertation (60 credits)

Faculty
Professor Seaton Baxter
Professor Seaton Baxter is a leading figure in ecological design and received his OBE for his services to the Scottish environment. Founder of the
Centre for the Study of Natural Design at the University of Dundee he has successfully supervised a wide range of masters and doctoral students
many of whom have gone onto to make significant contributions across the ecological design field. Seaton established his name as a leading
thinker and practitioner on the design of agricultural buildings and facilities for animal welfare, waste management and low carbon systems. He has
a long standing interest in building conservation and rurality.

Dr Simon Bradbury, Plymouth University School of Architecture, Design & Environment

Simon is a Lecturer in Architecture at Plymouth University and on the management group of the Institute of Sustainable Solutions Research. He
runs the Master of Architecture 1st year course, co-ordinates sustainable design across the department.
He has a background in both industry and Government. In Government he worked at the Commission for Architecture and the Built Environment
(CABE) where he was responsible for the commissioning of research to influence changes in policy on issues including sustainable
masterplanning, housing and the value of good design. He also was instrumental in developing CABEs policy and strategy on housing standards
and has given numerous lectures across the UK on the issue.
He is a registered Architect with over 10 years experience and has worked for internationally recognised Architecture and Urban Design practices.
He was responsible for the design of a number of award winning projects ranging in scale from large masterplanning projects to individual houses for government, third
sector and private clients.
Ruth Potts, development co-ordinator, MA Ecological Design Thinking
Ruth co-ordinated the development of the MA in Ecological Design Thinking at Schumacher College and is part of the teaching team. She is a cofounder of bread, print & roses, a collective engaged in seditious pamphleteering, radical walking, anarchist baking and transformative education.
Previously, Ruth was Campaign Organiser for the Great Transition at nef (the new economics foundation) where she co-developed a new model of
campaign designed to kick-start the decade -long transition to a new economy and society. She is the co-author of The New Materialism, covered
by the Guardian, The Daily Telegraph and the Financial Times, and a co-author of nefs Clone Town Britain reports. Ruth helped to organise the
Green New Deal Group in 2007 and managed the launch of the Groups First report, A Green New Deal, in July 2008. The concept was
subsequently taken up by UNEP, and influenced policy around the globe.
Ruth is a trustee of the Pioneer Health Foundation, the pioneering holistic model of health that influenced the World Health Organisation. She
brought together and co-hosts eco-feminist collective: the Hoydens, co-created and curated a series of events about the joy and intelligence of craft at the School of
Life: Practitioners Parlour, and more recently helped to devise a series of poetry events celebrating unusual spaces and liminal places: Somewhere in Particular.

Contributors
Other teachers of this programme include Satish Kumar, Stephan Harding, Philip Franses, Jonathan Dawson, Tim Crabtree and Julie Richardson from
Schumacher College, together with visiting experts and practitioners yet to be confirmed.

Application
Click here for details of the Fees & Application Process >>
Start date: January 2015

Partner institutions
School of Architecture, Design and Environment, Plymouth University
The School was formed in 2009 to establish a vibrant multi-and interdisciplinary portfolio of courses and programmes, supported by a culture of research and researchinformed teaching. The School has already won several prestigious international awards, has propagated a vibrant PGR community and receiving a special
commendation for research environment and strategy from the Royal Institute of British Architects (BA Architecture Revalidation 2012).

Associated institutions
School of Design, Carnegie Mellon University

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Carnegie Mellons School of Design is one of the oldest and most respected programs in North America, with a rich history in product, communication, and interaction
design. It is one of only a few design schools to offer education across the full spectrum of learning from pre-college to doctoral degrees in a research setting
renowned for its teaching innovations.

Transition Network
The Transition Network supports an international movement to inspire, encourage, connect, support and train communities and organisations to rebuild resilience and
reduce CO2 emissions.

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