Projects

Design Exchange Programme

Last updated 31 May, 2013

The intent of the Design Exchange Programme (DEP) is to offer government new tools for delivering on its commitments and responsibilities. Through a placement programme, strategic designers are embedded within project teams in Finland’s ministries and municipalities. These designers joined...
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DIVIDER detailsProject details

jaanaJaana Hyvärinen City of Helsinki, Department of Social Services August 2012—August 2013 Better public services: prototyping online...

DIVIDER outcomesOutcomes (as of June 2013)


Brickstarter

Last updated 29 May, 2013

Brickstarter was an exploration of a 21st century social service offering a new model for how we make shared decisions about shared spaces. It tested the exciting potential of crowdfunding and crowdsourcing against the practical realities of debating, governing, investing in, and ultimately...
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MORE: bsr blogThe Brickstarter project blog is the best place to find more information about the project. The introduction and background posts are good places to...

PartnersPartners Although this project was conducted without official partners, we are grateful for the involvement of all the groups who took time to share...

More text 1Brickstarter recognizes that the built environment entails such cost, lengthy timelines, and potential divisiveness that the ways we make choices...

DIVIDER moreMore resources


Open Kitchen

Last updated 29 May, 2013

Open Kitchen is an invitation—to a new meal, a new experience, a new Helsinki. We created a practical training programme for participants to learn the ins and outs of the food business in Finland: You bring the cooking skills, we teach you everything else. Open Kitchen was a tangible...
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Thursday 6/12/2012 Thursday 6/12/2012 Independance day !

header project detailsProject details

header scheduleSchedule

happening nowWhat's happening now? At the time of writing (June 2013) Haaga Helia, the main hospitality school in Helsinki, is exploring how they can offer Open...


Low2No

Last updated 29 May, 2013

Low2No is a design and construction project which seeks to deliver a more sustainable built environment, and lays a foundation for ecological urban living. Low2No is designed to engage the existing city; balance economy, ecology and society through strategic investments and interventions; and...
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scheduleSchedule Fall 2008 Sitra develops initiative vision and competition model March 2009 Low2No competition officially launched May 2009 Five...

compe: lowcarbonLow Carbon High Urban By Peter Rose & Partners, Michael Van Valkenburgh Associates, Guy Nordenson and Associates, Transsolar Climate Engineering...

DIVIDER outcomesOutcomes (as of June 2013)

Sitra roleSitra/HDLs Role Designed and funded Low2No competition; lead project team through city block design phases; initiated related projects (e.g. Open...


Clues to Open Helsinki

Last updated 18 March, 2012

A set of 19 'postcards from the future', written in 2010 to provoke thinking about the role of strategic design during Helsinki's World Design Capital 2012 year.
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letter pt.1Hello from Helsinki 2012, This site features a set of postcards that feature clues to an open and happier Helsinki. As a collaboration between Sitra...


Growing Västerbotten (HDL x UID)

Last updated 17 January, 2011

Umeå Institute of Design invited HDL to be part of their 'Prototyping the Future' experiment, a week where the school tests out new design practices. We hosted a Studio looking at regenration of Sweden's Västerbotten county where Umeå is located.
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Meet the TeamMeet the team!

TuesdayTuesday 09:00-12:00 Synthesis session: what do we know? 12:00-14:00 Lunch 14:00-18:00 Field visits / fact finding


Ageing Studio (2010)

Last updated 12 August, 2010

Most developed nations are going gray as their large boomer cohorts enter the later stages of life, and Finland will be amongst the first. HDL hosted a Studio on Ageing in the summer of 2010 to help understand what this will mean for Finland.
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Gray Gold1. Gray Gold The elderly have massive investment and purchasing power. How can this be activated to create new markets for products and services?...

Eliminate formal retirement age2. No formal retirement age Full-stop retirement is a concept designed for industrial society conceptions of labour and leisure. Why stop all at...

Social And Service NetworksSocial And Service Networks for care Who provides the care and services for their well-being?

Where to live?Where to live? Perhaps the most fundamental decision affecting the elderly


Education Studio (2010)

Last updated 12 August, 2010

Finland has one of the best education systems in the world. But how useful will this status be in an era with new challenges and new criteria for success? HDL developed the Studio on Education to think about the future of education by beginning with an unlikely starting point: school dropouts.
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DIVIDER 10 IDEAS10 ideas (in no particular order)

Discontinuation increased [everywhere] except for vocational education.

4. From administrative structures that are hierarchical and vertical to Ones that are inclusive, open and flexible4. From administrative structures that are hierarchical and vertical to ones that are inclusive, open and flexible

A standout kindergarten teacher is worth about $320,000 a year.


Sustainability Studio (2010)

Last updated 10 August, 2010

Sitra has been focused on sustainability with its Low2No competition and other efforts. The HDL Studio on Sustainability built upon these by sketching a national strategy for a carbon neutral built environment.
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Distribution of CO2 Emissions from Transport by Type 2002Distribution of CO2 Emissions from Transport by Type 2002

7. Invent Medium-Density Public Transport 7. Invent Medium-Density Public Transport Innovations in products and services catered to transportation within a medium-density population

2. Zero-Energy Homes for Key Gate- Keepers 2. Zero-Energy Homes for Key Gate- Keepers Enlist famous citizens from politics, business, sports, and culture to lead the transition away from...

5. Emphasize Small-Scale Natural Areas5. Emphasize Small-Scale Natural Areas Let nature seep into cities in small pockets.