Cross-Cultural Design

Cross-Cultural Design focuses on using design ethnography and cutting edge collaboration methods to understand users in different national cultures (U.S. and Chile) and to design appropriate solutions for these groups. The course is project-based with teams composed of Stanford University and Universidad Católica (UC) students working concurrently at both locations around a real design opportunity sponsored by an affiliate.

As Marcel Proust said, “The real voyage of discovery consists not in seeking new landscapes, but in having new eyes.”

Cross-cultural design this spring will focus on how to develop and share these “new eyes” in ways that can help coastal conservation in both Chile and California.  Chile, very similar to California in geography and climate, has spectacular, pristine wilderness, but Chileans often don’t know it, and are behind the curve in most environmental measures and green product offerings.  Californians know that we’ve lost some of our wilderness, and are considered pioneers of environmental action, but we’ve never experienced what our state might have been like totally unspoiled, and don’t know what true environmental success might look like.

Working together, students from Stanford and Universidad Católica will help each other see with new eyes, and discover economic opportunities to help conserve the coast in both places.

The application is now open and is due February 17th.