Sustainable Design – Kingston u3a members have been invited to take part in an exciting new project with our local university. The Senior Lecturer involved, Dr Jakob, has sent the following summary: During this autumn term, students studying for a Masters in Sustainable Design at Kingston School of Art, Kingston University, will be asked to develop design projects with the older population in mind, generating solutions that have benefits for this particular age group.

Questions to raise include:

• How might we revolutionise the way homes and communities are designed so the needs of older people are considered? • How might we enable the best possible quality of life when we grow older?

• How might we create more social opportunities for all, including those who are older?

To inform the development of the project, we are keen for students to engage directly with their target audience for primary research, to learn about lived experiences and gain insights about individual challenges in connection with growing older. We hope that relationships and collaborations will emerge between our students and members of Kingston u3a during the course of the project. This will include further meetings to provide feedback on the design development and opportunities for participation in the design process. For us it is immensely important that we don’t design for but with the end user.

Further information The researchers need about 10 volunteers who are able to attend the first meeting at the new Town House, Penrhyn Road, Kingston at 11am on Friday, 14 October. There will be about four further meetings, all on university premises, between then and Christmas, all on Fridays. If you are interested, please email Linda Foreman at linda@foto.co.uk.