defining design thinking

As my analysis of Tangible Steps for Tomorrow for our Design Ethnography I module (finally) comes to fruition, I find myself waist deep in people—from designers to academics to journalists—trying to define what "design thinking" is.

Although I believe that most definitions go against the principles that design thinking is based on, I did particularly enjoy one attempt. Roger Martin, the Dean of the Rotman School of Management at the University of Toronto put it simply: "design thinking is about creating better things".

It is beautiful in its brevity and power.

For more information on design thinking and how it can be used to improve life, here is a fun video created by a group of students at Stanford's d.school, an article from the New York Times, and the video of Roger Martin mentioned above.