With ageing populations in some countries and youth booms in others, demographic changes are shaping realities across the world. But is design healing or perpetuating the generational divide? This panel looks at how public and digital spaces, workplaces, services and politics cater or don’t to different ages groups.
Hear from industrial designer and gerontologist Patricia Moore, one of the founders of the universal design philosophy and renowned for her experiment in the 1970s, when she disguised herself as a women in her 80s for three years to experience life as an older person. Also on the panel is, Zak Agnew, who currently sits on the Design Museum's Youth Board and manages partnerships and projects for inclusive creative careers resource Creative Lives in Progress. Anne Wynne, associate at DSDHA Architects, has worked on several projects that seek to create inclusive spaces for all ages, including the National Youth Theatre and a community centre, school, public realm, playgrounds for Camden Council. The talk will be chaired by Priya Khanchandani, an independent design curator, writer and broadcaster, who was until recently head of curatorial at the Design Museum.
Location: The Great Hall, King's College, London
This edition of the Global Design Forum is supported by our Digital Media Partner, STIR.
Should you have any access requirements, please contact us at rsvp@globaldesignforum.com to accommodate your visit.
SPEAKERS:
Patricia A Moore PhD, President, MooreDesign Associates holds undergraduate degrees in Industrial Design, Rochester Institute of Technology, completion of Advanced Studies in Biomechanics, NY University’s Medical School; graduate degrees in Psychology & Gerontology, Columbia University. Selected as one of The 40 Most Socially Conscious Designers in the world; featured as one of 50 Americans Defining the New Millennium (ABC World News). Named one of The 100 Most Important Women in America (2000), inducted into “INNOVATORS Hall of Fame” (2012), awarded Doctor of Fine Arts, Syracuse University, as a “guiding force for a more humane and livable world, blazing a path for inclusiveness, as a true leader in the movement of Universal Design” in 2012. Hasselt University awarded Moore a PhD (2019); Sheffield Hallam University in 2021. Honored with the Cooper Hewitt’s prestigious National Design Award as 2019; The Center for Health Design 2020 CHANGEMAKER Award. In 2022, the National Association of Schools for Art and Design honored Moore with their Citation Award and the World Design Organization selected Moore for the World Design Medal in 2022. The College of Creative Studies awarded Moore a PhD in 2022 and the Rochester Institute of Technology presented her with a Doctorate of Human Letters in 2024.
Anne Wynne joined DSDHA in 2019 and was made an Associate in 2023. She has worked on architectural, landscape and urban design projects at all stages, from sketch design to contract administration of construction works, and led on the placemaking strategy of the University of London’s Bloomsbury campus, including existing cultural and educational buildings and public spaces. As Project Architect for the redevelopment of the National Youth Theatre, Anne saw through the careful retrofit of the existing historic building and construction of a new entrance pavilion, undertaking extensive engagement with the theatre’s students and staff, and constructing with an economy of means. In the studio, Anne leads the Continual Professional Development (CPD) programme. Anne was nominated for the 2022 MJ Long Prize for Excellence in Practice for her work on the National Youth Theatre and has written on art and architecture for a number of publications. Anne completed her Bachelor of Architecture at Dublin School of Architecture DIT and is a registered architect in the UK
Zak Agnew currently manages partnerships at Creative Lives in Progress, an inclusive creative careers resource on a mission to transform the way emerging talent access, connect and understand the creative industry. His focus is on creating equitable access to the creative industries for underrepresented young people. He is also currently a member of the Youth Board at the Design Museum in London, contributing to conversations around inclusivity and youth access to public institutions. Previously, Zak has also worked on digital strategy, cultural research, and spatial advocacy with a key focus on exploring how public spaces can better serve young people both online and offline with Somerset House’s Digital Young Producers programme, and he also has a BA in History from Queen Mary University.
Priya Khanchandani (chair) is a design curator and writer, educated at the Royal College of Art and at Cambridge University and now working independently. Until recently the Head of Curatorial at the Design Museum in London, her projects include the celebrated exhibition The Offbeat Sari with an associated book published with Thames and Hudson. She also curated Design Museum exhibitions Bethany Williams: Alternative Systems, Yinka Ilori: Parables for Happiness and the blockbuster Amy: Beyond the Stage. Her biennial projects centre around interrogating narratives of identity and belonging through re-examining the existing canon of design, such as co-curating Pattern as Politics with Sam Jacob at Lisbon Architecture Triennial, and curating State of Indigo, the India Pavilion at London Design Biennial. Previously the first female Editor in Chief of celebrated architecture magazine Icon, Khanchandani was nominated for Fiona Macpherson New Editor of the Year. She has lectured at the Royal College of Art, Central Saint Martin's, London College of Fashion, appeared on BBC Radio 4's Front Row, Woman's Hour and BBC 1's Newsnight, and has been a Trustee of the Hepworth Wakefield for five years.
