Shaping a Sustainable Future: The Transformative Potential of Merging Design Thinking with Futures Thinking for Environmental Impact

Authors

Christina Fam Neseem, Teaching Assistant in Industrial Design Department at the Faculty of Applied Arts, Helwan University, CairoFollow
Rehab Elhebary, Head of Industrial Design Department at Faculty of Applied Arts, Helwan University, Cairo
Salwa Al-Gharibe, Emeritus Professor in Industrial Design Department at Faculty of Applied Arts, Helwan University and Former President of the International Academy of Engineering and Media Sciences - Former Secretary General of the Supreme Council of Universities

Abstract

This paper aims to understand how combining Design Thinking with Futures Thinking could foster environmental innovation and assist in developing a sustainable future. When the world faces such serious environmental challenges, the combination of the two methodoloies will be a strategic approach to attaining sustainable results. Consequently, Design Thinking that is mainly focused on human-centered solutions and Futures Thinking that is all about long-term vision when applied together create a solid structure for the present and future environmental challenges. The paper explores the typologies, the main conceptual components, and the methodologies that are associated with both approaches, demonstrating how combined effort can lead to the creation of novel, sustainable products and processes. It is therefore referred to as Futures-Embedded Design Thinking to indicate that every step in the process integrates futures thinking to come up with solutions that are not only innovative and feasible, but also resilient to future external conditions. Through the number of case studies presented, the research has confirmed that this integrated methodology would be useful in real-life scenarios and as a result, it is pointing out the possibility of contributing towards the global sustainability endeavors as well as making responsible impact in various sectors.

Recommended Citation

Neseem, Christina Fam; Elhebary, Rehab; and Al-Gharibe, Salwa (2025) "Shaping a Sustainable Future: The Transformative Potential of Merging Design Thinking with Futures Thinking for Environmental Impact," Journal of Art, Design and Music: Vol. 4 : Iss. 2 , Article 12.
Available at: https://doi.org/10.55554/2785-9649.1068

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