Master in Design for Distributed Innovation

The 3rd Application Period for the academic year 2024/25 is now open until the 30th of April 2024

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A remote and on-site hybrid learning program focused on the intersection between design, technology, ecosystems and communities to improve interspecies wellbeing.

The Master in Design for Distributed Innovation (MDDI) is a distributed learning program focused on the intersection of design, technology, ecosystems and communities to improve interspecies wellbeing. It connects a global community of changemakers with local innovators in order to address complex challenges. Combining online and hands-on learning, it supports the development of the social and technical skills needed to develop projects for positive impact in local communities that aim for global transformational change.

Projects Incubation Roundtable 2023: Join the Future of Innovation

General information

FORMAT: Distributed and hybrid.
WHERE: Worldwide. Online and in-person in association with participating nodes globally & Fab Nodes
LENGTH: 10 months. From October to July / Part-time
LANGUAGE: English.
TUITION FEE: 12.000 EUR.
Fully Accredited by European Standards.

Admission Requirements: Bachelor or higher degree in Industrial Design, Product Design, Architecture and Urban Design, Graphic Design, Interaction Design, Computer Science, Engineering (Mechanical, Chemical, Product, Material), Sociology, Anthropology, Economy, and other related professions.

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A new way to approach design

Our Master in Design for Distributed Innovation is a hybrid learning experience with remote and in-person content that you can take from different FabLabs around the world so that you can impact locally in your society while connecting to a global community of change-makers.

Five reasons to apply for MDDI

Global community

Join the Fab City Network, connect with Fab Labs worldwide and collaborate with students and alumni from Fab Lab Barcelona and the Institute of Advanced Architecture of Catalonia.

Put local knowledge into practice

Use technology to drive innovation and create sustainable solutions in your community and cities.

Balance your life

Our flexible structure allows you to manage your studies, work and personal projects efficiently

Cutting-edge skills

Learn from top international faculty in design-driven innovation, gaining a comprehensive toolkit for real impact.

mAkE EU Horizon 2020: Makerspaces Digital Innovation Project

International European accreditation

Get a fully accredited European Master's degree without leaving your country.

Students profile

As a MDDI candidate, participants might be already working in the public or private sector, academic institutions or, may come from an entrepreneurial background having started their own business related to planetary restoration. The program aims to become a platform to boost and accelerate students’ capabilities to produce change in their own contexts, and to accelerate the transition towards a productive and sustainable model of production and consumption in their communities.

Creative industries & makers

Designers, Makers, Architects, Urbanists and Artists who want to expand their knowledge
by incorporating new design methodologies, technological skills and theoretical arguments to deploy in their personal and professional projects sustainably.

Entrepreneurs & social innovators

Professionals from all areas who wish to transform their ideas into social innovations or start their sustainable entrepreneurship by expanding their technical skills and design methods to become agents of positive change.

Government employees & NGOs

Professionals who are already making changes from inside in public services or non- governmental-organisations and want to accelerate the impact of policy by adopting an innovation culture.

Professional Opportunities

The program offers innovators and changemakers the opportunity to address global challenges in their working and living contexts to enable local transformation, by learning from and adapting global knowledge. MDDI graduates will have the possibility to integrate the knowledge acquired in the program in their working environments, or expand their research agenda after the program. At the same time, graduates with an existing business or initiative linked to the purpose of the program will have the opportunity to reinforce and scale up their reach, and incorporate new knowledge in their current mission. An MDDI graduate might change or develop a new department within their organisation, or find work as Head of Innovation, Director of Strategic Design, Head of Research and Development, CEO of their own startup, or lead transformation projects in public and civil organisations.

Alumni Testimonials

Explore alumni projects

Discover firsthand what our MDDI students experienced during their transformative journey. Hear their thoughts, challenges, and triumphs as they share how the Master in Distributed Design Innovation has impacted their lives and aspirations.

Program Structure

As a distributed program, MDDI students will experience a mix of online seminars with in-person mentorships and the production of physical prototypes in their local nodes. The program is structured in three modules of one trimester each, plus a final project implementation. Each module focuses on different levels of the Full Stack, which are developed in three tracks: Ecosystems, Communities and Technology.

Module 1: Why design?

The aim of this module is to establish a foundational layer of understanding of the implications of design in its relationship with natural, technological and social ecosystems, by giving students methodological tools to design valuable and meaningful solutions.

Module 2. How to design?

This module focuses on developing technical skills to develop sustainable and innovative design-systems based on the reconfiguration of technology, social dynamics and resources.

Module 3. Where to design?

In this last module, students will be introduced to different but integrated strategies of applying and developing innovative projects in an economic, social and environmental regenerative manner.

Final Project Implementation

During the last month, students have to develop and implement a final project in collaboration with its nodes ecosystem. The projects should be a positive solution that integrates the local ecosystem and community through technology, service or model.

MDDI Syllabus 23/24 MDDI Syllabus 22/23

Faculty/Experts

Directors

Tomas Diez

Executive Board at Fab City Foundation / Fab City Global Investigator / MDEF Director / Board of Trustees Member / MaCT Theory Guest Faculty

Tomas Vivanco

Architect, Master in Advanced Architecture IAAC/ PhD(c) Digital Futures, Tongji University/ Fab Lab Austral UC Director / Professor School of Design Pontifical Catholic University of Chile