Design thinking is not just for professional designers. Anyone, including high school students, can find a way to apply creative problem-solving skills to important social problems.
And that's the point of School: By Design, as reported by Good's Allison Arieff. The youth-mentoring program, initatied by Design Ignites Change challenges high-schoolers in underserved communities to redesign their schools with the help of college or professional design mentors.
Their objective is to design a sustainable school -- but with an expanded definition of the word "sustainable." "In this program, 'sustainability' will extend beyond customary notions of green design and eco-friendliness, to the more meaningful aspects of cultural, social and economic sustainability," the site explains.
The winning high school wins $10,000 to be implemented toward their dream school. Deadline for registration is Dec. 31, 2010.
Those who want to help fund the prize can invest in this notebook, created by Mohawk Loop, which will donate 100% of the proceeds to the program.