Afrikan Design Thinking Convening 2026
Mon Jun 1, 09:00 - Wed Jun 3, 17:00
Event is online
ABOUT
This special Convening marks 10 years of the Hasso Plattner d-school Afrika at the University of Cape Town: A moment of reflection together with educators, leaders, and emerging voices from across the continent. This gathering invites collective sense-making and critical dialogue around Afrikan-centred design thinking, guided by the lenses Remember, Reframe, Rethink, Resolve, and Regenerate.
A key milestone will be the launch of the Afrikan Chapter of the Global Design Thinking Alliance, a significant step in elevating Afrikan visibility, collaboration and contribution within global design thinking communities.
Only virtual spaces are still available.
PROGRAMME
11:30 - 11:40: Energising / Onboarding virtual participants
11:40 -12:40: African Life-Centred Design: Beyond Human-Centred Design in an Age of Acceleration and Complexity
13:30 - 13:40: Warm-up & Focus / Onboarding virtual participants
14:30 - 15:15: Studios Gathering stories of design ingenuity from our diverse contexts
15:30 - 16:30: Launch of the Afrikan Chapter of the Global Design Thinking Alliance
16:30 - 17:00: Daily Harvest & Reflection
8:30 - 8:45: Creative Connection & Recap
8:45 - 9:45: The role of design thinking | education as a transformative pedagogy in higher education and society
9:45 - 10:45: Design Thinking Pedagogy in Practice: Enquiries and experiments in research, teaching and learning
9:00 - 9:30: Creative Connection & Recap
9:30 - 10:30: Design, Innovation, and Entrepreneurial Futures
10:30 - 11:00: From Insights to Action: framing collective enquiry on emergent topics, applying design thinking to challenges in our Contexts.
11:15 - 12:15: From Insights to Action: Collaborative exploration of chosen topics in Open Space studios)
13:15 - 13:45: Open Space Harvest
13:45 - 14:40: Leadership, Creativity and Complexity in Afrikan contexts
15:10 - 15:30: Presencing practice: What am I being called to do?
15:30 - 16:30: Collective Convergence: What does a transformative, regenerative design thinking practice look like that builds towards a thriving Future?
16:30 - 17:00: Closing Conversations, Gratitude and Action Day planning
Visit our Convening webpage to access the Afrikan Design Thinking Convening 2026 Virtual Programme.
CANCELLATIONS
Event Interruption and Force Majeure
D-school Afrika and University of Cape Town shall not be held liable for any delay or failure in performance of its obligations caused by events beyond its reasonable control. This includes, but is not limited to: acts of God, fire, flood, extreme weather, strikes, labor disputes, government regulations, war, terrorism, or public health emergencies.
In the event that the conference is cancelled, postponed, or moved to a virtual format due to Force Majeure:
- Cancellation: d-school Afrika will offer a refund of registration fees, minus any non-recoverable administrative and transaction costs.
- Postponement: Your registration will automatically be transferred to the new dates.