Design e-Learning Platform for Collaborative Innovation. Long Life Learning for Italian “Know how” and…“Know why

E-learning, knowledge sharing, design education as a productive sector and collaborative innovation are all concepts that are key elements of this case study. One hundred design schools are now operating in Italy. Results, obtained from the first accurate research give a first benchmark of design learning and formation industry in Italy, in its wider meaning too (product design, fashion design and communications). One hundred schools and thousands of students are many or few? Are professional figures created by schools and their competencies suitable for market requests? What relations are there amidst schools, enterprises and institutions? Which problems or expectations are there in design schools today? The learning and education sector, as all industries, needs strategies, development policies, sustainment laws, qualification and promotional instruments, political attention. There is a particular focus here on the question of what role design should play in innovation in the future. Other key topics include the role of e-learning and of long life learning. Such roles are not always easy to explain, since they differ from case to case, but Design in Italy is – and will increasingly become – a definite value and a competitive tool. Design can and must be a fundamental part of every single company’s production, communication and distribution strategy. The e-learning platform launched by Università Telematica San Raffaele Roma’s “Design for Business & Business for Design” is intended to demonstrate that design is neither a sole interest nor an exclusive prerogative of large companies or those operating in sectors that have traditionally been design oriented. In fact, design driven education and innovation is a basic lever for competitiveness and internationalization that is available in every sector. Creating an e-learning platform is an important opportunity of building a new designing and community identity; a significant chance to meet and a landmark not only for professionals, but also for creative people working outside established enterprises (from every countries). Conclusions are about design education and possible future developments, the role of design as a key competitive variable for the system, the new professionals and the winning models: instances of success, failure and best practices.